Juvenile court school pupils: graduation requirements and continued education options.

Existing law provides that if a pupil completes the statewide coursework requirements for graduation while attending a juvenile court school, a county office of education is required to issue to the pupil a diploma of graduation and shall not require the pupil to complete coursework or other requirements that are in addition to the statewide coursework requirements. This bill would, notwithstanding the above requirement, permit the pupil, upon agreement between the county office of education and the pupil or the person holding the right to make educational decisions for the pupil, to take coursework or other requirements adopted by the governing board of the county office of education, and to defer the granting of the diploma until the pupil is released from the juvenile detention facility. The bill would, upon the release from a juvenile detention facility of a pupil who is entitled to a diploma, permit the pupil or person holding the right to make educational decisions for the pupil to elect to decline the issuance of the diploma for the purpose of enrolling the pupil in a school operated by a local educational agency or charter school to take additional coursework, as specified. The bill would require the county office of education, when a juvenile court school pupil becomes entitled to a diploma, to notify the pupil, the person holding the right to make educational decisions for the pupil, and the pupil's social worker or probation officer of specified information, including, among other things, the pupil's or the education rights holder's, as applicable, option to allow the pupil to defer or decline the diploma and take additional coursework. The bill would authorize the filing of a complaint of noncompliance with these provisions to be filed with the local educational agency under the Uniform Complaint Procedures set forth in the California Code of Regulations. The bill would require, if a local educational agency finds merit in a complaint or if the Superintendent of Public Instruction finds merit in an appeal, the local educational agency to provide a remedy to the affected pupil. The bill would also require information regarding the requirements of these provisions to be included in a specified annual notification. To the extent the bill imposes new duties on local educational agencies, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.