N.Y. Education Law § 612: Liberty partnerships

§ 612. Liberty partnerships. 1. The commissioner shall award grants

for the purpose of providing support services to students enrolled in

public and non-public schools who are identified as having a high risk

of dropping out of school. Such awards shall be made on a competitive

basis to degree-granting institutions of higher education or consortia

of degree-granting higher education institutions in cooperation with

school districts and not-for-profit community-based organizations. In

addition, in areas of the state where no degree-granting institution or

consortium of degree-granting institutions of higher education can

provide appropriate services to students, the commissioner may award

grants to not-for-profit community-based organizations in cooperation

with school districts.

a. All grant applications shall contain the following program

elements:

(1) a program for identifying students who are at-risk of dropping out

as measured by academic performance, attendance, discipline problems,

and other factors affecting school performance including but not limited

to teenage pregnancy or parenting, residence in a homeless shelter or

temporary living arrangement, substance abuse, child abuse or neglect,

or limited English proficiency;

(2) a program for encouraging the use of volunteers and facilitating

parent involvement where possible and involvement of current or former

liberty scholarship recipients as peer or mentor counselors in programs;

and

(3) a program to provide for continuity of services throughout a

student's progression through secondary school.

b. In awarding such grants, the commissioner shall give priority to

applications that:

(1) provide services to school districts receiving an apportionment

under subdivision twenty-five of section thirty-six hundred two of this

chapter;

(2) provide services to schools identified by the commissioner as in

need of assistance pursuant to the comprehensive assessment report;

(3) provide services to rural schools with students at risk;

(4) replicate model programs of demonstrated effectiveness, including

models that provide for small group partnerships with low student-staff

ratios. The commissioner shall identify model programs with proven

effectiveness and shall make such models available to grant applicants;

(5) demonstrate a high level of institutional commitment to programs

in fields relevant to counseling and mentoring, including but not

limited to education, social work, psychology and sociology and the

extent to which such institution shall involve faculty members and

graduate/professional students from such degree programs;

(6) the need for such services in the area the institution proposes to

serve; and

(7) the degree to which the institution proposes to cooperate with

school districts and not-for-profit community based organizations to

provide services and insure continuity of such services until such

students graduate from high school or receive a high school equivalency

diploma.

c. Services for non-public school students shall be provided at sites

other than sectarian non-public schools.

2. Services. Funds available under this section shall be used for

compensatory and support services to students who are identified as

being at risk of dropping out of school. Services to be provided under

this section may include skills assessment, tutoring, academic and

personal counseling, family counseling and home visits, staff

development activities for personnel with direct responsibility for such

students and mentoring programs.

3. Allowable costs. Allowable costs under this program shall include,

but not be limited to: salaries of program personnel, including graduate

student stipends; transportation costs for students and program

personnel; instructional materials; reimbursement to school districts

for release time granted to employees while participating in the

planning and development of activities funded pursuant to this section;

training of program personnel; costs related directly to program

provisions, including summer and weekend activities; and administrative

costs directly attributable to the program.

4. a. For school years commencing in nineteen hundred eighty-nine--

ninety and thereafter, the amount that shall be made available for

funding liberty partnership grants shall be equal to four percent of the

base year enrollment of children in public and non-public schools in New

York state in grades seven through twelve, as computed in accordance

with regulations of the commissioner, multiplied by seven hundred fifty

dollars, provided, however, that notwithstanding the foregoing, the

amount that shall be made available for funding liberty partnership

grants for the nineteen hundred eighty-nine--ninety, nineteen hundred

ninety--ninety-one and nineteen hundred ninety-one--ninety-two school

years shall be twenty-five percent, fifty percent, and seventy-five

percent, respectively, of the amount to be provided pursuant to this

subdivision.

b. The grant recipients shall provide students at public and nonpublic

schools the opportunity to receive compensatory and support services in

an equitable manner consistent with the number and need of the children

in such schools.

5. Regulations. The commissioner shall adopt regulations for the

implementation of this section.

6. Annual report. The commissioner shall prepare an annual report

evaluating the programs funded under this section and under sections

sixty-four hundred fifty-four and sixty-four hundred fifty-five of this

chapter and making appropriate recommendations. The report shall be

submitted on or before December first, to the governor, the temporary

president of the senate and the speaker of the assembly.