SB 608

Prior year pupil attendance requirement

Under current law, a pupil must meet at least one of the following criteria to be

eligible to participate in the statewide parental choice program (also known as the

Wisconsin Parental Choice Program) or the Racine Parental Choice Program: 1) the

pupil was enrolled in a public school in the previous school year; 2) the pupil was not

enrolled in school in the previous school year; 3) the pupil attended a private school

in the WPCP, RPCP, or Milwaukee Parental Choice Program in the previous school

year; 4) the pupil was on a waiting list to attend a private school in the WPCP, RPCP,

or MPCP in the previous school year; 5) the pupil attended school in another state

in the previous school year; or 6) the pupil is enrolling in kindergarten, first grade,

or ninth grade in the current school year. This requirement is known as the prior

year pupil attendance requirement.

Under the bill, a pupil who attended a private school under the Special Needs

Scholarship Program in the previous school year satisfies the prior year pupil

attendance requirement to participate in the WPCP or RPCP.

Pupil transfers from the RPCP or MPCP to the WPCP

This bill creates an exception to the application period for the WPCP for a pupil

1) who was participating in the RPCP or MPCP; 2) whose residence changed from the

Racine Unified School District or Milwaukee Public Schools school district to a school

district in this state other than RUSD or MPS; and 3) who, after the change in

residence, wants to participate in the WPCP.

Under current law, a private school participating in the WPCP may accept

applications for the following school year between the first weekday in February and

the third Thursday in April. Current law provides an exception to this application

period that allows the Department of Public Instruction, between the first weekday

in August and the third Friday in August, to transfer a pupil's application from one

private school participating in the WPCP to another private school participating in

the WPCP if all of the following apply:

1. The pupil applied to participate in the WPCP during the immediately

preceding application period.

2. A private school participating in the WPCP accepted the pupil's application

and verified that the pupil is eligible to participate in the WPCP.

3. The pupil's residence changed after the end of the immediately preceding

application period and on or before the third Friday in August, and, after the change,

the pupil resides in a school district in this state other than RUSD or MPS.

4. The private school to which the pupil's application is transferred has space

available in the pupil's grade.

5. After the change, the pupil resides in a school district that has not exceeded

its pupil participation limit in the WPCP.

The bill provides a similar exception to the WPCP application period for a pupil