CSSB 120(EDC): "An Act establishing in the Department of Education and Early Development a voluntary parent and early childhood education program for pre-elementary aged children."
00 CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 120(EDC) 01 "An Act establishing in the Department of Education and Early Development a 02 voluntary parent and early childhood education program for pre-elementary aged 03 children." 04 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05 * Section 1. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section 06 to read: 07 SHORT TITLE. This Act may be known as the Alaska Parents as Teachers Act. 08 * Sec. 2. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 09 read: 10 PARENTS AS TEACHERS PROGRAM ESTABLISHED. (a) The department shall 11 devise and implement a statewide parents as teachers program for the benefit of children who 12 are under five years of age. The program must provide a system of early childhood education 13 that 14 (1) is evidence-based;
01 (2) involves parents; 02 (3) is consistent with available research and best practices for high quality 03 early childhood education; 04 (4) incorporates guidelines adopted by the department for early learning that 05 (A) enhances school readiness; 06 (B) increases parent understanding of child development and 07 developmental milestones; 08 (C) reduces the incidence of child abuse and neglect; 09 (D) increases identification of health problems and developmental 10 delays through regular screenings; 11 (E) improves child health indicators, including immunization rates; 12 (F) increases parental involvement; and 13 (5) provides for effective and efficient coordination with or expansion of pre- 14 elementary education programs operating in the state, to the extent permitted by law. 15 (b) A school district shall, to the extent space is needed and available, provide for the 16 use of a room in a school at no charge to support the program established under this section. 17 (c) The department may develop and enter into local partnerships to implement the 18 program established under this section. 19 (d) On or before January 15, 2015, the department shall provide a report to the 20 legislature on the effectiveness and participation rates of the program established in this 21 section. The report must include a comparison of performance of participants and 22 nonparticipants. 23 (e) The program established under this section terminates on July 1, 2015. 24 (f) In this section, "department" means the Department of Education and Early 25 Development.