Section 408 – Eligible private schools.

Effective 5/4/2022
53E-7-408. Eligible private schools.

• (1) To be eligible to enroll a scholarship student, a private school shall:
  • (a) have a physical location in Utah where the scholarship students attend classes and have direct contact with the school’s teachers;
  • (b)
    • (i) contract with an independent licensed certified public accountant to conduct an Agreed Upon Procedures engagement as adopted by the state board, or obtain an audit and report from a licensed independent certified public accountant that conforms with the following requirements:
      • (A) the audit shall be performed in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards;
      • (B) the financial statements shall be presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles; and
      • (C) the audited financial statements shall be as of a period within the last 12 months; and
    • (ii) submit the audit report or report of the agreed upon procedure to the state board when the private school applies to accept scholarship students;
  • (c) comply with the antidiscrimination provisions of 42 U.S.C. 2000d;
  • (d) meet state and local health and safety laws and codes;
  • (e) provide a written disclosure to the parent of each prospective student, before the student is enrolled, of:
    • (i) the special education services that will be provided to the student, including the cost of those services;
    • (ii) tuition costs;
    • (iii) additional fees a parent will be required to pay during the school year; and
    • (iv) the skill or grade level of the curriculum in which the prospective student will participate;
  • (f)
    • (i) administer an annual assessment of each scholarship student’s academic progress; and
    • (ii) report the results of the assessment described in Subsection (1)(f)(i) to the scholarship student’s parent;
  • (g) employ or contract with teachers who:
    • (i) hold baccalaureate or higher degrees;
    • (ii) have at least three years of teaching experience in public or private schools; or
    • (iii) have the necessary skills, knowledge, or expertise that qualifies the teacher to provide instruction:
      • (A) in the subject or subjects taught; and
      • (B) to the special needs students taught;
  • (h) maintain documentation demonstrating that teachers at the private school meet the qualifications described in Subsection (1)(g);
  • (i) require the following individuals to submit to a nationwide, fingerprint-based criminal background check and ongoing monitoring, in accordance with Section 53G-11-402, as a condition for employment or appointment, as authorized by the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006, Pub. L. No. 109-248:
    • (i) an employee who does not hold a current Utah educator license issued by the state board under Chapter 6, Education Professional Licensure;
    • (ii) a contract employee; and
    • (iii) a volunteer who is given significant unsupervised access to a student in connection with the volunteer’s assignment; and
  • (j) provide to the parent of a scholarship student the relevant credentials of the teachers who will be teaching the scholarship student.

• (2) A private school is not eligible to enroll scholarship students if:
  • (a) the private school requires a student to sign a contract waiving the student’s rights to transfer to another qualifying school during the school year;
  • (b) the audit report submitted under Subsection (1)(b) contains a going concern explanatory paragraph; or
  • (c) the report of the agreed upon procedures submitted under Subsection (1)(b) shows that the private school does not have adequate working capital to maintain operations for the first full year, as determined under Subsection (1)(b).

• (3) A home school is not eligible to enroll scholarship students.

• (4) Residential treatment facilities licensed by the state are not eligible to enroll scholarship students.

• (5) A private school intending to enroll scholarship students shall submit an application to the state board.

• (6) The state board shall:
  • (a) approve a private school’s application to enroll scholarship students, if the private school meets the eligibility requirements of this section; and
  • (b) publish on the state board’s website, a list of private schools approved under this section.

• (7) A private school approved under this section that changes ownership shall:
  • (a) submit a new application to the state board; and
  • (b) demonstrate that the private school continues to meet the eligibility requirements of this section.

Amended by Chapter 262, 2022 General Session