School-year prekindergarten program delivered by public schools.

(1) Each school district may administer the Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program at the district level for students enrolled under s. 1002.53(3)(c) in a school-year prekindergarten program delivered by a public school.

(2) Each school-year prekindergarten program delivered by a public school must comprise at least 540 instructional hours.

(3)(a) The district school board of each school district shall determine which public schools in the district may deliver the prekindergarten program during the school year.

(b) Each public school delivering the school-year prekindergarten program must execute the statewide provider contract prescribed under s. 1002.73, except that the school district may execute a single agreement with the early learning coalition on behalf of all district schools.

(4) Each public school must have, for each prekindergarten class, at least one prekindergarten instructor who meets each requirement in s. 1002.55(3)(c) for a prekindergarten instructor of a private prekindergarten provider.

(5) Each prekindergarten instructor employed by a public school delivering the school-year prekindergarten program must be of good moral character, must be screened using the level 2 screening standards in s. 435.04 before employment and rescreened at least once every 5 years, must be denied employment or terminated if required under s. 435.06, and must not be ineligible to teach in a public school because his or her educator certificate is suspended or revoked. This subsection does not supersede employment requirements for instructional personnel in public schools which are more stringent than the requirements of this subsection.

(6) A public school prekindergarten provider may assign a substitute instructor to temporarily replace a credentialed instructor if the credentialed instructor assigned to a prekindergarten class is absent, as long as the substitute instructor is of good moral character and has been screened before employment in accordance with level 2 background screening requirements in chapter 435. This subsection does not supersede employment requirements for instructional personnel in public schools which are more stringent than the requirements of this subsection. The department shall adopt rules to implement this subsection which shall include required qualifications of substitute instructors and the circumstances and time limits for which a public school prekindergarten provider may assign a substitute instructor.

(7) Each prekindergarten class in a public school delivering the school-year prekindergarten program must be composed of at least 4 students but may not exceed 20 students. In order to protect the health and safety of students, each school must also provide appropriate adult supervision for students at all times and, for each prekindergarten class composed of 12 or more students, must have, in addition to a prekindergarten instructor who meets the requirements of s. 1002.55(3)(c), at least one adult prekindergarten instructor who is not required to meet those requirements but who must meet each requirement of subsection (5).

(8) Each public school delivering the school-year prekindergarten program must register with the early learning coalition on forms prescribed by the department and deliver the Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program in accordance with this part.

(9)(a) Each early learning coalition shall verify that each public school delivering the Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program within the coalition’s service area complies with this part.

(b) If a public school fails or refuses to comply with this part or engages in misconduct, the department shall require the school district to remove the school from eligibility to deliver the Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program and receive state funds under this part for a period of at least 2 years but no more than 5 years.