(a) At the time and in the manner that a school district
or charter school informs students and parents about courses that
are offered in the district's or school's traditional classroom setting,
the district or school shall notify parents and students of the option
to enroll in an electronic course offered through the Texas Virtual
School Network (TxVSN).
(b) A school district or charter school in which a
student is enrolled as a full-time student may not deny the request
of a parent/legal guardian of a student to enroll the student in an
electronic course offered through the TxVSN, unless:
(1) a student attempts to enroll in a course load that
is inconsistent with the student's high school graduation plan or
requirements for college admission or requirements for earning an
industry certification;
(2) the student requests permission to enroll in an
electronic course at a time that is inconsistent with the enrollment
period established by the TxVSN course provider; or
(3) the district or charter school offers a substantially
similar course.
(c) Notwithstanding subsection (b)(2) of this section,
a TxVSN course provider shall make all reasonable efforts to accommodate
the enrollment of a student in the course under special circumstances.
(d) A parent/legal guardian may appeal to the commissioner
of education a school district's or charter school's decision to deny
a request to enroll a student in an electronic course offered through
the TxVSN.
(1) The parent shall submit a written request to the
commissioner within ten business days of receiving a final decision
in the local grievance process that the student was denied the opportunity
to enroll in an electronic course offered through the TxVSN in accordance
with guidelines established by the Texas Education Agency.
(2) An appeal under this section shall be based on
review of the local record developed in the grievance process.
(3) If the commissioner determines that a student was
unreasonably denied the opportunity to enroll in an electronic course,
the school district or charter school shall immediately enroll the
student in the electronic course or a similar course in accordance
with the enrollment windows established by the provider.
(4) The commissioner's decision under this section
is final and may not be appealed.
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