2018 Tennessee Code
Title 49 - Education
Chapter 13 - Tennessee Public Charter Schools Act of 2002
§ 49-13-113. Enrollment.

(a) Participation in a public charter school shall be based on parental choice or the choice of the legal guardian or custodian.

(b)

• (1) A public charter school shall enroll an eligible pupil who submits a timely application, unless the number of applications exceeds the capacity of a program, class, grade level, or building.

• (2) An enrollment preference shall be provided to students that attended the charter school during the previous school year.

• (3) If the number of applications exceeds the capacity of a program, class, grade level, or building, the charter school shall select students through a lottery. The enrollment preference for returning students provided in subdivision (b)(2) shall exclude those students from entering into a lottery.

• (4) If an enrollment lottery is conducted, a public charter school shall give enrollment preferences in the following order:

  • (A) Students enrolled in a pre-K program operated by the charter school sponsor;

  • (B) Students enrolled in a charter school that has an articulation agreement with the enrolling public charter school; provided, that the articulation agreement has been approved by the chartering authority;

  • (C) Siblings of students already enrolled in the public charter school;

  • (D) Students from a group or groups set forth in § 49-13-106(b)(1)(C) if the public charter school has been approved with the focus of serving such students;

  • (E) Students residing within the LEA in which the public charter school is located who were enrolled in another public school during the previous school year; and

  • (F) Students residing outside the LEA in which the public charter school is located.

• (5) A public charter school may give an enrollment preference to children of a teacher, sponsor, or member of the governing body of the charter school, not to exceed ten percent (10%) of total enrollment or twenty-five (25) students, whichever is less.

• (6) Any non-charter public school converting partially or entirely to a public charter school under § 49-13-106 shall give enrollment preference to students who reside within the former attendance area of that public school. Parents whose children are enrolled in the existing public school to be converted shall have the option to enroll their children in another public school operated by the LEA without penalty. The enrollment preference for students who reside within the former attendance area excludes those students from entering into a lottery.

• (7) Students living in other school zones may enroll in a conversion charter school after those living in the school zone have the opportunity to enroll, but only if there is program, class, grade level, and building capacity to serve the out-of-zone students. If applications by out-of-zone students exceed the charter school's capacity, then enrollment of out-of-zone students shall be determined on the basis of a lottery. Out-of-zone students who attended the school the previous school year and such students' siblings may be given preference in enrollment. Parents whose children are enrolled in the existing public school to be converted shall have the option to enroll their children in another public school operated by the LEA without penalty.

• (8)

  • (A) A charter school shall provide to the department of education certification by an independent accounting firm or by a law firm that each lottery conducted for enrollment purposes complied with the requirements of this section. In lieu of such certification, a charter school may request that the department of education review and approve the lottery process.

  • (B) The charter school shall comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (20 U.S.C. § 1232g), with respect to the publication of any students' names before, during, or after the enrollment and lottery process.

• (9) The state board of education is authorized to promulgate rules concerning lottery enrollment. The rules shall be promulgated in accordance with the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5.