GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2005

S                                                                                                                                                    D

SENATE DRS55299-LEz-245A*  (4/10)

Short Title:     New Foreign Lang. in Schools/Pilot Program.		(Public)
Sponsors:	Senators Hagan,  Lucas, Cowell, Malone, Garwood, Hartsell, Stevens, and Swindell.
Referred to:

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT to implement a recommendation of the joint legislative education oversight committee to appropriate funds to develop and implement a pilot program to provide classes in foreign languages currently not taught and in the culture, geography, political, legal, and economic systems of countries where those languages are spoken.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Public Instruction the sum of one million dollars ($1,000,000) for the 2006‑2007 fiscal year to establish and implement a pilot program in six local school administrative units to offer classes in which instruction is provided (i) in foreign languages currently not taught in the public schools, (ii) on the culture, geography, political, legal, and economic systems of the countries where those languages are spoken, and (iii) on the Internet in order to make these classes available to other local school administrative units.

The State Board of Education, with the assistance of the Department of Public Instruction, shall select pilot local school administrative units that are distributed geographically throughout the State. Up to two high schools in each pilot unit shall implement the program. Classes shall begin in the second semester of the 2006‑2007 school year.

The State Board of Education shall approve the curriculum for the pilot program and for the Internet courses on an expedited basis.

SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2006.