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92_HB3732
LRB9211186NTdv
1 AN ACT relating to education.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing
5 Sections 3-15.12 and 26-2 as follows:
6 (105 ILCS 5/3-15.12) (from Ch. 122, par. 3-15.12)
7 Sec. 3-15.12. High school equivalency testing program.
8 The regional superintendent of schools shall make available
9 for qualified individuals residing within the region a High
10 School Equivalency Testing Program. For that purpose the
11 regional superintendent alone or with other regional
12 superintendents may establish and supervise a testing center
13 or centers to administer the secure forms of the high school
14 level Test of General Educational Development to qualified
15 persons. Such centers shall be under the supervision of the
16 regional superintendent in whose region such centers are
17 located, subject to the approval of the State Superintendent
18 of Education.
19 An individual is eligible to apply to the regional
20 superintendent of schools for the region in which he resides
21 if he is: (a) a person who is 18 years of age or older, has
22 maintained residence in the State of Illinois and is not a
23 high school graduate, but whose high school class has
24 graduated; (b) a member of the armed forces of the United
25 States on active duty who is 17 years of age or older and who
26 is stationed in Illinois or is a legal resident of Illinois;
27 (c) a ward of the Department of Corrections who is 17 years
28 of age or older or an inmate confined in any branch of the
29 Illinois State Penitentiary or in a county correctional
30 facility who is 17 years of age or older; (d) a female who is
31 17 years of age or older who is unable to attend school
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1 because she is either pregnant or the mother of one or more
2 children; (e) a male 17 years of age or older who is unable
3 to attend school because he is a father of one or more
4 children; (f) a person who is successfully completing an
5 alternative education program under Section 2-3.81 or,
6 Article 13A, or Article 13B; (g) a person who is enrolled in
7 a youth education program sponsored by the Illinois National
8 Guard; or (h) a person who is 17 years of age or older who
9 has been a dropout for a period of at least one year. For
10 purposes of this Section, residence is that abode which the
11 applicant considers his home. Applicants may provide as
12 sufficient proof of such residence a picture identification
13 card and two pieces of correctly addressed and postmarked
14 mail. Such regional superintendent shall determine if the
15 applicant meets statutory and regulatory state standards. If
16 qualified the applicant shall at the time of such application
17 pay a fee established by the State Board of Education, which
18 fee shall be paid into a special fund under the control and
19 supervision of the regional superintendent. Such moneys
20 received by the regional superintendent shall be used, first,
21 for the expenses incurred in administering and scoring the
22 examination, and next for other educational programs that are
23 developed and designed by the regional superintendent of
24 schools to assist those who successfully complete the high
25 school level test of General Education Development in
26 furthering their academic development or their ability to
27 secure and retain gainful employment, including programs for
28 the competitive award based on test scores of college or
29 adult education scholarship grants or similar educational
30 incentives. Any excess moneys shall be paid into the
31 institute fund.
32 Any applicant who has achieved the minimum passing
33 standards as established by the State Board of Education
34 shall be notified in writing by the regional superintendent
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1 and shall be issued a high school equivalency certificate on
2 the forms provided by the State Superintendent of Education.
3 The regional superintendent shall then certify to the Office
4 of the State Superintendent of Education the score of the
5 applicant and such other and additional information that may
6 be required by the State Superintendent of Education. The
7 moneys received therefrom shall be used in the same manner as
8 provided for in this Section.
9 Any applicant who has attained the age of 18 years and
10 maintained residence in the State of Illinois and is not a
11 high school graduate but whose high school class has
12 graduated or any ward of the Department of Corrections who
13 has attained the age of 17 years, any inmate confined in any
14 branch of the Illinois State Penitentiary or in a county
15 correctional facility who has attained the age of 17 years,
16 or any member of the armed forces of the United States on
17 active duty who has attained the age of 17 years and who is
18 stationed in Illinois or is a legal resident of Illinois, or
19 any female who has attained the age of 17 years and is either
20 pregnant or the mother of one or more children, or any male
21 who has attained the age of 17 years and is the father of one
22 or more children, or any person who has successfully
23 completed an alternative education program under Section
24 2-3.81 or, Article 13A, or Article 13B and meets the
25 requirements prescribed by the State Board of Education, is
26 eligible to apply for a high school equivalency certificate
27 upon showing evidence that he has completed, successfully,
28 the high school level General Educational Development Tests,
29 administered by the United States Armed Forces Institute,
30 official GED Centers established in other states, or at
31 Veterans' Administration Hospitals or the office of the State
32 Superintendent of Education administered for the Illinois
33 State Penitentiary System and the Department of Corrections.
34 Such applicant shall apply to the regional superintendent of
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1 the region wherein he has maintained residence, and upon
2 payment of a fee established by the State Board of Education
3 the regional superintendent shall issue a high school
4 equivalency certificate, and immediately thereafter certify
5 to the State Superintendent of Education the score of the
6 applicant and such other and additional information as may be
7 required by the State Superintendent of Education.
8 Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section, any
9 applicant who has been out of school for at least one year
10 may request the regional superintendent of schools to
11 administer the restricted GED test upon written request of:
12 The director of a program who certifies to the Chief Examiner
13 of an official GED center that the applicant has completed a
14 program of instruction provided by such agencies as the Job
15 Corps, the Postal Service Academy or apprenticeship training
16 program; an employer or program director for purposes of
17 entry into apprenticeship programs; another State Department
18 of Education in order to meet regulations established by that
19 Department of Education, a post high school educational
20 institution for purposes of admission, the Department of
21 Professional Regulation for licensing purposes, or the Armed
22 Forces for induction purposes. The regional superintendent
23 shall administer such test and the applicant shall be
24 notified in writing that he is eligible to receive the
25 Illinois High School Equivalency Certificate upon reaching
26 age 18, provided he meets the standards established by the
27 State Board of Education.
28 Any test administered under this Section to an applicant
29 who does not speak and understand English may at the
30 discretion of the administering agency be given and answered
31 in any language in which the test is printed. The regional
32 superintendent of schools may waive any fees required by this
33 Section in case of hardship.
34 In counties of over 3,000,000 population a GED
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1 certificate issued on or after July 1, 1994 shall contain the
2 signatures of the State Superintendent of Education, the
3 superintendent, president or other chief executive officer of
4 the institution where GED instruction occurred and any other
5 signatures authorized by the State Superintendent of
6 Education.
7 (Source: P.A. 92-42, eff. 1-1-02.)
8 (105 ILCS 5/26-2) (from Ch. 122, par. 26-2)
9 Sec. 26-2. Enrolled pupils below 7 or over 16. Any
10 person having custody or control of a child who is below the
11 age of 7 years or above the age of 16 years and who is
12 enrolled in any of grades 1 through 12, in the public school
13 shall cause him to attend the public school in the district
14 wherein he resides when it is in session during the regular
15 school term unless he is excused under paragraphs 2, 3, 4 or
16 5 of Section 26-1.
17 A school district shall deny reenrollment in its
18 secondary schools to any child above the age of 16 years who
19 has dropped out of school and who could not, because of age
20 and lack of credits, attend classes during the normal school
21 year and graduate before his or her twenty-first birthday. A
22 district may, however, enroll the child in an alternative
23 learning opportunities program established under Article 13B.
24 No child shall be denied reenrollment for the above reasons
25 unless the school district first offers the child due process
26 as required in cases of expulsion under Section 10-22.6. If
27 a child is denied reenrollment after being provided with due
28 process, the school district must provide counseling to that
29 child and must direct that child to alternative educational
30 programs, including adult education programs, that lead to
31 graduation or receipt of a GED diploma. No child may be
32 denied reenrollment in violation of the Individuals with
33 Disabilities Education Act or the Americans with Disabilities
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1 Act.
2 (Source: P.A. 92-42, eff. 1-1-02.)
3 (105 ILCS 5/Art. 13B rep.)
4 Section 10. The School Code is amended by repealing
5 Article 13B.
6 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
7 becoming law.