(1) By a date to be determined by rule of the state board for the 2006-07 budget year and each budget year thereafter, any school district may apply to the department for participation in the Colorado preschool program using forms provided by the department. Along with the application, the school district shall submit a proposal for the implementation of its district preschool program, which shall include, but need not be limited to, the following information requested by the department:

(a) The number of eligible children to be served in the district preschool program;

(b) Whether the district preschool program will be a four-and-one-half-month, nine-month, or twelve-month program;

(c) Whether the district preschool program will be provided by the school district itself or provided, in whole or in part, by a head start agency or one or more child care agencies under contract with the school district;

(d) If the district preschool program is to be provided by the school district:

(I) The number of schools in the school district that would be involved in the district preschool program;

(II) The number of additional personnel needed to staff the district preschool program;

(III) The training program for preschool teachers;

(e) If the district preschool program is to be provided, in whole or in part, by a head start agency or child care agencies under contract with the school district:

(I) The head start agency or child care agencies with which the school district will contract;

(II) The terms of the contracts;

(III) The procedure to be used to monitor the district preschool program being provided to the school district by the head start agency or child care agencies;

(f) The extended day services, if any, to be provided in connection with the district preschool program;

(f.3) The plan for coordinating the district preschool program with family support services for children participating in the program and their families;

(f.4) The plan for involving the parent or parents of each child enrolled in the district preschool program in participation in the program;

(f.7) The plan for coordinating the district preschool program with a parenting program;

(g) The plan for involving parents and the community in the district preschool program; and

(h) The procedure to be followed to evaluate the current and continuing effectiveness of the district preschool program.

(1.4) For the 2008-09 budget year and each budget year thereafter, a school district that applies to the department to participate in the Colorado preschool program by offering a nine-month program may apply for permission from the department to receive funding for a nine-month program but to use up to half of the moneys allocated for the program to prepare, during the first half of the school year, to offer a preschool program and to use the remainder of the moneys to offer, during the second half of the school year, a four-and-one-half-month preschool program.

(1.5) Repealed. / (Deleted by amendment, L. 2006, p. 689, § 31, effective April 28, 2006.)

(2) The state board shall establish, by rule, criteria for determining which school districts shall be eligible for participation in the Colorado preschool program. The state board may consider any or all of the following:

(a) The number of eligible children to be served by the district preschool program;

(b) The number of schools in the school district or the number of head start agencies or child care agencies that would be involved in the district preschool program;

(c) The dropout rate of the school district;

(d) The test scores of children in kindergarten and the primary grades within the school district;

(e) The community involvement in the school district; and

(f) The demographic and geographic distribution of school districts making application for or participating in the Colorado preschool program throughout the state.

(3) The department shall evaluate each school district's application, using the criteria established pursuant to subsection (2) of this section as well as the proposal of the school district for the implementation of the district preschool program based upon the criteria established pursuant to section 22-28-108. The department shall give priority to school districts with proposals that include exemplary plans for the coordination of the district preschool program with family support services, to school districts with proposals that indicate efforts to collaborate with public and private child care agencies located in the school district, and to school districts with proposals that demonstrate the greatest degree of community involvement. By a date to be determined by rule of the state board for the 2006-07 budget year and for each budget year thereafter, the department shall determine the school districts that have been accepted for participation in the Colorado preschool program. To comply with the limitations on the number of children that may participate in the Colorado preschool program, the department shall set the maximum number of pupils in the district preschool program for each participating school district.

(4) (a) Upon the request of a school district, the department shall provide, subject to available resources, such technical assistance as may be necessary for the school district to submit a proposal for the implementation of its district preschool program and for ongoing training of personnel for the successful implementation of the program.

(b) The department shall annually select a reasonable number of school districts that have implemented preschool programs pursuant to this article and shall conduct on-site visits to determine whether:

(I) Each school district's screening process and the eligibility criteria for children participating in the district preschool program comply with all applicable state law;

(II) The district advisory council established pursuant to section 22-28-105 complies with all applicable state law; and

(III) The school district's quality assurance activities, evaluation efforts, and financial activities regarding the district preschool program comply with all applicable state law.