As used in this part:

1. (1)

   1. (A) “Alternative learning environment (ALE)” means a student intervention program consisting of an alternate class or program within a public school or school district that:

      1. (i) Affords all students an environment that seeks to eliminate traditional barriers to learning for students whose academic and social progress is negatively affected by the student's personal characteristics or situation; and
      2. (ii) Is not a punitive environment but is one that is conducive to learning.
   2. (B) For determination of funding only, an ALE is not a separate school even if the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education assigns the ALE a separate local education agency number;
2. (2) “Alternative learning environment hybrid program” means a program that provides ALE services through a combination of onsite and distance learning;

3. (3)

   1. (A) “Average daily membership (ADM)” means the:

      1. (i) Total number of days of school attended plus the total number of days absent by students in grades kindergarten through twelve (K-12) during the first three (3) quarters of each school year; divided by
      2. (ii) Number of school days actually taught in the school district during that period of time; and
      3. (iii) Rounded up to the nearest hundredth.
   2. (B) In those instances in which the ADM for fewer than three (3) quarters is specified, the number of days used in the calculation shall be the days in the specified period of time.

   3. (C) As applied to this part, students who may be counted for ADM are:

      1. (i) Students who:

         1. (a) (a) Reside within the boundaries of the school district;
         2. (b) (b) Are enrolled in a public school operated by the school district; and
      2. (c) (c) Are enrolled in a curriculum that fulfills the requirements established by the State Board of Education (“state board”) under the Rules Governing Standards for Accreditation of Arkansas Public Schools and School Districts, 6 CAR pt. 61;

      3. (ii) Legally transferred students living outside the school district but who are:

         1. (a) (a) Attending a public school in the school district under a provision of the Arkansas Code; and
         2. (b) (b) Enrolled in a curriculum that fulfills the requirements established by the State Board of Education under the Rules Governing Standards for Accreditation of Arkansas Public Schools and School Districts, 6 CAR pt. 61;
      4. (iii) Open-enrollment public charter school students who are enrolled in a curriculum that fulfills the requirements established by the State Board of Education under the Rules Governing Standards for Accreditation of Arkansas Public Schools and School Districts, 6 CAR pt. 61;

      5. (iv) Students who:

         1. (a) (a) Are eligible to attend;
         2. (b) (b) Reside within the boundaries of a school district; and
      6. (c) (c) Are enrolled in the Arkansas National Guard Youth Challenge Program, so long as the students are participants in the program;
      7. (v) Students who reside within the boundaries of the school district but due to geographic barriers attend school out-of-state under a tuition agreement, even if they are not enrolled in a curriculum that fulfills the requirements established by the State Board of Education under the Rules Governing Standards for Accreditation of Arkansas Public Schools and School Districts, 6 CAR pt. 61; or
      8. (vi) Any other circumstance allowed by law;

4. (4) “Classroom teacher” means:

   1. (A) An individual who is:

      1. (i) Required to hold a teaching license from the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education; and
      2. (ii) Working directly in instruction with students in a classroom setting for more than seventy percent (70%) of the individual's contracted time;
   2. (B) A guidance counselor; or
   3. (C) A librarian;
5. (5) “Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) district” means a school district that is identified by the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education as participating in the special assistance certification and reimbursement alternative implemented under 42 U.S.C. § 1759a;
6. (6) “Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) district base year” or “base year” means the last school year for which individual student free or reduced-price meal eligibility determinations were made;

7. (7) “Eligible alternative learning environment (ALE)” means an alternative learning environment (ALE) approved by the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education pursuant to 6 CAR § 272-205 as being in compliance with:

   1. (A) Arkansas Code § 6-48-101 et seq.; and
   2. (B) This part;

8. (8) “Eligible ALE student” means a student who:

   1. (A) Meets the qualifications of 6 CAR § 272-202;
   2. (B) Is enrolled in an eligible ALE program; and
   3. (C) Has been enrolled in an eligible ALE for a minimum of twenty (20) consecutive days per school year except as provided in 6 CAR § 272-206(c)(4)(A);

9. (9) “English-language learners (ELL)” means students identified as not proficient in the English language based upon approved English proficiency assessment instruments, which measure proficiency in and comprehension of English in:

   1. (A) Reading;
   2. (B) Writing;
   3. (C) Speaking; and
   4. (D) Listening;
10. (10) “Intervention services” means activities within or outside a school that will eliminate traditional barriers to learning;

11. (11) “National school lunch students” means those students from low socioeconomic backgrounds as indicated by eligibility for free or reduced-price meals under the United States Department of Agriculture's National School Lunch Program as determined on October 1 of each previous school year and submitted to the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education, unless the district is a:

    1. (A) Provision 2 district; or
    2. (B) Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) district;
12. (12) “NSLA” means the National School Lunch Act, 42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.;
13. (13) “Open-enrollment public charter school” means a public school operating under the terms of a charter granted by the State Board of Education pursuant to the Arkansas Quality Charter Schools Act of 2013, Arkansas Code § 6-23-101 et seq.;
14. (14) “Previous year” means the school year immediately preceding the current school year;

15. (15)

    1. (A) “Professional development” means a coordinated set of planned learning activities that:

       1. (i) Improve the knowledge, skills, and effectiveness of teachers;

       2. (ii) Address the knowledge and skills of administrators and paraprofessionals concerning effective instructional:

          1. (a) (a) Strategies;
          2. (b) (b) Methods; and
       3. (c) (c) Skills;
       4. (iii) Lead to improved student academic achievement; and

       5. (iv) Are:

          1. (a) (a) Evidence-based;
          2. (b) (b) Standards-based; and
       6. (c) (c) Continuous.
    2. (B) Training activities for school bus drivers may also be included;
16. (16) “Provision 2 district” means a school district that is identified by the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education as participating in the special assistance certification and reimbursement alternative implemented under 42 U.S.C. § 1759a;
17. (17) “Provision 2 district base year” or “base year” means the last school year for which individual student free or reduced-price meal eligibility determinations were made;

18. (18) “School district” or “district” means:

    1. (A) A geographic area that:

       1. (i) Qualifies as a taxing unit for purposes of ad valorem property taxes under:

          1. (a) (a) Arkansas Code § 26-1-101 et seq.; and
          2. (b) (b) Arkansas Constitution, Article 14, § 3; and

       2. (ii) Is either:

          1. (a) (a) Governed by an elected board of directors; or
          2. (b) (b) Under the administrative control of the State Board of Education or the Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education, hereafter “commissioner”, in place of an elected board of directors; or
    2. (B) An open-enrollment public charter school, as defined in Arkansas Code § 6-23-103;

19. (19) “School year” means the year:

    1. (A) Beginning July 1 of one (1) calendar year; and
    2. (B) Ending June 30 of the next calendar year;
20. (20) “Students at risk” means those students demonstrating an ongoing persistent lack of meeting grade-level expectations in literacy and mathematics; and

21. (21) “Technology” means any equipment for instructional purposes that is electronic in nature, including but not limited to:

    1. (A) Computer hardware;
    2. (B) Computer software;
    3. (C) Internet connectivity; and
    4. (D) Distance learning.