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JFABD Admission of Homeless Students To the extent practical and as required by law, the
district will work with homeless students and their families to provide
stability in school attendance and other services. Special attention will be
given to ensuring the enrollment and attendance of homeless students not
currently attending school. Homeless students will be provided district
services for which they are eligible, including Head Start and comparable
pre-school programs, Title I, similar state programs, special education,
bilingual education, vocational and technical education programs, gifted and
talented programs, and school nutrition programs. Homeless students are defined as (per NCLB
definitions) lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence,
including: 1. Sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of
housing or economic hardship; 2. Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping
grounds due to lack of alternative adequate accommodations; 3. Living in emergency or transitional shelters; 4. Are abandoned in hospitals; 5. Awaiting foster care placement; 6. Living in public or private places not designed for
or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings; 7. Living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned
buildings, substandard housing, transportation stations, or similar settings; 8. Are migratory children living in conditions
described in previous examples. The Superintendent shall designate an appropriate
staff person to be the district’s liaison for homeless students and their
families. To the extent feasible, homeless students will
continue to be enrolled in their school of origin while they remain homeless
or until the end of the academic year in which they obtain permanent housing.
Instead of remaining in the school of origin, parents or guardians of
homeless students may request enrollment in the school in which attendance
area the student is actually living, or other schools. If there is an enrollment dispute, the student shall
be immediately enrolled in the school in which enrollment is sought, pending
resolution of the dispute. The parent or guardian shall be informed of the
district’s decision and their appeal rights in writing. Unaccompanied youth
will also be enrolled pending resolution of the dispute. Once the enrollment decision is made, the school
shall immediately enroll the student, pursuant to district policies. If the
student does not have immediate access to the immunization records, the
student shall be admitted under a personal exemption. Students and families
should be encouraged to obtain current immunization records or immunizations
as soon as possible, and the district liaison is directed to assist. Records
from student’s previous school shall be requested from the previous school
pursuant to the district policies. Emergency contact information is required
at the time of enrollment consistent with district policies. Homeless students are entitled to transportation to
their school of origin or the school where they are to be enrolled. If the
school of origin is in a different district, or a homeless student is living
in another district but will attend his or her school of origin in this
district, the districts will make reasonable efforts to coordinate the
transportation services necessary for the student. The district’s liaison for homeless students and
their families shall coordinate with local social services agencies that
provide services to homeless children and youths and their families; other
school districts on issues of transportation and records transfers; and state
and local housing agencies responsible for comprehensive housing
affordability strategies. The district’s liaison will also review and
recommend to the district policies that may act as barriers to the enrollment
of homeless students. Adopted: |