Students in Foster Care

From the Oregon Department of Education website:

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of 2015 outlines that State Educational Agencies (SEA) hold specific responsibilities aimed at supporting the educational rights and opportunities of students in Foster Care; this also falls within requirements established under Title I, Part A (Title I) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). 

Foster Care student rights include:

• access to immediate enrollment in schools regardless of access to records or additional requirements;
• free transportation to and from school;
• access to free meal services, and
• support engaging in academically and socially enriching activities offered by their school district.

Within this context, Foster Care is defined as substitute care for children placed by the Department of Human Services or a tribal child welfare agency away from their parents and for whom the department or agency has placement and care responsibility, including:

• Placements in foster family homes,
• Foster homes of relatives,
• Group homes,
• Emergency shelters,
• Residential facilities,
• Child care institutions and
• Pre-adoptive homes

Enrollment Policies

Roseburg Schools follows the Immediate Enrollment OAR 581-021-0019 as stated below. Roseburg Schools will continue to update policies and disseminate that information out to school personnel who need the information to make sure immediate enrollment occurs. 

Immediate Enrollment

When a student in foster care changes schools, Local Education Agencies (LEAs) must ensure that a student in foster care is immediately enrolled in the new school district even if the student does not have the required documentation. The enrolling school must then contact the student's prior school district for relevant records. LEAs should review and revise policies and practices to remove any barriers to immediate enrollment for students in foster care.

Immediate enrollment means that a student in foster care be enrolled on the day the foster parent initiates enrollment for the foster student in the new school district. Prompt attendance in a new school is important to prevent educational discontinuity. In addition, enrollment must not be denied or delayed for any population of students (e.g., justice-involved youth in foster care, students with disabilities receiving special education and related services, or English Language Learners receiving language services) because documents normally required for enrollment have not been provided.

In addition to ensuring immediate enrollment, LEAs should also ensure that students in foster care are regularly attending and fully participating in school and that their educational needs are being met. An inter-district transfer agreement (OAR 581-021-0019) is not required for a foster care student school district/school of origin enrollment. 

ORS 339.133 Determination of residency of student for school purposes 
4(b) if a Juvenile Court makes a determination that it is not in the best interest of the individual to continue attending the school district of origin, the individual shall be immediately enrolled in a new school, even if the individual is unable to produce records nonnally required for enrollment.