3.47 Student Residency
(See also Transfer Policy)
The purpose of Jenks Public Schools is to serve the educational interests of students residing within the District boundaries. This includes homeless students, students who are not documented citizens, and students whose parents/guardians are not documented citizens. The District will not inquire into a student or parent/guardian’s citizenship status as a part of enrollment and will only use information regarding a student’s living situation to better serve the student.
Definitions
"Residence," "residency" and "legal residence" mean the student's present place of abode, provided that it is a place where important family activities (such as sleeping, eating, working, relaxing, and playing) take place during a significant part of each day. Mere presence alone is not sufficient to establish residency. Documentary evidence that may be submitted to establish residency is identified below.
Person having “legal custody” means a person who is legally responsible for the care of the child pursuant to the order of a court or placement by a governmental agency responsible for making custody determinations and/or placements.
As used in this policy, the phrase “permanent care and custody” means a person who has assumed the care and custody of the child on a continuous and ongoing basis with the intent not to relinquish such care and custody until the child reaches age 18.
Basic Residency Requirements
State law provides that a child’s residence for school purposes is the District in which the (1) parents, (2) guardian, or (3) person having legal custody of the child holds legal residence. Children who are foster children are granted residency in the District if they attended the District prior to entering foster care, if their current/prior foster family is/was a resident of the District, or if another child in their current foster home attends school in the District pursuant to a transfer. The District does not permit students to establish residency based on the mere affidavit of a person who has assumed permanent care and custody of the child under Okla. Stat. Tit. 70§ 1-113 or based on an attorney in fact affidavit under Okla. Stat. Tit. 10§ 700.
Procedures for Resolving Residency Disputes
The District recognizes there may be occasions when there is a dispute regarding residency. Upon enrollment in the school system the District will verify the student is a resident of the District or is otherwise entitled to attend school in the District for any reason authorized by law. As a part of this verification process, the District will obtain an address from each student or the student’s parent, guardian, person having legal custody of the child. In providing an address to the District that is within the District’s boundaries the student and student’s parent, guardian, or person having legal custody of the child represent that this address is the student’s residence. The District may also require, in order to verify residency, certified copies of court orders, guardianship documents, written agreements and any other information deemed relevant by the District.
If at any time an administrator of the District has a reasonable belief that the reported residence may not be the residence of the child for purposes of school attendance, the administrator shall notify the student’s parent, guardian, or person having the care and custody of the child that there is a question regarding the legal residency of the student. The student’s parent, guardian, or person having legal custody of the child shall be given an opportunity to submit information regarding the student’s residency to the District’s Residency Officer. All notices required by this policy shall be in writing. Additionally, reasonable alternative arrangements for documenting communications will be made for those persons who are visually impaired or otherwise unable to communicate in writing.
Information or documentation to prove student residency in the District shall include but not be limited to proof of provisions of utilities, payments of ad valorem taxes, local agreements or contracts for purchasing/leasing housing, driver’s licenses, income tax returns, notes, mortgages, divorce decrees, contracts and any other source of proof which is not in conflict with statutory provisions relating to the residence of students.
Any question or dispute as to the residence of a student not deemed to be a “homeless student” shall be determined by the District Residency Officer, the Superintendent or designee, or the District’s Board of Education pursuant to the following procedures:
The student’s parent, guardian, or person having legal custody of the child must notify the District Residency Officer in writing of the review request within five (5) calendar days from the date of written denial of admittance or from the date of written notification that the student is considered not to be a resident of the District. Upon receipt of a request for review, the District Residency Officer shall allow the parent, guardian or person having legal custody to provide additional pertinent information in accordance with the District’s criteria and the statutory provisions regarding residency. This information must be submitted with the request for review.
The District Residency Officer must render a decision and notify the student’s parent, guardian, or person having legal custody of the child of the decision and reasoning therefore in writing within five (5) calendar days of the receipt of the request for review.
In the event the student’s parent, guardian, or person having legal custody of the child disagrees with the District Residency Officer’s decision, such person shall notify the District Residency Officer in writing within five (5) calendar
In an effort to place students in school as quickly as possible, timelines shall be followed unless due to emergency circumstances both parties agree to an extension of timelines.
Other Policy Provisions
Hearings involving more than one (1) student where students are related or residing in the same household may, at the discretion of the District Residency Officer and the Board of Education, be consolidated.
In the event the residency dispute involves an eighteen (18) year old student, all notices will be delivered to the student because at eighteen (18) the student ceases to be a minor.
If already enrolled and attending school in the District, a student or students involved in a dispute related to the student’s residency may remain in school until available appeals are exhausted, unless the appeal has not been filed in the manner and within the time permitted by this policy.
The District Residency Officer shall be in charge of maintaining the files related to a residency dispute, ensuring that the principals or others directly involved in such a dispute forward their records of the dispute following their involvement, and otherwise keeping all communications involving the dispute intact. The Residency Officer of the District is the Executive Director for Student Services.
The Board of Education understands that there may be some instances where residency may be established on a date other than the date the student was enrolled in the District. For any period during which a student is enrolled in the District, but is not a resident of the District, the District may charge tuition if it is established that the student’s parent, guardian, or person having the care and custody of the child knew or should have known that the child or children who are the subject of the residency dispute were not residents of the District. The tuition shall be based on a per capita cost of educating a student in the District during the preceding year. This issue may be raised along with other issues related to the residency dispute and shall be heard in the same manner.
The District reserves the right to require reverification of student residency at the beginning of each school term.
A copy of this policy shall be provided to the student’s parent, guardian, or person having legal custody of the child as soon as possible following the inception of any residency dispute.
A . Students in Foster Care
The District Foster Care Education Liaison will collaborate with child welfare agencies and tribal child welfare agencies to ensure stability in education for students in foster care as outlined in Title I of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). Students in foster care have the same access to free, appropriate public education as other children and that students in foster care are not separated from the mainstream school environment because of foster care placement.
Enrollment of Students in Foster Care
Foster care parents, social workers or other legal guardians will be allowed to immediately enroll children in the District. The District understands that all necessary paperwork (birth certificates, shot records, academic records, special education records, etc.) may not be immediately available and wants to provide a smooth transition for the student into the District. The District will contact the child’s home school District for records and make adaptations as needed. The District will work with the Foster Care Liaison and the foster care parent/guardian to enroll the student.
B. Homeless Children and Youth
The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (the “Act”) applies to all children and youth who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, such as a children living in homeless shelters, domestic violence shelters, runaway and homeless youth shelters, transitional living facilities, cars, campgrounds, motels or children and youth living doubled up, and homeless and migratory children.
The Act provides that homeless children and youth:
do not need a permanent address to enroll in school;
have a choice of school placement;
cannot be denied school enrollment because school records or other enrollment documentation are not immediately available;
have the right to participate in all federal, state, or local programs and activities for which they are eligible;
cannot be isolated or separated from the mainstream school environment; and
have the right to receive prompt resolution of any dispute regarding educational placement.
Therefore, in accordance with the Act, the District shall make reasonable efforts to identify homeless children, encourage their enrollment, and eliminate existing barriers to their education that may exist. The District will not stigmatize or segregate homeless students and youth, and these students shall have access to the same public school programs available to other students of the District. The District will identify and provide equal access to secondary education and support systems for homeless students, runaway youths and youths separated from public schools. The District will also work to identify and remove those barriers which prevent youths from receiving appropriate credit for full or partial coursework satisfactorily completed while attending a prior school.
Federal law provides that homeless children and youth, individually or through a parent or guardian, may choose to attend the school in the area in which they are currently living. The District’s Homeless Liaison will determine whether a student is a homeless child or youth for purposes of establishing residency and promptly advise the parent, guardian or person having legal custody of the child of the decision, both orally and in writing, if possible. If there is no such person, the District’s Residency Officer will advise the student. The District will enroll each homeless student and permit his or her full participation in all school programs, whether or not the student is accompanied by a parent, guardian or person having custody of the child, and without proof of residence, current immunizations and traditional enrollment documentation, such as school records and medical/immunization records. The District’s Homeless Liaison may assist the student and school in obtaining those items. A parent, guardian or person having legal custody of the child who disagrees with the Homeless Liaison’s determination may appeal the decision to the District Residency Officer under the procedure identified in this policy. If there is no parent, guardian or person having legal custody of the child available, the student may appeal the decision.
The District shall provide for educational services for homeless children to the extent required by Public Law 100-77, Title VII, Subsection B.
Appeals Procedures for Homeless Children and Youth
The District will make every effort to resolve disputes regarding homeless children at the lowest level possible by utilizing the following process:
1. At the time a homeless student seeks enrollment, the District will notify the student or his/her family of these procedures and provide the student/family with a copy of this policy.
2. The District will promptly notify the District’s Homeless Liaison that a homeless student seeks enrollment, and will seek to involve the Homeless Liaison in decisions regarding the student’s education.
3. Students/families who disagree with a decision regarding the student’s education may meet with the Homeless Liaison for an informal resolution. The Homeless Liaison will notify the student/family that a written complaint may be submitted within five (5) calendar days (or longer if agreed upon by the parties).
4. If the Homeless Liaison receives a written complaint, the Homeless Liaison will prepare a decision (plan of action) and provide it to the student/family within five (5) calendar days of receipt of the written complaint. The Homeless Liaison will also notify the student/family of the right to appeal to the superintendent.
Students/families who are still dissatisfied with a decision regarding the student’s education may file a written appeal with the Superintendent or designee within five (5) calendar days of receipt of the Homeless Liaison’s plan. The Superintendent or designee will meet with the student/family within five (5) calendar days of receipt of the appeal. The Superintendent or designee will issue a decision within five calendar (5) days of the meeting with the student/family. The Superintendent or designee will also notify the student/family of the right to appeal to the board of education.
Students/families who are still dissatisfied with a decision regarding the student’s education may file a written appeal with the board of education by submitting a written notice to the superintendent within five (5) days of the superintendent’s decision. The appeal will be placed on the next agenda (or the following agenda, if the appeal is received after the agenda posting deadline) and the board’s decision is final at the District level. Students/families who are still dissatisfied with a decision regarding the student’s education may file an appeal with the Oklahoma State Department of Education utilizing the procedures established by the OSDE.
The District will use a standard form provided by the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) at enrollment to identify any student who is a homeless child or youth. The form will be completed by the parent(s) or guardian(s) of a student or by the student if he or she is not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian. The District shall report this data to the OSDE no later than June 1 of each year.
The homeless status of a child or youth may be verified by the district’s McKinney-Vento homeless liaison. Verification, at a minimum, shall consist of the following steps:
The child or youth shall be known to the person verifying his or her housing status; and
If verifying the status of a child or youth under eighteen (18) years of age, the person verifying shall:
a check the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) for the name of the child or youth,
send a letter by return receipt mail to the last known address of the parent(s) or legal guardian(s) of the child or youth informing the parent or legal guardian that the person verifying is assisting the child or youth in obtaining a REAL ID NoncompliantIdentification Card, which shall be valid for four (4) years from the month of issuance, and
if no response from the parent or legal guardian objecting to the child or youth obtaining a REAL ID Noncompliant Identification Card is received within fifteen (15) business days, the person may prepare written verification stating that the child or youth is homeless.
The written verification shall be printed on the district’s letterhead and shall be dated and signed by the person verifying the status and notarized.
C. Students with Active-Duty Military Parents or Legal Guardians and Transitioning Military Children
Definitions:
“Children of military families” means a school-aged child(ren), enrolled in kindergarten through twelfth grade, in the household of an active duty member.
“In loco parentis” means an individual who assumes parental status and responsibilities for a person under the age of 18 without formally adopting that person.
“Active duty” means full-time duty status in the active uniformed service of the United States, including members of the National Guard and Military Reserve on active duty orders pursuant to Title 10, Sections 1209 and 1211 of the United States Code.
“Military installation” means a base, camp, post, station, yard, center, homeport facility for any ship or other installation under the jurisdiction of the Department of Defense or the United States Coast Guard.
“Military student” means the child of a military family for whom the local education agency receives public funding and who is formally enrolled in kindergarten through twelfth grade.
“Transition” means (a) the formal and physical process of transferring from school to school or (b) the period of time in which a student moves from one school in the sending state to another school in the receiving state.
“Sending state” means the state from which a child of a military family is sent, brought, or caused to be sent or brought.
“Receiving state” means the state to which a child of a military family is sent, brought, or caused to be sent or brought.
“Uniformed service(s)” means the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard as well as the Commissioned Corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Public Health Services.
Establishing Residency
A student shall be considered in compliance with residency provisions of this policy and state law if a student whose parent or legal guardian is transferred or is pending transfer to a military installation within the state while on active military duty pursuant to an official military order. The parent or legal guardian of such a student must provide proof of residence in the school District within ten (10) days after the published arrival date provided on their official documentation. The following may be used to establish proof of residency:
a temporary on-base billeting facility,
a purchased or leased home or apartment, or
federal government or public-private venture off-base military housing.
State law provides that transitioning military children placed in the care of a noncustodial parent or other person standing in loco parentis, may attend school in the school district in which the noncustodial parent or person standing in loco parentis to the transitioning military child holds legal residence. Similarly, transitioning military children placed in the care of a noncustodial parent or other person standing in loco parentis may continue to attend the school in which the student was enrolled while residing with the custodial parent. A special power of attorney relating to the guardianship of a military child and executed under applicable law shall be sufficient for purposes of enrollment and all other actions requiring parental participation and consent.
Enrollment
For a student whose parent or legal guardian is transferred or is pending transfer to a military installation within the state while on active military duty pursuant to an official military order, the District shall accept applications by electronic means, including enrollment in a specific school or program within the District and course registration. The District will promptly accept unofficial or “hand-carried” educational records and transcripts in lieu of official education records and transcripts for transitioning military children. Upon receipt of such records, the District will promptly enroll the transitioning military child. However, upon enrollment, the District will request official educational records and transcripts from the school in the sending state. The District’s residency officer will determine whether a student is a transitioning military student for purposes of establishing residency and promptly advise the parent or other person standing in loco parentis of the decision, both orally and in writing, if possible. A parent or other person standing in loco parentis who disagrees with the residency officer’s determination may appeal the decision to the Board of Education under the procedure identified above.
Grade Level Placement
Transitioning military children, including children entering kindergarten, shall be able to enroll in the same grade level in which they were enrolled in the sending state, regardless of age, time of transfer or age requirements of the receiving state.
Course Level and Educational Program Placement
To the extent that the District is in a receiving state, the District may subsequently perform course placement and educational program evaluations of a transitioning military student. However, the District will initially place the transitioning military student in courses and programs comparable to those in which the student was a participant while in the sending state.
Extracurricular Activities
When appropriate, the District will provide transitioning military children the opportunity to participate in extracurricular participation, regardless of application deadlines.
Immunizations
Transitioning military children shall have thirty (30) days from the date of enrollment to obtain any immunizations required by Oklahoma law. For a series of immunizations, such children must obtain initial vaccinations within thirty (30) days.
Tuition
The District may not charge tuition to a transitioning military child placed in the care of a noncustodial parent or other person standing in loco parentis who lives in a school district other than that of the custodial parent if the parent or other person standing in loco parentis lives within the boundaries of the District.
Reference: 42 U.S.C. §11301 et seq., Okla. Stat. Tit. 70 § 1-113, 70; Okla. Stat. §510.1., Okla. Stat. Tit. 70, § 8-103.1; Okla. Stat. Tit. 70, § 1210.210; 10 O.S. § 601.6d; Okla. Stat. Tit. 74, § 151.3
Revised by the Board of Education December 2009
Revised May 2011
Revised April 2016
Revised February 2018
Revised October 2021
Revised September 2024