Enrollment Refresher: Required Documents, Residency, and Schools of Choice

School begins soon, and now is a great time to review general student enrollment and records requirements for new and transferring students.

First Time Enrollment and Proof of Identity and Age

The Revised School Code (RSC) Section 1135 requires a school to notify the person enrolling a student for the first time that they must provide, within 30 days, either: (1) a copy of the student’s birth certificate; or (2) other reliable proof, as determined by the school, of the student’s identity and age, and an affidavit explaining the inability to provide a birth certificate. School officials must immediately report to local law enforcement any affidavit that appears inaccurate or suspicious in content or form.

If the person enrolling the student fails to provide the requested documents within 30 days, the school must send written notice to the person that the school will refer the matter to law enforcement if the documents are not provided within 30 days of that written notice. If the person still fails to provide the requested documents, the school must notify local law enforcement.

Records Transfer

Within 14 days of enrolling a transfer student, RSC Section 1135 requires a school to request in writing a copy of the student’s school record, including any disciplinary records, from the student’s previous school. The previous school must send the records within 30 days of receiving the request unless the record has been tagged as belonging to a missing person under RSC Section 1134. If the record is tagged, the previous school must notify law enforcement that the tagged record was requested.

Special Education Records

The IDEA requires a student’s new school to take reasonable steps to promptly obtain the student’s records and a student’s former school to promptly respond to a request for such records. Parental consent is not required to disclose such records to a school in which the student is seeking enrollment. Special education records include IEPs, evaluations, documentation from outside providers, and supporting documents.

Residency

For education purposes, a student is a resident of any district within which a parent or legal guardian resides, regardless of custody status. A school may require reasonable verification of residency, which may include an affidavit, utility bill, or voter registration.

A child living in a licensed home or in a relative’s home for the purpose of securing a suitable home and not for an educational purpose is a resident of the school district in which the student lives. A “relative” is a parent, grandparent, brother, sister, stepparent, step-grandparent, stepsister, stepbrother, uncle, aunt, first cousin, great aunt, or great uncle by marriage, blood, or adoption. Schools may require verification, such as an affidavit, that a student is living with a relative because the parent is unable to provide the student with a suitable home.

The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act defines homeless to include a student who lacks a fixed, regular, adequate nighttime residence, or who is an unaccompanied youth not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian. McKinney-Vento requires that a homeless student be enrolled immediately even if there is no documentation of residency, other records, or immunization. Under the Michigan Pupil Accounting Manual, the student is considered a resident of the enrolling district.

Enrolling Non-Resident Students

Generally, to enroll a non-resident student, a district must obtain a release from the resident district to count that student for state aid purposes. The State School Aid Act (SSAA) allows an enrolling district to count non-resident students in membership without resident district approval only under specific circumstances.

Schools of choice is one way to enroll and count non-resident students without a release. Participation in schools of choice is voluntary. The SSAA allows districts to enroll two types of non-resident students under schools of choice: (1) those who reside in the same ISD (Section 105), and (2) those who reside in a contiguous ISD (Section 105c). A district may participate in either Section 105 or Section 105c choice, both, or neither. If a district participates in schools of choice, it must comply with all aspects of the statute or risk forfeiting 5% of its total state aid allocation. For more information about schools of choice requirements, please see the Schools of Choice Refresher in the December 2023 issue of School Law Notes.

Enrollment issues can be tricky, and it is important to gather all relevant information before determining whether a student can be enrolled and counted in your district’s membership. Resolving outstanding issues before school begins – and long before count day – will ensure a smooth start to the school year. If you have enrollment questions, contact a Thrun attorney for guidance.