As students head back to school, Education Law Center (ELC) has compiled and updated a number of “Back-to-School” resources and reminders about laws and policies that families and schools should be aware of this year.
If you have questions about a particular issue at your school, please call ELC’s helpline at 215-238-6970 (Eastern/Central PA) or 412-258-2120 (Western PA).
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Topics covered in this guide include:
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- Enrollment
- School Discipline
- Truancy
- Bullying and Harassment
- Students with Disabilities
- Early Childhood Education
- Students Involved in the Foster Care or Juvenile Justice Systems
- Students Experiencing Homelessness
- English Learners & Immigrant Students
- LGBTQ & Gender-Nonconforming Students
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Back-to-School Basics
Students have the right to be enrolled in school within five days of submitting only four documents: proof of the child's age, proof of where the child lives, immunization records, and a sworn statement of disciplinary record. Schools must be flexible in the types of documents accepted to satisfy these requirements. For example, parents do not need to provide a lease to prove residency. Students who are experiencing homelessness or are in foster care are entitled to immediate enrollment without these documents.
Schools may not require additional information before enrolling a child; e.g. they cannot require state ID, proof of citizenship, nor ask for a Social Security number.
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What's New?
Starting
next school year, 2020-2021
, the compulsory school age will change so that children must be enrolled in and attending school at 6 years old, and must attend school until age 18 (or until they graduate, whichever comes sooner). For the 2019-2020 school year, the old rule remains in effect — children must be enrolled in school by age 8 (age 6 in Philadelphia) and remain in school until age 17 or until they graduate.
Remember that charter schools are public schools and must follow the same enrollment rules. For example, they cannot discriminate against students by refusing to enroll students with particular disabilities or service needs. Read
more
coverage
of ELC
advocacy
on this issue.
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Back-to-School Basics
Students have important rights and protections when facing exclusionary school discipline (e.g., suspension, expulsion, and disciplinary transfer). These include the right to proper notice, the right to ask questions, the right to an appropriate hearing, and in most cases, the right to receive education services in the interim and after exclusion.
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What's New?
Groundbreaking alternative education reforms! The Pennsylvania Department of Education recently reached an
agreement
with the U.S. Department of Justice to substantially overhaul alternative education programs for students who have been transferred for disciplinary reasons. The agreement requires significant changes for students with disabilities and English learners, with additional changes impacting all students.
This agreement was reached in response to a
complaint
filed by the Education Law Center in 2013, challenging bias in the state’s alternative programs, known as “Alternative Education for Disruptive Youth” (AEDY). The local and statewide changes required by this agreement are scheduled to go into effect for this 2019-2020 school year. See ELC’s fact sheets linked above for more details about the new rules and
sign up for our newsletter
for more information on the latest developments and new tools to advocate for your child.
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Back-to-School Basics
When a student has six or more unexcused absences, they are considered “habitually truant.” Schools must take certain steps to improve attendance for habitually truant students, including holding attendance improvement conferences to identify and address the reason for absences. If these steps are taken and attendance does not improve, parents and students can face serious consequences, including fines and jail time.
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Need Help?
What's New?
Compulsory school age refers to the ages at which a child is legally obligated to be enrolled in school. Starting
next school year, 2020-2021
, the compulsory school age will change so that children must be enrolled in and attending school at 6 years old, and must attend school until age 18 (or until they graduate, whichever comes sooner). For the 2019-2020 school year, the old rule remains in effect — children must be enrolled in school by age 8 (age 6 in Philadelphia) and remain in school until age 17 or until they graduate.
A new law, Act 39, went into effect in Pennsylvania during the 2018-2019 school year. This law clarifies the responsibilities of charter schools and cyber charters to enforce compulsory school attendance. It also outlines what responsibilities “non-public” schools have in enforcing compulsory school attendance. See our
fact sheet on attendance and truancy
to learn more.
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Back-to-School Basics
Bullying and harassment are serious issues that can significantly affect a child’s ability to learn. All students have the right to be free from bullying and harassment in school — whether it is verbal, written, graphic, physical, or online. Pennsylvania schools are required by law to have written policies against bullying and harassment and must investigate and address complaints. Behavior may qualify as harassment if the offensive conduct relates to race, color, national origin/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, or religion. If your child is experiencing bullying or harassment, keep detailed records of each incident and request in writing that the school take action.
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What's New?
In July 2019, ELC released a new tool on bullying and harassment, “
Parent’s Guide to Advocacy in Pennsylvania Public Schools
,” addressing students' and parents' rights and schools' responsibilities. The guide describes the different legal standards for bullying and harassment, provides advice for parents on documenting incidents, and includes sample complaint letters to provide to schools.
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Students with Disabilities
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Individualized Education Programs (IEPs)
Back-to-School Basics
Students who have a disability that interferes with their learning have the right to a “free appropriate public education” (commonly called a FAPE), a planned program of education and special services that takes account of a student’s individual needs. Special education and related services must be provided by the school free of charge. Parents have the right to participate in the special education process and consent to or refuse particular services. Students with disabilities cannot be punished for behavior that is caused by or related to their disability.
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What's New?
Students with disabilities who are in alternative schools because of discipline incidents have important new protections due to a landmark settlement between the Pennsylvania Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Justice.
Learn more about students’ rights
here
.
Read more coverage
about the settlement and ELC advocacy on this issue.
504 Plans
Back to School Basics
If your child has a health condition, physical, mental, or behavioral impairment that substantially limits a major life activity and needs help to participate in or benefit from education or extracurricular programs, they may qualify for accommodations in school, called a “504 Plan.”
Need Help?
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What's New?
ELC’s
new toolkit
for parents seeking support for a child with a health condition describes the process for requesting a 504 Plan and provides a sample request letter to the school, guidance for a physician’s letter, and examples of accommodations that can support students with varied health conditions.
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Early Childhood Education
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Back-to-School Basics
Children who receive quality early education do better in kindergarten and in school
overall. Publicly-funded programs such as Head Start, Early Head Start, and Pre-K Counts offer free early childcare and education programs for children from low-income families. The Early Intervention Service Program provides additional services for children with developmental delays and disabilities at no cost to parents, regardless of income.
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What's New?
As a result of recent ELC advocacy, Philadelphia’s preschool Early Intervention provider, Elwyn, developed new policies and procedures to address the rights of young children with disabilities experiencing homelessness. Among other changes, the policies establish two liaisons who serve as the primary contacts for parents of children experiencing homelessness and professionals involved in their support. The policies and procedures establish new measures to ensure continuity of services for children experiencing homelessness. For more information, see Elwyn’s policy on
children experiencing homelessness.
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Students Involved in the Foster Care or Juvenile Justice Systems
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Back-to-School Basics
Like other public school students, children involved in the foster care or juvenile justice systems have the right to a free public education.
Students in foster care have additional rights to ensure their school environment is stable, even if they change living arrangements. The right to school stability includes the right to remain in the same school even when youth change living placements, the right to enroll in a new school immediately without the required documents, and the right to have an active, involved education decisionmaker.
Students who are placed by court order in a residential facility — including students adjudicated delinquent — are entitled to attend the local public school in the district where the facility is located, unless certain exceptions apply.
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What's New?
In April 2019, ELC, along with Juvenile Law Center and Dechert LLP, filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of hundreds of youth adjudicated delinquent and placed at Glen Mills Schools. The suit alleges students placed there suffered physical and emotional abuse and were deprived of their right to an education. The
complaint
contains graphic descriptions that may be hard to read.
Effective in May 2019, a
new Juvenile Court rule
requires judges to address “school stability and access to public schools” for all juveniles who are removed from home. Rule 148 also emphasizes
that a juvenile should attend the local public school while in placement, unless certain exceptions apply. The rule was crafted in part based on ELC’s advocacy.
In June 2019, a
new law
was passed that will expand access to college for youth who have been in foster care. Starting in the fall of 2020, youth who were in foster care at age 16 or older will be eligible for tuition and fee waivers to attend any public or private college or university in Pennsylvania.
In July 2019, Gov. Tom Wolf issued an
executive order
creating a new Office of Advocacy and Reform to ensure the safety and support of children and adults in residential care.
The order
established a new ombudsman for youth and a Council on Reform, tasked with developing a report and recommendations by November 1, 2019.
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Students Experiencing Homelessness
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Back-to-School Basics
Students in all public schools, both district and charter, who are experiencing homelessness or housing instability, are entitled to school stability and immediate enrollment in school, as well as free transportation to and from school. This includes unaccompanied students experiencing homelessness on their own. A federal law, called the McKinney-Vento Act, provides students experiencing homelessness a robust array of protections to ensure equal access to an education, from preschool through high school. These protections do not have a time limit and remain in place until the student is no longer experiencing homelessness. McKinney-Vento eligible students have a right to school stability with transportation provided until the end of the school year in which they secure permanent and adequate housing.
Need Help?
What's New?
Education Law Center secured an
important victory
for students who are experiencing homelessness on their own and have special education needs. These students do not have a way to assert their special education rights without the appointment of a surrogate parent. As a result of a complaint that ELC filed with Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Special Education, the School District of Philadelphia was ordered to create a new system to ensure that surrogate parents are promptly appointed to students who are experiencing homelessness on their own. This system will be in place beginning in school year 2019-20. All school districts across the Commonwealth have been reminded of their obligation to promptly appoint surrogate parents.
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English Learners & Immigrant Students
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Back-to-School Basics
English learners have many special protections, including the right to learn English (with language instruction such as English as a Second Language), the right to supports, modifications, and accommodations in their core classes, and the right to be free from harassment based on their immigration status. Parents with limited English proficiency (LEP) have the right to receive information about their child’s education in a language they understand.
Remember that all students have the right to attend school, regardless of their immigration status. Schools cannot ask about a student’s immigration status and cannot require a birth certificate or Social Security number before enrolling a child in school.
Need Help?
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What's New?
Thanks to years of advocacy by ELC and our community partners, the Pittsburgh Public School Board adopted a
new policy
protecting and expanding the rights of immigrant and refugee families and English learners. ELC has been advocating for the expansion and oversight of this new policy. As a result of ELC’s advocacy, the district agreed to formalize its procedures for evaluating English learners with disabilities, to provide LEP parents with targeted information about their rights within the special education process, and to improve the district’s family engagement.
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LGBTQ & Gender-Nonconforming Students
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Back-to-School Basics
LGBTQ and gender-nonbinary or gender-nonconforming (GNC) students have the same rights as other students, including the right to be out and the right to be free from bullying and harassment. Schools must respect the right of transgender students to access facilities and programs aligned with their gender identity.
Need Help?
What's New?
By filing an amicus brief, ELC is supporting
a lawsuit
currently before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court arguing that students who are LGBTQ or do not conform to societal gender norms who are bullied should have protection under the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, Pennsylvania’s antidiscrimination law, when their school fails to intervene to stop ongoing harassment.
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Finally, for everyone who cares about public education in Pennsylvania, one of our back-to-school priorities must be to address the state’s inadequate and unfair funding of schools. Far too many children are returning to Pennsylvania schools that are lacking in resources and student supports.
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Have a great school year!
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Please
join us
on September 25th as we celebrate 44 years of ensuring access to a quality public education for all children in Pennsylvania.
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Education Law Center | 215-238-6970 (Philadelphia)| 412-258-2120 (Pittsburgh)|
Website
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