Enforcing student residency policy

As an educator, I understand that for children and teens moving to a new home, particularly when it involves transferring to a new school midway through a school year, can be a difficult adjustment socially and academically. It is not easy to leave behind the familiarity or comfort of your friends, your teachers and the school community you know.

As the leader of a school district, however, it is my responsibility to adhere to and enforce the district’s policies, and that includes student residency. The Board of Education’s policy on residency, which I will add is based on state education law, states that the primary responsibility of the district is to provide the best possible educational opportunities for children who are legal residents of the district and who are of legal age to attend school.

School districts have residency policies in place for a reason. New York Education Law §3202 gives students the right to attend school tuition-free only in the district where they reside, and gives school districts the authority to determine whether a student is a legal resident. The purpose of this law is to relieve public school districts from the financial burden of educating non-resident students. In other words, it is not fair to Watervliet taxpayers to fund the cost of educating children whose families live outside the district, and therefore, do not contribute to the tax base.

Our board’s policy is clear. If a student moves out of the Watervliet school district before June 1 in any given year, that student must transfer to a school within the district in which they now reside. If the move occurs June 1 or later, the student may be allowed to complete the school year in Watervliet. The student must then enroll in their new school over the summer. The one and only exception we will make is if a high school senior moves at any time during their senior year, they may be allowed to complete the year and graduate from Watervliet High School, but only if the student was a resident during the prior year (as a junior).

In the 12 years I have served the Watervliet schools, first as high school principal and now as superintendent, whenever the residency of a student has been in question, we have looked into it as we are obligated to. The process involves informing the parents in writing of our concerns and offering them an opportunity to submit proof of residency. If that does not happen, we have no choice but to conduct a thorough investigation to verify their residency. Once we have gathered evidence and determined that the student does not reside in Watervliet, the family receives notification from the district registrar that the child has been removed from the attendance register and is no longer permitted to attend our schools.

Often, it is other parents or community members who tip off school officials or staff members if they know or have a strong suspicion that a student or a family does not reside within the district. Other times, we investigate after receiving mail returned to us marked as undeliverable by the postal service. But always, it is the student who is caught in the middle of a bad situation. My point to parents is simply this: do the right thing in the first place, that way you won’t be putting your child in an even more difficult position down the road.