SECTION 89.1605. Development of Systems to Ease Transitions and Establish Procedures to Lessen the Adverse Impact of Movement of a Student

(a) School districts and open-enrollment charter schools shall develop systems to ease transition of a student who is homeless or in substitute care during the first two weeks of enrollment at a new school. These systems shall include the following:

(1) welcome packets containing applicable information regarding enrollment in extracurricular activities, club activities, information on fee waivers, tutoring opportunities, the student code of conduct, available student supports, and contact information for key school staff members such as principals, registrars, counselors, designated liaisons, nutrition coordinators, and transportation specialists;

(2) introductions for new students that maintain student privacy and confidentiality to the school environment and school processes by school district or charter school faculty, campus-based student leaders, or ambassadors; and

(3) mechanisms to ensure that a process is in place for all students who qualify to receive nutrition benefits upon enrollment, as all students who are homeless or in substitute care are eligible for United States Department of Agriculture Child Nutrition Programs. The process must expedite communication with the district or charter school nutrition coordinator to ensure that eligible students are not charged in error or experience delays in receiving these benefits.

(b) School districts and open-enrollment charter schools shall convene an enrollment conference within the first two weeks, or as soon as feasible, after a student who is homeless or in substitute care enrolls at a new school.

(1) The convening of the enrollment conference shall not delay or impede the enrollment of the student.

(2) The student's attendance in the conference should be addressed on a case-by-case basis. The enrollment conference may be used in conjunction with an existing meeting that is designed for similar purposes for newly enrolled students.

(3) The enrollment conference shall address the student's credit recovery, credit completion, attendance plans and trauma-informed interventions, interests and strengths, discipline or behavior concerns, previous successes, college readiness, and social and emotional supports as well as district policies relating to transfers and withdrawals and communication preferences with parents or guardians. The enrollment conference may be comprised of:

(A) school administrators;

(B) McKinney-Vento or foster care liaisons;

(C) social workers;

(D) teachers;

(E) school counselors;

(F) dropout prevention specialists;

(G) attendance/truancy officers;

(H) the relative caregiver, foster placement caregiver, or Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) caseworker;

(I) the DFPS designated educational decision-maker;

(J) the DFPS caseworker, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) volunteer, or other volunteers, as applicable; and

(K) a parent or guardian, unless the caseworker indicates the parent's or guardian's rights to participate have been restricted by the court.

(c) School districts and open-enrollment charter schools must provide professional development opportunities and resources to support key staff members such as principals, registrars, counselors, designated liaisons, nutrition coordinators, and transportation specialists on local processes and procedures for facilitating successful school transitions for students who are homeless or in substitute care.

(d) School districts and open-enrollment charter schools must use the Texas Records Exchange (TREx), the Personal Identification Database (PID), or the Person Enrollment Tracking (PET) application to facilitate records transfer and expedite coordination and communication between the sending and receiving schools. In cases where records from the student's previous school are missing or cannot be located, school districts and open-enrollment charter schools should use the Texas Student Data System (TSDS) Unique ID application to identify where the student was previously enrolled.

Source Note: The provisions of this §89.1605 adopted to be effective March 30, 2020, 45 TexReg 2159; amended to be effective January 1, 2023, 47 TexReg 8659