Does temporarily staying somewhere outside New York City impact my NYC residency for school enrollment purposes?
We know that many families have temporarily left New York City during the coronavirus pandemic, whether to shelter in a vacation home, rent another home, or to stay with family outside the city. Some of our clients have asked us whether this could impact their New York City residency for school enrollment purposes.
This is an individualized question best taken up with your attorney. But, generally speaking, you must maintain your permanent home in New York City if you intend to bring a legal action for special education services here, such as challenging your child’s IEP and seeking tuition reimbursement. If you are staying outside New York City right now, you must intend to return here once the stay-at-home order has been lifted (your usual summer vacation plans are fine, of course), and you should maintain your tax filing, banking, voting records, car registration, etc., at your home address in New York City, and not establish permanent ties in a different place. And, of course, you cannot request services as a resident of any other school district.
Am I required to take my child for an annual well visit to their pediatrician in order to update their school health form? Does my child still need to receive scheduled vaccinations?
Your school health forms expire after one year from the date on the form. In New York State, your child’s school must have forms on-file that are current in order for that child to enroll in and attend school. This has not changed. These health forms require an in-person visit and cannot be completed via a telehealth appointment in most circumstances. Age-appropriate vaccinations also continue to be required for enrollment in New York State schools.
Due to the severity and complexity of my child’s disability, they cannot learn through remote instruction. Can I choose in-person instruction for my child if we have a willing provider or if we are working with an agency that is open for in-person treatment?
Recently, the DOE has begun to evaluate requests for in-person services for students with “exceptional needs” on a case-by-case basis. We understand this to be a very narrow exception right now and clinical justification is required. However, we have had several positive responses for families with children who meet these narrow requirements. If you are in this situation, contact your attorney case manager for guidance.
When are schools going to re-open, and how will that affect when I must provide notice to the DOE if I decide to unilaterally place my child in an independent school for 2020-21?
Governor Cuomo mandated that remote learning continue throughout New York State for the remainder of the 2019-20 school year in an Executive Order. On May 21, the Governor also announced that New York schools must operate all school programs this summer through distance learning.
We continue to operate under the assumption that school buildings will physically re-open in September, 2020. The Governor has made clear that this decision will not be made until later this summer.
The date that schools (public or private) physically re-open their doors does not affect the legal requirement for our clients to provide a 10-day statutory notice if you will be enrolling your child in a non-public school or program; For 12-month students the 2020-21 school year begins in early July, and for 10-month students it begins in September. All of our attorneys are busy drafting these notices now and they will be filed by the appropriate date.
I received a 2020-21 school placement for my child from the DOE. How do I fairly assess and consider this offer when I can’t tour it?
Parents must make a determination as to whether the program and placement offered to their child will be appropriate based on the information available to them at the time that decision is made. Going to the school (when it is open) is usually the best way to learn about the placement site, but any research you do is helpful.
In recent weeks, many of our clients have received placement packages via email from the DOE that include this language in the email: You may visit the school, with the attached documents, when NYC public schools reopen.
Within a placement package (which may arrive via email or mail) there is a document titled “SCHOOL LOCATION LETTER.” This document contains the name, address, and telephone number of the specific school placement for your child.
Generally, we advise that any parent’s first step is to reach out to the school. If your DOE placement is a 12-month program, you might inquire about reviewing a copy of the individual remote learning plan for your child, since we now know that summer 2020 services will be conducted through distance learning only. As your attorney case manager for guidance here.
Have a list of prepared questions ready when you call. This Skyer Law blog post from a few years ago about touring placements has some ideas of what you might ask, but in general you want to know if your child’s needs be met at this school and if the program on your child’s IEP can be implemented at this placement site. Your child’s current health care providers, therapists, and teachers, (and, if you are our client, your attorney case manager), can help you develop a list of questions that are most appropriate for your child’s situation.
Other tools you can use to do your own research online include the information published for each school on the DOE website and third-party review-based websites like InsideSchools and GreatSchools. Social media forums (mainly private Facebook parenting groups) for parents of children with special education needs may also be good venues for talking to families whose children attend those schools already. If you are worried about how far away a placement is, you might try using the directions feature in Google Maps to get a sense of how long (on the low end) a bus ride could take. If you are safely able to take a walk around the physical perimeter of the school, that may also provide you with useful information. But you can also use Google Maps to get a street view of the school building. Here is a tutorial on how to do that.
Do what you can—and document your efforts diligently!
