Texas Education Code - Section 25.001. Admission
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§ 25.001. ADMISSION. (a) A person who is at least five
years of age and under 21 years of age on the first day of September
of any school year is entitled to the benefits of the available
school fund for that year. Any other person enrolled in a
prekindergarten class under Section 29.153 is entitled to the
benefits of the available school fund.
(b) The board of trustees of a school district or its
designee shall admit into the public schools of the district free of
tuition a person who is over five and younger than 21 years of age on
the first day of September of the school year in which admission is
sought if:
(1) the person and either parent of the person reside
in the school district;
(2) the person does not reside in the school district
but a parent of the person resides in the school district and that
parent is a joint managing conservator or the sole managing
conservator or possessory conservator of the person;
(3) the person and the person's guardian or other
person having lawful control of the person under a court order
reside within the school district;
(4) the person has established a separate residence
under Subsection (d);
(5) the person is homeless, as defined by 42 U.S.C.
Section 11302, regardless of the residence of the person, of either
parent of the person, or of the person's guardian or other person
having lawful control of the person;
(6) the person is a foreign exchange student placed
with a host family that resides in the school district by a
nationally recognized foreign exchange program, unless the school
district has applied for and been granted a waiver by the
commissioner under Subsection (e);
(7) the person resides at a residential facility
located in the district;
(8) the person resides in the school district and is 18
years of age or older or the person's disabilities of minority have
been removed; or
(9) the person does not reside in the school district
but the grandparent of the person:
(A) resides in the school district; and
(B) provides a substantial amount of
after-school care for the person as determined by the board.
(c) The board of trustees of a school district or the
board's designee may require evidence that a person is eligible to
attend the public schools of the district at the time the board or
its designee considers an application for admission of the person.
The board of trustees or its designee shall establish minimum proof
of residency acceptable to the district. The board of trustees or
its designee may make reasonable inquiries to verify a person's
eligibility for admission.
(d) For a person under the age of 18 years to establish a
residence for the purpose of attending the public schools separate
and apart from the person's parent, guardian, or other person
having lawful control of the person under a court order, it must be
established that the person's presence in the school district is
not for the primary purpose of participation in extracurricular
activities. The board of trustees shall determine whether an
applicant for admission is a resident of the school district for
purposes of attending the public schools and may adopt reasonable
guidelines for making a determination as necessary to protect the
best interests of students. The board of trustees is not required
to admit a person under this subsection if the person:
(1) has engaged in conduct or misbehavior within the
preceding year that has resulted in:
(A) removal to a disciplinary alternative
education program; or
(B) expulsion;
(2) has engaged in delinquent conduct or conduct in
need of supervision and is on probation or other conditional
release for that conduct; or
(3) has been convicted of a criminal offense and is on
probation or other conditional release.
(e) A school district may request that the commissioner
waive the requirement that the district admit a foreign exchange
student who meets the conditions of Subsection (b)(5). The
commissioner shall respond to a district's request not later than
the 60th day after the date of receipt of the request. The
commissioner shall grant the request and issue a waiver effective
for a period not to exceed three years if the commissioner
determines that admission of a foreign exchange student would:
(1) create a financial or staffing hardship for the
district;
(2) diminish the district's ability to provide high
quality educational services for the district's domestic students;
or
(3) require domestic students to compete with foreign
exchange students for educational resources.
(f) A child placed in foster care by an agency of the state
or by a political subdivision shall be permitted to attend the
public schools in the district in which the foster parents reside
free of any charge to the foster parents or the agency. A
durational residence requirement may not be used to prohibit that
child from fully participating in any activity sponsored by the
school district.
(g) A student enrolled in high school in grade 9, 10, 11, or
12 who is placed in temporary foster care by the Texas Department of
Human Services at a residence outside the attendance area for the
school or outside the school district is entitled to complete high
school at the school in which the student was enrolled at the time
of placement without payment of tuition.
(h) In addition to the penalty provided by Section 37.10,
Penal Code, a person who knowingly falsifies information on a form
required for enrollment of a student in a school district is liable
to the district if the student is not eligible for enrollment in the
district but is enrolled on the basis of the false information. The
person is liable, for the period during which the ineligible
student is enrolled, for the greater of:
(1) the maximum tuition fee the district may charge
under Section 25.038; or
(2) the amount the district has budgeted for each
student as maintenance and operating expenses.
(i) A school district may include on an enrollment form
notice of the penalties provided by Section 37.10, Penal Code, and
of the liability provided by Subsection (h) for falsifying
information on the form.
(j) For the purposes of this subchapter, the board of
trustees of a school district by policy may allow a person showing
evidence of legal responsibility for a child other than an order of
a court to substitute for a guardian or other person having lawful
control of the child under an order of a court.
Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 260, § 1, eff. May 30, 1995.
Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1019, § 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1997; Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 396, § 2.08, eff. Sept. 1, 1999;
Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1055, § 2, eff. June 20, 2003; Acts
2005, 79th Leg., ch. 164, § 2, eff. May 27, 2005; Acts 2005, 79th
Leg., ch. 920, § 1, eff. June 18, 2005.
Section: 22.102 22.103 22.104 22.105 22.106 22.107 22.901 25.001 25.0011 25.002 25.0021 25.003 25.004 25.005 25.006
Last modified: August 10, 2007
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