D. School Transitions
1. Foster Care Liaison in Each Texas School District and at the Texas Education Agency
Each school district and open enrollment charter school must appoint at least one employee to facilitate the enrollment in and transfer to a public school of a child in the district who is in the conservatorship of the state. Tex. Educ. Code § 33.904(a)(1). Each school district and open-enrollment charter school must also report the liaison's name and contact information to TEA. Tex. Educ. Code § 33.904(a)(2).
TEA must designate at least one agency employee to act as a liaison officer regarding educational issues related to students in DFPS conservatorship. Tex. Educ. Code § 25.007(b)(14).
TEA has implemented Commissioner's Rules Concerning Transition Assistance for Highly Mobile Students Who are Homeless or in Substitute Care.
In 2023, TEA updated the Commissioner's rules to support students who are homeless or in foster care. The rule provides for transition support for districts to put in place to support students in foster care. TEA has also provided a Transition Assistance Toolkit to assist with implementation.
• The local education agency must convene an enrollment conference with a student who is homeless or in foster care 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.
• The local education agency must provide welcome packets to students who are homeless or in foster care within the first two weeks of enrollment.
Special Issue: TEA developed several resources regarding foster care liaisons:
• Updated contact information for the district and open-enrollment charter school foster care liaisons is now located in the Ask Texas Education Directory (AskTED).
• If the school district liaison information cannot be located on the AskTED system, please reference TEA AskTED guidance. DFPS Educational Specialists developed an annual internal process to reach out to the local education agency's foster care liaison to establish communication. See ESSA Designated Points of Contact for Students in Foster Care[210]
• Other resources for liaisons, including contact information for Education Service Center Foster Care Champions, are available on the TEA Foster Care & Student Success – Texas School Foster Care Liaison webpage.
• Transition Assistance Toolkit for Supporting Homeless and Foster Care Students
2. Enrollment
If DFPS takes possession of a child under Tex. Fam. Code Chapter 262 during the school year, DFPS shall ensure that the child returns to school not later than the third school day after the date an order is rendered providing for possession of the child by DFPS, unless the child has a physical or mental condition of a temporary and remediable nature that makes the child's attendance infeasible. Tex. Fam. Code § 264.115(a).
Special Issue: DFPS CPS Policy Handbook requires enrollment within two days of the initial removal or placement change. See the CPS Policy Handbook § 15300.
A child may be enrolled by any person showing evidence of legal responsibility of the child. Tex. Educ. Code § 25.001(j). A child in foster care may attend a school free of charge, whether the school is their school of origin or is in the district where the foster parent resides. Tex. Educ. Code § 25.001(g), (g-1), and (f). A school district shall accept a child for enrollment in a public school without the documentation required by Tex. Educ. Code § 25.002(a) if DFPS has taken possession of the child under Tex. Fam. Code Chapter 262. DFPS must ensure that the documentation is furnished to the school district not later than the 30th day after the date the child is enrolled in the school. Tex. Educ. Code § 25.002(g).
A child may be provisionally admitted to an elementary or secondary school if the child has begun the required immunizations and if the child continues to receive the necessary immunizations as rapidly as is medically feasible. Tex. Educ. Code § 38.001(e).
Special Issue: In general, DFPS delegates day-to-day decision-making to the child's caregiver, including responsibility for school enrollment. Upon enrollment in school, a caregiver should present the applicable DFPS 2085 Placement Authorization and Education Decision-Maker forms to ensure the school recognizes the caregiver's legal authority to enroll the child. These documents also serve to notify the school that the child is in foster care and to provide the name of the education decision-maker and the surrogate parent, if applicable. For more information on acceptable forms for school enrollment, see PEIMS Coding Supplemental Guidance.[211]
3. Records Transfer
TEA must assist in the transition of students in substitute care from one school to another by ensuring that school records for a student in substitute care are transferred to the student's new school not later than the 10th working day after the date the student begins enrollment at the school. Tex. Educ. Code § 25.007(b)(1). For more information on school withdrawals and records transfers, see Education Best Interest Decision Making and Coordination.[212]
Special Issue: Districts failing to provide the required information within 10 calendar days of a written request by the receiving school district may be reported to the Texas Records Exchange Help Desk: (512) 463-7246 or by email to TREx@tea.texas.gov.
4. Education Passport
Each child in DFPS conservatorship must have an education passport. The education passport contains educational records of the child, including the names and addresses of educational providers, the child's grade-level performance, and any other important educational information. Tex. Fam. Code § 266.008(a). DFPS shall maintain the passport as part of DFPS records for the child as long as the child remains in foster care. Tex. Fam. Code § 266.008(b). DFPS has a duty to make the education passport available to any person authorized by law to make educational decisions for the child in foster care. Tex. Fam. Code § 266.008(c)(1).
Special Issue: For more information about the education passport, referred to as the Education Portfolio or "green binder," see:
5. Confidentiality of Education Records
The federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) allows for release of student records between school districts without parental consent in compliance with a court order upon enrollment in the receiving school. 20 U.S.C. § 1232g.[213]
The Uninterrupted Scholars Act of 2013 amended FERPA to permit caseworkers and other child welfare or tribal organization representatives to access personally identifiable student information without parental consent and allows for disclosure of student records pursuant to a judicial order related to a child welfare proceeding without further notice to the parent. 20 U.S.C. § 1232g (b)(2)(B).[214]
The Uninterrupted Scholars Act provisions also apply to special education-related records for children ages birth to 21 with disabilities under IDEA Parts B and C.[215]
6. Credit Transfer and Recovery
In recognition of the challenges facing students in foster care, TEA is now required to develop policies and procedures to address:
• Awarding credit (including partial credit if appropriate) for course work, including electives, completed by a student in substitute care while enrolled at another school. Tex. Educ. Code § 25.007(b)(3);
• Placing a student in comparable courses or educational programs to those offered at a previous school to the extent comparable courses and programs are available. Tex. Educ. Code § 25.007(b)(4);
• Allowing a student in substitute care who was previously enrolled in a course required for graduation the opportunity, to the extent practicable, to complete the course at no cost to the student before the beginning of the next school year. Tex. Educ. Code § 25.007(b)(11); and
• Ensuring that a student in substitute care who is not likely to receive a high school diploma before the 5th school year following the student's enrollment in grade 9, as determined by the district, has the student's course credit accrual and personal graduation plan reviewed. Tex. Educ. Code § 25.007(b)(12).
School districts must make credit by examination available, at any point during the school year, to students in foster care. 19 Tex. Admin. Code § 74.24(a)(2). Credits earned towards state graduation requirements in an accredited school district are transferable and must be accepted by another school district in the state. 19 Tex. Admin. Code § 74.26(a)(1). A school district shall award credit proportionately to a student in substitute care who successfully completes only one semester of a two-semester course. 19 Tex. Admin. Code § 74.26(e).