By Trisha Powell Crain

Many Alabama school districts are about to welcome students back to class for the 2023-24 school year. Trisha Powell Crain

School is starting for a lot of students in Alabama. Most students and families likely registered for school over the summer, completing all of the necessary paperwork including providing proof that they actually live within their school’s geographical zone.

In some districts, it’s one and done: provide proof of residence in kindergarten and as long as you stay put, you’re good.

In other districts, particularly where property taxes and local financial support of schools are high, families have to provide proof of residence every year. That proof typically includes a utility bill or two and a property tax notice or apartment lease.

Rousting up paper copies of bills and finding the latest copy of your lease can take time, but if your district requires it, you have to do it. The process is also important for athletics eligibility.

“School systems have the authority to set residency requirements that limit admission to bonafide residents only,” Alabama Association of School Boards attorney Jayne Williams told AL.com. The AASB helps local boards craft the policies and rules they need to run their schools.

And that includes setting up processes to verify a student’s residency.

Some school districts have staff dedicated to doing that, which could mean sending a school official or their designee to a child’s home to verify the student actually lives at the address.

Huntsville City Schools declares up front that a home visit from a school official is required if a parent is sharing a residence with another family.

Some systems, like Albertville City, accept out-of-district students. Some require tuition for enrollment and some, like Demopolis City schools, reserve the right to remove non-resident students if problems with discipline, attendance or academics arise.

Every school district should have a policy on residency and many have their policies posted on their websites.

Here are a few examples:

Knowing what schools can request up front is important, but knowing what schools cannot request or require is important, too.

A school district is not allowed to ask about a parent’s or child’s citizenship or immigration status as part of establishing residency. Nor can schools deny a homeless child enrollment in the district because the child doesn’t have the required documents.

Schools can request but not require a copy of a child’s social security card for enrollment purposes. Some Alabama school districts still list providing a social security card as a requirement even though it cannot be a requirement to enroll.

The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights published a fact sheet to help parents know which types of information school officials can request.

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