Age [Elementary or Unit Districts only]
To be eligible for admission, a child must be five years old on or before September 1 of that school term. A child entering first grade must be six years of age on or before September 1 of that school term. Based upon an assessment of a child’s readiness to attend school, the District may permit him or her to attend school prior to these dates. A child will also be allowed to attend first grade based upon an assessment of his or her readiness if he or she attended a non-public preschool, continued his or her education at that school through kindergarten, was taught in kindergarten by an appropriately licensed teacher, and will be six years old on or before December 31. A child with exceptional needs who qualifies for special education services is eligible for admission at three years of age. Early entrance to kindergarten or first grade may also be available through Board policy 6:135, Accelerated Placement Program.
Admission Procedure
All students must register for school each year on the dates and at the place designated by the Superintendent. Parents/guardians of students enrolling in the District for the first time must present:
A certified copy of the student’s birth certificate. If a birth certificate is not presented, the Superintendent or designee shall notify in writing the person enrolling the student that within 30 days he or she must provide a certified copy of the student’s birth certificate. A student will be enrolled without a birth certificate. When a certified copy of the birth certificate is presented, the school shall promptly make a copy for its records, place the copy in the student’s permanent record, and return the certified copy to the person enrolling the child. If a person enrolling a student fails to provide a certified copy of the student’s birth certificate, the Superintendent or designee shall immediately notify the local law enforcement agency, and shall also notify the person enrolling the student in writing that, unless he or she complies within ten days, the case will be referred to the local law enforcement authority for investigation. If compliance is not obtained within that ten-day period, the Superintendent or designee shall so refer the case. The Superintendent or designee shall immediately report to the local law enforcement authority any material received pursuant to this paragraph that appears inaccurate or suspicious in form or content.
Proof of residence, as required by Board policy 7:60, Residence.
Proof of disease immunization or detection and the required physical examination, as required by State law and Board policy 7:100, Health, Eye, and Dental Examinations; Immunizations; and Exclusion of Students.
The individual enrolling a student shall be given the opportunity to voluntarily state whether the student has a parent or guardian who is a member of a branch of the U.S. Armed Forces and who is either deployed to active duty or expects to be deployed to active duty during the school year. Students who are children of active duty military personnel transferring will be allowed to enter: (a) the same grade level in which they studied at the school from which they transferred, if the transfer occurs during the District’s school year, or (b) the grade level following the last grade completed.
Homeless Children
Any homeless child shall be immediately admitted, even if the child or child’s parent/guardian is unable to produce records normally required for enrollment. Board policy 6:140, Education of Homeless Children, and its implementing administrative procedure, govern the enrollment of homeless children.
Foster Care Students
The Superintendent will appoint at least one employee to act as a liaison to facilitate the enrollment and transfer of records of students in the legal custody of the Ill. Dept. of Children and Family Services when enrolling in or changing schools.
Student Transfers To and From Non-District Schools
A student may transfer into or out of the District according to State law and procedures developed by the Superintendent or designee. A student seeking to transfer into the District must serve the entire term of any suspension or expulsion, imposed for any reason by any public or private school, in this or any other state, before being admitted into the School District.
Foreign Students [High School or Unit Districts only]
The District accepts foreign exchange students with a J-1 visa and who reside within the District as participants in an exchange program sponsored by organizations screened by administration. Exchange students on a J-1 visa are not required to pay tuition.
Privately sponsored exchange students on an F-1 visa may be enrolled if an adult resident of the District has temporary guardianship, and the student lives in the home of that guardian. Exchange students on an F-1 visa are required to pay tuition at the established District rate. F-1 visa student admission is limited to high schools, and attendance may not exceed 12 months.
The Board may limit the number of exchange students admitted in any given year. Exchange students must comply with District immunization requirements. Once admitted, exchange students become subject to all District policies and regulations governing students.
Re-enrollment [High School or Unit Districts only]
Re-enrollment shall be denied to any individual 19 years of age or above who has dropped out of school and who could not earn sufficient credits during the normal school year(s) to graduate before his or her 21st birthday. However, at the Superintendent’s or designee’s discretion and depending on program availability, the individual may be enrolled in a graduation incentives program established under 105 ILCS 5/26-16 or an alternative learning opportunities program established under 105 ILCS 5/13B-1 (see 6:110, Programs for Students At Risk of Academic Failure and/or Dropping Out of School and Graduation Incentives Program). Before being denied re-enrollment, the District will offer the individual due process as required in cases of expulsion under policy 7:210, Expulsion Procedures. A person denied re-enrollment will be offered counseling and be directed to alternative educational programs, including adult education programs that lead to graduation or receipt of a GED diploma. This section does not apply to students eligible for special education under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act or accommodation plans under the Rehabilitation Act, Section 504.
LEGAL REF.: 8 U.S.C. §1101, Illegal Immigrant and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996.
20 U.S.C. §1232, Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.
20 U.S.C. §1400 et seq., Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act.
29 U.S.C. §794, Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504.
42 U.S.C. §11431 et seq., McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.
105 ILCS 5/2-3.13a, 5/10-20.12, 5/10-22.5a, 5/14-1.02, 5/14-1.03a, 5/26-1, 5/26-2, 5/27-8.1.
105 ILCS 10/8.1, Ill. School Student Records Act.
105 ILCS 45/, Education for Homeless Children Act.
105 ILCS 70/, Educational Opportunity for Military Children Act.
325 ILCS 50/, Missing Children Records Act.
325 ILCS 55/, Missing Children Registration Law.
410 ILCS 315/2e, Communicable Disease Prevention Act.
20 Ill.Admin.Code Part 1290, Missing Person Birth Records and School Registration.
23 Ill.Admin.Code Part 226, Special Education.
23 Ill.Admin.Code Part 375, Student Records.
CROSS REF.: 4:110 (Transportation), 6:30 (Organization of Instruction), 6:110 (Programs for Students At Risk of Academic Failure and/or Dropping Out of School and Graduation Incentives Program), 6:135 (Accelerated Placement Program), 6:140 (Education of Homeless Children), 6:300 (Graduation Requirements), 6:310 (High School Credit for Non-District Experiences; Course Substitutions; Re-Entering Students), 7:60 (Residence), 7:70 (Attendance and Truancy), 7:100 (Health, Eye, and Dental Examinations; Immunizations; and Exclusion of Students), 7:340 (Student Records)
Updated November 2021