Our law firm represents three school corporations in the area. In preparation for this article, I asked school administrators from the three school corporations to give me guidance on what day to day questions pop up for them most frequently. I thank them for their input into this article. Here are four of the most frequently asked questions that local school personnel deal with:
1. Can’t I send my kids to any school corporation that I want to? The simple answer to this question is no. For some reason, there seems to be a misconception out in the general public that a student can attend whatever public school he or she wants. This is simply not true. A student in Indiana is entitled to attend, tuition free, a school in the school corporation in which the student has legal settlement. Generally, legal settlement is defined as the attendance area of a school corporation in which a student’s parent or parents reside. If a student’s parents are divorced, the student’s legal settlement is where the physical custodial parent resides unless that custodial parent elects to send the student to the school corporation in which the other parent resides. If the student resides with someone other than a parent or has been abandoned, the student’s legal settlement is where the legal guardian resides. If a student is emancipated, the student’s legal settlement is where the student resides. There are exceptions to this general rule, such as a school corporation may accept a student if that student pays transfer tuition or the student can be better educationally accommodated in another school corporation, but the general rule remains. Parents always have the option to send their kids to a private school but tuition fees apply.
2. The school really can’t discipline my kid, can they? Pursuant to Indiana Law, student supervision and reaching desirable behavior of students to carry out school purposes is the responsibility of a school corporation. In matters relating to discipline and conduct of students, school corporation personnel stand in relation of parents to the students in the school corporation and have the right to take any disciplinary action necessary to promote student conduct that conforms with an effective educational system. Schools also have qualified immunity with respect to disciplinary action taken to promote student conduct, if the action is taken in good faith and is reasonable. By law, Indiana students must follow responsible directions of school personnel in all educational settings and refrain from disruptive behavior that interferes with the educational environment.
3. Do divorced or separated parents have the same right to access educational records of the child? Under I.C.§ 20-33-7-2, a public or non-public school must allow the custodial parent and a non-custodial parent of a child the same access to their child’s education records. The exception to this rule is if there is a court order that limits the non-custodial parent’s access to the child’s education records and the school has received a copy of that court order or has actual knowledge of that court order. Unless this exception applies, both parents have equal access to educational records. As a side note, when there is a custody dispute or other disputes between divorced parents, please do not put school administration and teachers in the middle of your dispute. I get phone calls on a regular basis from school corporation personnel with questions that involve “mom says this and dad says that.” School personnel are doing their best to educate your children so please don’t try to put them in the middle of your family dispute.
4. I have right to go on school property and the school can’t stop me, correct? It is more than obvious to state that school grounds are public property. However, a school corporation does have the right to maintain and control that public property. If a parent makes threats or potentially disrupts the educational process then the school corporation can place restrictions on that parent. If a school corporation asks any individual to leave school grounds, and that person refuses, the school corporation has the right to contact the police for removal of a trespasser. The school corporation also has the right to place reasonable restrictions on third-party access to school grounds.
There are many more issues that school personnel face on a day to day basis. I may try to address these additional questions in a future article. I hope the questions and answers raised in this article are helpful.
This article is published for information purposes only. It is not intended nor is it to be used as a substitute for independent legal advice.
Stu Weliever practices law with HENTHORN, HARRIS & WELIEVER, P.C., 122 E Main St, Crawfordsville, Indiana, and can be reached at (765) 362-4440 or at stuw@henthornlaw.com.
