The Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children, Section 160.2000 RSMo., makes provisions for children of families serving in the military by allowing greater opportunities for military children to meet Missouri’s educational requirements. The compact commissioner responsible for the administration and management of the state’s participation in the compact shall be appointed by the Governor.
Some of the Compact’s 18 Articles which could impact Children’s Division case management are listed below:
ARTICLE III
- The provisions of the compact shall apply only to local education agencies and to the children of active duty military members or veterans (including the National Guard or Reserve) who are severely injured, medically discharged, retired from service, or died on active duty or as a result of injuries sustained on active duty, for a period of one year after discharge, retirement or death.
ARTICLE IV
- Unofficial or “hand-carried” education records—In the event that official education records cannot be released to the parents for the purpose of transfer, the custodian of the records in the sending state shall prepare and furnish to the parent a complete set of unofficial educational records. The school in the receiving state shall enroll and appropriately place the student based on the information provided in the unofficial records pending validation by the official records, as quickly as possible.
- Official records/transcripts—Simultaneous with the enrollment and conditional placement of the student, the school in the receiving state shall request the student’s official education record from the school in the sending state. The sending state will process and furnish the official records within ten days or within such time as is reasonably determined under the Compact.
- Immunizations—Compacting states shall give thirty days from the date of enrollment or within such time as is reasonably determined to obtain any immunization(s) required by the receiving state.
- Kindergarten/First grade entrance age—Students shall be allowed to continue their enrollment at grade level in the receiving state commensurate with their grade level (including Kindergarten) from a local education agency in the sending state at the time of transition, regardless of age. A student that has satisfactorily completed the prerequisite grade level in the local education agency in the sending state, shall be eligible for enrollment in the next highest grade level in the receiving state, regardless of age.
ARTICLE V
- Absences as related to deployment activities—Students whose parent or legal guardian is an active duty member of the uniformed services and has been called to duty for, is on leave from, or immediately returned from deployment to a combat zone or combat support posting, shall be granted additional excused absences at the discretion of the local education agency superintendent to visit with his or her parent or legal guardian relative to such leave or deployment of the parent or guardian.
ARTICLE VI
- A local education agency shall be prohibited from charging local tuition to a transitioning military child in the care of a noncustodial parent or other person standing in loco parentis who lives in a jurisdiction other than that of the custodial parent.
- The transitioning military child, placed in the care of a non-custodial parent or other person standing in loco parentis who lives in another jurisdiction other than that of the custodial parent, may continue to attend the school in which he/she was enrolled while residing with the custodial parent.
ARTICLE XVIII
All member states’ laws conflicting with this compact are superseded to the extent of the conflict.