Should we fill out enrollment paperwork if kids will be abroad for fall semester

[Anonymous]

we're planning to send the kids to their grandparents abroad for the fall semester to attend school in my husband's native country, where the kids are dual citizens. My husband thinks we should enroll the kids in our in-bounds DCPS just in case plans fall through, but I'm a little concerned about creating a paperwork/legal headache for myself if we enroll them, they don't show up, and the school considers them truant or something. This is our first year in DCPS so I just don't know how it works. Since they're in-bounds for the school, the school has to take them no matter when I fill out the enrollment forms, right? So I can wait until we know for sure what the plans are?

[Anonymous]

Right - if its your inbound school, I wouldn't worry about it. When you know if you are coming back, send the principal a heads up email so they can start the process of integrating them mid year in the school.

[Anonymous]

If you're in boundary and your kids are K and up, then you can just enroll when you return. If any of your children got in through the lottery, then they won't save the spot for them.

[Anonymous]

If you're IB, you can show up on the first day of school and enroll them. Earlier is better because it helps the school plan and can affect how many classes there are in a grade, but there's no need to do it "just in case." If the plans fall through, you can just enroll them as soon as you know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:we're planning to send the kids to their grandparents abroad for the fall semester to attend school in my husband's native country, where the kids are dual citizens. My husband thinks we should enroll the kids in our in-bounds DCPS just in case plans fall through, but I'm a little concerned about creating a paperwork/legal headache for myself if we enroll them, they don't show up, and the school considers them truant or something. This is our first year in DCPS so I just don't know how it works. Since they're in-bounds for the school, the school has to take them no matter when I fill out the enrollment forms, right? So I can wait until we know for sure what the plans are?

How old are your kids? If they are PK and you matched in the lottery you need to enroll them now or risk losing your spot

[Anonymous]

Thanks everyone! It's our in-bound school and the kids are both older than K so it sounds like there's no reason to fill out the paperwork at this point. I feel better now lol.

[Anonymous]

You may want to call the school and let them know that you will be coming though and an approximate date. They may pull from the waitlist and at least knowing one more is coming even unofficially they may not fill the class. One school I worked at had this happen a few times.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You may want to call the school and let them know that you will be coming though and an approximate date. They may pull from the waitlist and at least knowing one more is coming even unofficially they may not fill the class. One school I worked at had this happen a few times.

I concur with this. I'm not 100% positive about whether this affects the current or future budget but, either way, your kids won't be paid/accounted for because they won't be in their seats during the audit in early November. By giving the school a heads-up from the start, and then reminding them along the way, you give it a chance to account for your return when someone leaves, by not filling that stop in a rush off the waitlist.

[Anonymous]

We did this exact same thing last fall, and I asked our principal if we should enroll since we weren’t 100% sure about our plans, and she said yes, please enroll, because it affects the school’s per-pupil funding. Unenrolling was a small formality shortly before we left. Then we reenrolled when we came back in the middle of the year. If you want to help your inbound school, it would be better to enroll now, then sign a short form before you leave the country.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You may want to call the school and let them know that you will be coming though and an approximate date. They may pull from the waitlist and at least knowing one more is coming even unofficially they may not fill the class. One school I worked at had this happen a few times.

I concur with this. I'm not 100% positive about whether this affects the current or future budget but, either way, your kids won't be paid/accounted for because they won't be in their seats during the audit in early November. By giving the school a heads-up from the start, and then reminding them along the way, you give it a chance to account for your return when someone leaves, by not filling that stop in a rush off the waitlist.

21:06 here and I completely agree with this as well. That is how we handled it.