A child who is not my biological child is coming to live with me. His/her custodial parent resides elsewhere. Can I enroll this child in school?
NO. You would need to obtain custody/guardianship of the child and, as required by Ohio law, proof of custody must be provided at the time of enrollment. This proof of custody must be filed and stamped through the courts.
I have a motion for custody. Can I enroll my child with a court-ordered motion?
If the motion is court filed and stamped with a future hearing date, within 60 days, yes, we can accept this motion until the final court documents are completed.
I am the biological father of a child and wish to enroll him/her in school. The biological mother and I were never married. What do I need to do?
Proof of custody must be provided at the time of enrollment in order to enroll your child(ren). In the State of Ohio, if parents were never married, the mother is automatically the sole custodial parent unless the father goes to court and obtains an order of custody [O.R.C. 3109.04.3]
I have a court order/judgment entry giving me custody of a child. However, it is not signed by a judge. Is this acceptable?
NO. The court order must be court filed and stamped as well as signed by a judge or magistrate in order for the court order to be considered valid.
A relative/friend provided me with a notarized letter giving me custody of his/her child. Is that acceptable as proof of custody?
NO. We cannot accept notarized documents or letters. You must have a court-filed and stamped court document.
My former spouse and I have shared parenting. We live in two different school districts. Can my child attend either district? OR My former spouse and I are now divorced. We live in two different school districts. Can my child attend either district?
The child must attend school in the district of the “residential parent for school placement purposes.” This is standard wording in a divorce/separation agreement and the divorce/separation agreement that was established between you and your former spouse determines school district placement/assignment for your child. By law, a parent must present a certified copy of an order or decree, or modification allocating parent rights and designating a residential parent of the child. [O.R.C. 3313.672]
I am divorced and the children live with me. I am the sole custodial parent. I do not want the non-custodial parent to have access to their records. Is this acceptable?
NO. According to Ohio law, a non-custodial parent has the same rights as a custodial parent. Therefore, the non-custodial parent has a right to access student records. The only exception to this is if you have a protection order or restraining order which would not allow access by the other parent. If you have such an order and wish us to honor your request, the school MUST have a copy of the order. Otherwise, we cannot deny the non-custodial parent rights to student records.