School Board of the City of Virginia Beach
Regulation 5-16.2

STUDENTS

Custody Students

This procedure will regulate the entry of custody students into the school division.

A. Definition

For the purposes of this regulation, a custody student is one who is in the court approved custody of a resident and living with the resident not solely for the purpose of attending school while the student's parents do not live in the city of Virginia Beach. Petitions for custody will not be accepted.

B. Procedures

1. The Office of Student Leadership will issue authorization for enrollment in the particular school for all custody students. Should that student not enroll, the school will return its copy of the authorization letter to the Office of Student Leadership indicating not enrolled.
   
   
2. The school will keep an updated list of custody students.
   
   
3. Should the student withdraw from the school or transfer for any reason, the Office of Student Leadership will be notified of the withdrawal by a copy of the withdrawal form.
   
   
4. A custody student transferring from one school to another in the city will need to secure permission from the Office of Student Leadership before being enrolled in a new school. A new letter of authorization for enrollment will be issued by the Office of Student Leadership if appropriate.

C. Participation by, and notification of, non-custodial parents.

1. The non-custodial parent of a student enrolled in a public school shall be allowed to participate in any of the student’s school activities in which participation is supported or encouraged by the policies of the school, unless a court order has been issued to the contrary.
   
   
2. The non-custodial parent of a student shall be included, upon the request of such non-custodial parent, as an emergency contact for the student’s school activities, unless a court order has been issued to the contrary.

For the purposes of this section, “school activities” shall include, but not be limited to, lunch breaks, special in-school programs, parent-teacher conferences and meetings, and extracurricular activities. It is the responsibility of the custodial parent to provide the court order to the school.

Regulatory Authority :

Code of Va. § 22.1-3. Persons to whom public schools shall be free.

Code of Va. § 22.1-4.3 Participation by, and notification of, non-custodial parent

Approved by Superintendent: July 16, 1991
Revised by Superintendent: June 11, 2001
Revised by Superintendent: March 17, 2006