Board reviews second reading of homeless-student policy to prohibit segregation

Summary

The board considered a second reading of policy JAC on homeless students and the accompanying regulation; staff recommended adding a prohibition on separating students from general population based on homeless status to align with federal and state law. The policy was posted for 30 days and received one public comment.

Grace Wilson, the district’s director of legislation and policy, presented a second reading of Board Policy JAC (homeless students) and the accompanying regulation. Wilson told the board the policy and regulation were posted for a 30-day public comment period; one comment was received and shared with the board.

Wilson said staff proposed explicitly adding a prohibition in board policy against segregating students on the basis of homeless status to align the policy with federal and state law. “During the regulatory review process, it was noted that the board policy and administrative regulation do not address the federal and state prohibitions on homeless students being segregated based on their status,” Wilson said, and staff recommended addressing that prohibition in board policy.

Board members had no questions during the second reading and staff said the regulation and policy would proceed through the required adoption steps. The item was presented as a second reading; no final adoption vote is recorded in the transcript for this meeting.