Provo board adopts multiple policy updates including protections for military‑connected and unhoused students

At its Jan. 13 meeting, the Provo City School Board approved a slate of policy updates the superintendent and staff presented during the meeting’s policy review. The board voted unanimously to adopt changes intended to clarify services and protections for students and to consolidate procedures into policy language where appropriate.

Key adoptions and changes included:

- Services for students experiencing homelessness (Policy 31‑15): the district replaced terms like 'homeless' with 'students experiencing homelessness' and clarified enrollment and eligibility language consistent with federal McKinney‑Vento protections.

- Dual enrollment (Policy 31‑20): the board adopted clarified definitions distinguishing 'dual enrollment' and 'concurrent enrollment' and added a requirement that dual‑enrolled secondary students attend at least one on‑campus class for funding purposes; the policy explains how Weighted Pupil Unit (WPU) funding is apportioned across institutions.

- Exchange students (Policy 31‑42): staff clarified when the district must enroll foreign exchange students (approved sponsor, reciprocal exchange, enrollment for one year or less) and discussed an administrative May 15 deadline with possible case‑by‑case exceptions.

- Reentry into public schools (Policy 31‑35) and vision screening (Policy 31‑68): the board approved procedural language on placement assessments for students returning from nonaccredited private schools and adopted a vision‑screening policy for students.

- Immunizations (Policy 31‑75): the policy’s language now distinguishes state and local immunization requirements and clarifies actions upon a disease outbreak with reference to local public health department requests.

- Employee policies (Policy 50‑70 and 52‑05): clarifying language on individual contracts for certified staff when collective bargaining agreements exist and limits/requirements for employee physical and mental examinations tied to federal law were adopted.

Board members asked for additional definitions or procedural language in policy committee for a few items, including a clearer definition of 'resident student' in 31‑30 and more specific examples of what constitutes an 'unsafe environment' for reporting to child welfare in the medical recommendations policy. Superintendent Wendy Dowell and staff said they will take those clarifications to policy committee and that some procedural items will be added to the policy packet where helpful.

"This policy...provides protections so a student isn't penalized because their parent is in the military," staff said during the presentation, noting state statute supports several of these protections. The board approved each policy by formal motion and unanimous vote.

Next steps: District staff will update posted policy documents with the approved language, link related procedures as noted, and bring any additional procedural clarifications back through policy committee for future board review.