.ADMISSIONS AND WITHDRAWALS

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Congress has allocated funds for the education of eligible minor dependents of DoD military and civilian personnel, paid from appropriated funds, who are stationed overseas.  Each student must be the child, stepchild, adopted child, or ward of a sponsor.  Students may also be residents in the household of a sponsor who stands “in loco parentis” and provides at least 50% of the child’s support.  Other children may attend the school, but on a tuition paying basis.  Tuition costs change annually.  Inquiries should be made to the registrar or school principal.

To be eligible for enrollment in DoDDS schools, prospective kindergarten students must be 5 by October 31 of the school year.  Prospective first grade students must be 6 by October 31 of the school year.  Handicapped students may be exempted from these requirements, as there is a preschool handicapped program where selected students may enter the school at age 3.

Enrollment of all students in kindergarten through grade 5 must be accomplished in person by at least one parent or guardian.  The parent must sign the registration form. Registration must be completed before 11:00 am in order for your child to attend school the next day.  If registration takes place after this, your child must wait the next full day before starting school.  Children enrolling over the winter holiday or spring break will start the day after school resumes. 

Sponsors may not register a child who is not physically in country without orders. Registration cannot be done by mail and registration online is not complete until the papers are signed in the school office. The registrar cannot access on line registration without the sponsor’s SSN.  The parent or guardian must also bring with them at the time of registration:

§         A copy of the sponsor’s travel orders (with dependents listed) for official identification of sponsor’s category.

§         Birth certificate or passport for a SS, K and 1^st Grade student.

§         Immunization (shot) record for the student being enrolled.

§         Child’s SSN (you can have it written down or memorized)

§         Current complete duty and home addresses and telephone numbers.

§         Name and telephone number of emergency contact (other than spouse) in case of inability to contact the sponsor in an emergency.

DoDDS requires annual registration and enrollment of all students by one or both parents or sponsors. A pre-registration for the next school year is held each spring.   Due to the fluctuating student population and the large number of relocations during the summer months, children can be registered any working day between 0730 and 1600. 

WITHDRAWAL FROM SCHOOL

Sponsors should notify the school office and the classroom teacher, in writing, at least one week in advance of the student’s last day of attendance at the school.  Once written notification of withdrawal is received, the student and the staff will accomplish all required clearance activities.  All books, library materials and school owned property must be returned, and any outstanding debts must be settled in order to clear from the school.

Accelerated Withdrawal:  Students withdrawing from school before the end of the semester may be granted credit for an accelerated study program outlined by the teachers involved, providing that the withdrawal date is no earlier than 20 school days before the end of the semester. Students meeting conditions of the accelerated program are to be granted semester grades and credits.

The provision for permitting the early withdrawal of students with full Carnegie credit is based on careful consideration of the unique circumstances found in the DoDDS system. It recognizes that due to military necessity, families are occasionally required to move prior to the end of the school year and that children should not be penalized for this. The 20-day limit provides reasonable flexibility without compromising academic standards or placing the student in an untenable position in regard to mastery of curriculum content. This provision has never been intended to apply to, or be extended for the convenience of family travel, visits or other discretionary reasons.   Therefore, the policy requires students to present verification of the date of their sponsor’s departure, i.e., PCS or other orders, to school officials in order to receive consideration for full academic credit. Students withdrawing prior to the 20-day limit or without orders receive a report card stating: This student would have been promoted to Grade ____ if they had completed the school year.” Sponsors may request a copy of their child’s records for hand carrying to the new school.  Alternatively, an official copy of the school record can be forwarded to the gaining school on receipt of an authorized request.  The registrar will need five working days to prepare records.