Independent school's enrollment contracts can be one of the most powerful instruments in the toolbox of an independent school administrator. At its core, the enrollment contract confirms a student's enrollment at the school and secures tuition obligations, but it can also be utilized to ensure a clear understanding of the school's expectations of parents and guardians and their partnership with a school. This article explores common issues that independent school administrators face each year, and how they can be addressed, or even prevented, with the proper enrollment contract language.
Issue#1: Parent Custody Issues
Students' parents who are separated or divorced can present a myriad of complexities for independent school leadership that can be navigated with the help of the enrollment contract. While schools typically endeavor to stay out of familial disputes, it is important for schools to understand custody arrangements, as they may impact decisions that are made or information that is shared about a student. At times, there are circumstances, such as the ones described here, where the school has no choice but to participate in the student's custody arrangement.
- Parent Custody Arrangements. Custody agreements set forth each parent's custodial and legal rights, including the level of involvement that each parent has in their child's education. Independent schools should require parents to provide information about parents' custody orders or arrangements to ensure a child's safety in situations where one parent is restricted from seeing their child, or to ensure that the school has knowledge of the child's custody schedule. Custody arrangements may also define who has financial responsibility for tuition, describe the rights of non-custodial parents to information and records, and clarify who makes educational decisions. School leadership can avoid sticky parental disputes over custodial matters by including a provision in the enrollment contract that requires parents to provide up-to-date legal documentation outlining any custody arrangements, and other provisions that may impact interactions between parents, the school, and the student.
- Divorce and Custody Proceedings. It is not uncommon for independent schools to be called upon to present information in connection with parents' custody matters, either by providing documentation related to their student's academic progress or by producing a school employee to testify at a hearing. When such information is requested via a subpoena, the school is required, absent a valid reason, to comply with the request. Responding to every subpoena a school receives can be costly and time-consuming, taking staff away from their day-to-day duties and responsibilities.
Schools may address their participation in third-part legal proceedings, like custody cases, by requiring parents to agree to cover the schools' legal fees and costs incurred when parents require the school to participate in their legal proceedings. Not only does this help to reduce the financial strain on the school, but it may also cause parents to think twice about requesting information from the school that could be obtained elsewhere.
Issue#2: Student Mental Health
Enrollment agreements can be used to ensure that schools are equipped with the right tools to manage the growing number of student mental health concerns in partnership with parents, guardians, and possibly outside providers in many ways.
First, enrollment agreements should provide independent school employees permission to share pertinent information or concerns regarding students with other school personnel, such as the school counselor, classroom teachers, and the student's advisor. While balancing confidentiality is important, school personnel should be allowed to share a student's health, counseling, psycho-educational testing, and other relevant information to selected other school personnel with a need to know.
Second, the enrollment agreement should establish the expectation that parents or guardians will cooperate with a school's request to allow the school counselor to, at times, communicate or exchange information with a student's outside counselor or therapist, so that the school has a complete profile of the student's mental health history and profile. Third, there are times when a student exhibiting previously undiagnosed mental health concerns compromises the school's ability to provide an appropriate education or interferes with the learning of other students in the class.
In such a case, the school may recommend that the student be evaluated by a third-party provider, but parents may not always follow through with the school's recommendation. The enrollment contract can inform parents of the school's policy regarding student evaluations as well as its expectation that parents will work collaboratively with the school to arrange for any needed evaluations or testing. This way, if parents later refuse to cooperate with the school to identify their student's needs, the school then has recourse to remove the student from the school if it is unable to support the student's educational needs without the requested supports.
Issue #3: Parent Misbehavior
While parents can be invaluable partners for independent schools to ensure a successful school year, uncooperative or disruptive parents can cause serious headaches for independent school administrators. The enrollment contract can provide schools with the tools to address parent misbehavior by setting forth the expectations for the relationship between schools and families and allowing the school to take responsive action if expectations are not met.
For parental cooperation clauses to be effective, it is important to clearly describe the types of prohibited parental conduct and behavior, such as rude and/or aggressive language; disagreement or interference with the school's mission, strategies, policies, or delivery of its program; or behavior that threatens the health or safety of another school community member. The parental cooperation clause should also describe the range of consequences that the school may implement in response to a violation, including restrictions on the parent's involvement in school activities or access to the school's campus, or even dismissal of their student from the school.
Independent school leadership should consider any persistent problems facing their schools and how their enrollment contract can help to address or prevent these issues in the future. The Venable Independent School Law Practice Group is prepared to assist schools in reviewing and updating their enrollment contracts. Independent schools with questions are encouraged to contact the authors for assistance.