The registration of a student under 18 years of age must be performed by a parent, a legal guardian, or and adult with Power of Attorney. The only exceptions include caseworkers representing agencies (e.g., Department of Juvenile Justice, Department of Children and Families) who present appropriate court documentation. For other information related to custody, see section on “Access to Students”.

To register a child, the parent/guardian must provide or complete the following items:

Birth Certificate

This item is required to prove the student’s age and spelling of the legal name. The expectation is that the parent will provide a certified copy of the birth certificate from the authorizing agency in the state/country of birth. If such a document is not available, the following alternatives may be acceptable (in priority order):

A certificate of baptism showing the date of birth, place of baptism and a sworn affidavit form the parent

An insurance policy on the child’s life that has been in force for at least two years

A bona fide contemporary religious record of the child’s birth accompanied by a sworn affidavit by the parent

A passport or certificate of arrival in the United States showing the age of the child (do NOT copy this documentation!) Staff should complete an affidavit verifying that they have seen the information)

A record of age shown in the child’s school record of at least 4 years prior to application stating the date of birth

If none of the above is available, the parent can provide a sworn affidavit of the child’s age accompanied by a certificate of age signed by the public health officer or certain other physicians identified in law. That documentation must state that the child has been examined and that they appear to be the age stated in the affidavit.

Parents may obtain a certified copy of a birth certificate of a child born in Florida through the Office of Vital Statistics at 2200 Ringling Boulevard, Room 139 in Sarasota or 7810 Tamiami Trail S, Unit A-5 in Venice. A legal photo ID is required along with the application. The cost for a birth certificate is $15.00 for the first certificate. Parents may call 941-861-2810 for more information.

If a child has been adopted, a new birth certificate is issued in a new name. If that has not been accomplished, the Office of Vital Statistics can assist with the process.

Legal Name

The legal name of the student is the name of the birth certificate. The school MUST use the student’s name exactly as it appears with strict attention to hyphens, designations of Jr./Sr./II, etc and spelling. The only exceptions include:

• Recent adoptions---For adoptions which have taken effect but a new birth certificate has not been issued, the school may use the court’s final order to document the new name. Parents should bring in a copy of the new birth certificate when it is issued.

• Name changes---Any child that has had a name change through court action may use that name with appropriate court documentation.

• Latin/Hispanic student names—In most cases, the birth certificate will list three names—first name, father’s last name, and mother’s last name. The father’s last name should be used as the student’s last name.

Immunization Records

All students must meet Florida immunization requirements, which may be revised yearly. See the Health Section for current requirements and exemption processes.

School Physical

See the Health Section for current requirements for school physicals.

Release of Information data and permissions

Parents will be asked at the time of registration and re-registration to make decisions concerning:

• releasing directory information about their student

• permitting students to participate in media activities

• permitting students to participate in anonymous surveys, and

• releasing information about their student for military recruiting.

Information about each of these items is found on the back of the registration forms. Parents should be asked to state their permissions EVERY year.

This is extremely important and registrars should carefully check registration/re- registration forms to make sure those items are addressed by the parent. The parent’s signature should also be on the form. It is important that the principal receive information on any parent selecting a “No” on any of the releases. Those children MUST be removed from activities and communications if the parent has not given explicit permission for their information to be shared.

Emergency card

Parents are asked to complete this card listing all adults that could be called in the event of an illness or emergency and the parent cannot be contacted. The person registering the child is the person that makes the decision related to student access. The purpose of the card is to enable the school to locate an individual to act on the parent’s behalf in a short period of time.

Registration/Re-registration forms

Parents must complete these forms annually to document the student history and current status. It is extremely important to update addresses and phone numbers as they change. The documentation required for verification of a residence is found in the Student Assignment section. If a move takes the student out of the attendance area, a reassignment request is necessary for the child to remain in the school.

Parents may provide a student’s social security number but that is not required for registration. A student number is assigned at the time of original registration and is kept throughout the student’s time in the school system.

Home language survey

It is mandatory that parents complete a Home Language Survey to determine the primary language spoken in the student’s home.

School Registration Disclosure Form

Florida statutes require the disclosure of previous school expulsions, arrests resulting in a charge and juvenile justice actions. A specific form is used for this disclosure and is to be completed at the time of original entry into the school system.

Many families with elementary children may express concern that those questions need to be answered. Registrars may need to explain the statutory need for that information and the intent to protect all students.

Free/Reduced meal request

Each parent must be allowed the opportunity to complete the federal school lunch form for their students in order to determine eligibility for receiving meals free to at reduced prices.