Age of Attendance/Compulsory Attendance Age

According to Education Law, a student who becomes six (6) years of age on or before the first of December in any school year shall be required to attend full-time instruction from the first day that the District schools are in session in September of such school year, and a student who becomes six (6) years of age after the first of December in any school year shall be required to attend full-time instruction from the first day of session in the following September. Except as otherwise provided in Education Law Section 3205(3), a student shall be required to remain in attendance until the last day of session in the school year in which the student becomes sixteen (16) years of age.

However, in accordance with Education Law Section 3205(3), the Board of Education in any school district shall have the power to require minors from sixteen (16) to seventeen (17) years of age who are not employed to attend full-time instruction until the end of the school year in which the student turns seventeen (17) years of age.

All persons dwelling within the District who are between the ages of five (5) years and twenty-one (21) years and who have not received a high school diploma shall be entitled to enroll in the District.

Undocumented children, like U.S. citizen children, have the right to attend school full-time as long as they meet the age and residency requirements established by state law.

Proof of Age

The State Education Department does not require districts to collect students' social security numbers for any purpose. While school districts may need to collect certain data pursuant to State and/or federal laws, they should do so after a student has enrolled in school so as not to inadvertently give the impression that information related to immigration status will be used in making registration/enrollment determinations.

In accordance with Education Law, where a birth certificate or record of baptism is not available, a passport (including foreign passport) may be used to determine a child's age for purposes of enrollment/registration in school. Should none of these be available, the District may consider certain other documentary or recorded evidence to determine a child's age.

The following are examples of documentation that may be used to establish a student's age. This list is not intended to be exhaustive, nor is it a list of required documentation.

• School photo ID with date of birth;

• Hospital or health records;

• State or other government-issued ID;

• Military dependent ID card;

• Native American Tribal document;

• Record(s) from non-profit international aid agencies and voluntary agencies (VOLAGs);

• Consulate identification card; and

• Official driver's license.