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April 28, 2008
What's in your state's interstate compact for military children?Kansas and Kentucky are the first two states to approve the Interstate Compact for Educational Opportunity for Military Children aimed at addressing perceived inequalities facing these children when they are required to relocate across statelines. This is how the compact works: the laws of the "sending" state would apply to transferring students from military families in the schools of the 'receiving" state in such areas as graduation requirements and age of student enrollment, etc. The interstate compact would take effect when 10 states approve such legislation.
Although the intent of the compact is appealing, local school districts might want to consider how the compact would affect such local issues as privacy laws, immunization laws, enrollment ages and eligibility for extra-curricular activities. While Kansas and Kentucky do not require students to pass a high school exit exam to graduate, this issue could present a problem in states that do. Because the compact could eventually supersede state department of education requirements, there could be some operational challenges and perceptions of inequalities.
Given the wide variations among state education policy and the potential for modifications to the compact by state legislatures that take up the issue, NSBA recommends that school board members, state legislatures, and other involved parties fully understand the impact of the interstate compact adoption on their own state education laws. In addition, the implications of costs associated with implementing these changes remain unclear.
Currently, Georgia and Arizona have both passed such legislation which is headed for the governor's signature.
Posted April 28, 2008 1:33 PM | Students
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