Office of Civil Rights Assertions

[From Element 7: RACIAL AND ETHNIC BALANCE of the Academia Avance charter]

Academia Avance will make every effort to recruit students of various racial and ethnic groups in order to achieve a balance reflective of the general population residing within the territorial jurisdiction of LAUSD. Academia Avance will conduct orientation meetings prior to the opening of each school year to inform interested parents and students of what the school has to offer. Outreach meetings will be held in several locations of the target area in an effort to ensure all students in the area have equitable access to the school. Open houses and school tours will also be conducted.

Academia Avance will develop promotional and informational materials (i.e. a school brochure, flyers, a website, and advertisements for local media) in English and languages other than English for distribution to a broad variety of community groups, agencies, neighborhood youth organizations, social service providers, churches, grocery stores, public libraries, and legislators that serve the various racial, ethnic, and interest groups represented in LAUSD. Interested students will be subject to the admission procedures detailed in Element 8.

Academia Avance will maintain an accurate accounting of the ethnic and racial balance of students enrolled in the school. The school will also document the efforts made to achieve racial and ethnic balance in accordance with the charter petition and standards of charter legislation.

[From Element 8: ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS of the Academia Avance charter]

Academia Avance will be open to all students residing in California who wish to attend. Academia Avance will adhere to the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act and ensure that each child of a homeless individual and each homeless youth has equal access to the same free, appropriate public education as provided to other children and youths.

Affirmations

• Academia Avance will be nonsectarian in its programs, admission policies, employment practices, and all other operations.
• Academia Avance will not charge tuition.
• Academia Avance will not discriminate against any pupil on the basis of ethnicity, national origin, gender, disability, or any other basis prohibited by law.
• Academia Avance will not require any pupil to attend the charter school.
• Academia Advance will not enroll pupils over 19 years of age unless continuously enrolled in public school, are making satisfactory progress toward high school diploma requirements, and are not more than 22 years of age.

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99) is a Federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education.

FERPA gives parents certain rights with respect to their children's education records. These rights transfer to the student when he or she reaches the age of 18 or attends a school beyond the high school level. Students to whom the rights have transferred are "eligible students."

Parents or eligible students have the right to inspect and review the student's education records maintained by the school. Schools are not required to provide copies of records unless, for reasons such as great distance, it is impossible for parents or eligible students to review the records. Schools may charge a fee for copies.

Parents or eligible students have the right to request that a school correct records which they believe to be inaccurate or misleading. If the school decides not to amend the record, the parent or eligible student then has the right to a formal hearing. After the hearing, if the school still decides not to amend the record, the parent or eligible student has the right to place a statement with the record setting forth his or her view about the contested information.

Generally, schools must have written permission from the parent or eligible student in order to release any information from a student's education record. However, FERPA allows schools to disclose those records, without consent, to the following parties or under the following conditions (34 CFR § 99.31):

• School officials with legitimate educational interest
• Other schools to which a student is transferring
• Specified officials for audit or evaluation purposes
• Appropriate parties in connection with financial aid to a student
• Organizations conducting certain studies for or on behalf of the school
• Accrediting organizations
• To comply with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena
• Appropriate officials in cases of health and safety emergencies
• State and local authorities, within a juvenile justice system, pursuant to specific State law

Schools may disclose, without consent, "directory" information such as a student's name, address, telephone number, date and place of birth, honors and awards, and dates of attendance. However, schools must tell parents and eligible students about directory information and allow parents and eligible students a reasonable amount of time to request that the school not disclose directory information about them. Schools must notify parents and eligible students annually of their rights under FERPA. The actual means of notification (special letter, inclusion in a PTA bulletin, student handbook, or newspaper article) is left to the discretion of each school.

For additional information or technical assistance, you may call (202) 260-3887 (voice). Individuals who use TDD may call the Federal Information Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339. Or use the following address: Family Policy Compliance Office, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Washington, D.C. 20202-5920