Appalachian State University Academy at Middle Fork McKinney-Vento Dispute Resolution Policy
I. Introduction
- The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (also referred to as the McKinney-Vento Act) acknowledges that disputes may arise between Appalachian State University Academy at Middle Fork students and their parents, or unaccompanied youth, regarding eligibility, school selection or enrollment decisions. The McKinney-Vento Act includes dispute resolution among the required duties of the homeless liaison.
II. Scope
- This policy applies to all employees of Appalachian State University Academy at Middle Fork.
III. Definitions
- “Academy” shall mean the Appalachian State University Academy at Middle Fork.
- “homeless,” “homeless child,” and “homeless student” shall mean the same as the term “homeless children and youth” as defined by 42 U.S.C. § 11434a(2). These terms shall also be deemed to include the term “unaccompanied youth.
- ”The term “unaccompanied youth” shall mean the same as defined by 42 U.S.C. § 11434a(6).
- The term “Academy dispute resolution process” shall refer to the Academy’s policy on resolving complaints brought by parents, legal guardians, or unaccompanied youth regarding students experiencing homelessness. The term shall refer to appeals processes within the Academy, prior to any appeal by the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth appeals to the State Coordinator.
- The term “local homeless liaison” shall refer to the official at the Academy, who ensures the Academy dispute resolution process for homeless children and youth is mediated in accordance with local, state, and federal policy as required by 42 U.S.C. § 11432(g)(6)(A)(vii).
- The term “school business day” means days on which students are scheduled to be in attendance at school, according to the academic calendar adopted by the Academy.
- The term “State Coordinator” shall refer to the staff person who carries out federally mandated duties regarding students experiencing homelessness as required by 42 U.S.C. § 11432(d)(3).
- The term “State appeal process” shall refer to the policies the State Coordinator, Academy’s, parents, legal guardians, and unaccompanied youth must follow when a parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth seeks to appeal a dispute to the State Coordinator.
IV. Policy
- OVERVIEW When a dispute occurs regarding eligibility, school selection, or enrollment the following process must be used:
- Level I: The initial dispute request is made with the Academy’s homeless liaison.
- Level II: If unresolved, the dispute moves to the Academy’s Principal (Level II),
- Level III: If unresolved the dispute moves to the Advisory Board (Level III) for review and final decision on behalf of the lab school.
- Level IV: If the dispute continues to be unresolved, the final appeal (Level IV) is to the NC State Coordinator for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth (EHCY). Every effort must be made to resolve the dispute at the local level before it is brought to the NC State Coordinator for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth.
- INITIATION OF THE DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROCESS
- When a dispute occurs regarding eligibility, school selection, or enrollment the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth shall be informed in writing of the Academy’s decision including reasons for the decision within one (1) school business day in a language and format understandable to the parent, legal guardian or unaccompanied youth of their right to appeal the decision made by the lab school and be provided the following:
- Written contact information for the Academy homeless liaison and State Coordinator, with a brief description of their roles.
- A simple form that parents, legal guardians, or unaccompanied youth can complete and turn in to the school to initiate the dispute process (the school should copy the form and return the copy to the parent, legal guardian, or youth for their records when it is submitted.)
- A written step-by-step description of how to dispute the Academy’s decision.
- Written notice of the right to enroll immediately in the school of choice pending resolution of the dispute.
- Written notice of the right to appeal to the State Coordinator for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth if the district-level resolution is not satisfactory.
- Written timelines for resolving district- and state-level appeals.
- A copy of the NC Dispute Resolution Policy (hard copy or online link).
- When a dispute occurs regarding eligibility, school selection, or enrollment the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth shall be informed in writing of the Academy’s decision including reasons for the decision within one (1) school business day in a language and format understandable to the parent, legal guardian or unaccompanied youth of their right to appeal the decision made by the lab school and be provided the following:
- Level I: Academy Homeless Liaison Communication
- If a parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth wishes to appeal the Academy’s decision related to eligibility, school selection, or enrollment:
- The parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth must file a request for dispute resolution with the Academy’s homeless liaison (or to his/her office) either verbally or by submitting a form that initiates the dispute resolution process. The request for dispute resolution must be submitted by the parent, legal guardian or the unaccompanied youth to the homeless liaison within two (2) school business days of receiving the initial homeless liaison decision on enrollment, school selection, or enrollment. The parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth may initiate the request directly with the homeless liaison or they may initiate the request to the school where the dispute is taking place. If the request is submitted to the school where the dispute is taking place, the school shall immediately forward the request to the Academy’s homeless liaison. In the event that the Academy’s homeless liaison is unavailable, an Academy designee may receive the parent's, legal guardian’s or unaccompanied youth's request to initiate the dispute resolution process.
- The homeless liaison must log their receipt of the dispute, including the date and time, with a written description of the situation and the reason for the dispute, and a copy of the dispute, must be forwarded to the homeless liaison’s immediate supervisor and the lab school’s head administrator.
- Within one (1) school business day of their receipt of the complaint, the homeless liaison must make a decision on the dispute and inform the parent, legal guardian or unaccompanied youth in writing of the result. It is the responsibility of the Academy to verify the parent’s, legal guardian’s or unaccompanied youth’s receipt of the written notification regarding the homeless liaison’s Level I decision.
- If the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth disagrees with the decision made at Level I and wishes to move the dispute resolution process forward to Level II, the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth shall notify the Academy’s homeless liaison of their intent to proceed to Level II within one (1) school business day of receipt of notification of the Level I decision.
- If the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth wishes to appeal the homeless liaison’s Level I decision, the Academy’s homeless liaison shall provide the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth with an appeals package containing:
- A copy of the parent’s, legal guardian’s or unaccompanied youth’s dispute which was filed with the Academy’s homeless liaison at Level I,
- The decision rendered at Level I by the Academy homeless liaison, and
- Any additional information from the parent, legal guardian, unaccompanied youth, and/or the homeless liaison.
- If a parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth wishes to appeal the Academy’s decision related to eligibility, school selection, or enrollment:
- Level II: Academy Director Communication: If the dispute remains unresolved after a Level I appeal.
- If there is a disagreement with the decision rendered by the Academy’s homeless liaison at Level I, the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth may appeal the decision to the Academy’s head administrator, or the head administrator designee, (the designee shall be someone other than the Academy’s homeless liaison) using the appeals package provided at Level I.
- The lab school’s head administrator, or his/her designee, shall meet (verbally, virtually or face-to-face) with the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth. The meeting shall be held within two (2) school business days of the parent’s, legal guardian’s, or unaccompanied youth’s notification to the Academy of their intent to proceed to Level II of the dispute resolution process.
- The lab school’s head administrator, or his/her designee, shall provide a decision in writing to the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth with supporting evidence and reasons, within two (2) school business days of the Academy’s head administrator, or his/her designee’s, meeting with the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth. It is the responsibility of the Academy to verify the parent’s, legal guardian’s, or unaccompanied youth’s receipt of the written notification regarding the charter school’s head administrator, Level II decision.
- A copy of the dispute package, along with the written decision made at Level II is to be shared with the Academy’s homeless liaison.
- If the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth disagrees with the decision made at Level II and wishes to move the dispute resolution process forward to Level III, the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth shall notify the Academy’s homeless liaison of their intent to proceed to Level III within two (2) school business days of receipt of notification of the Level II decision.
- If the dispute remains unresolved, the process then moves to Level III.
- Level III: Chancellor Review: If the dispute remains unresolved after a Level II appeal
- The lab school’s head administrator, with assistance from the homeless liaison, shall forward all written documentation and related paperwork to the Chancellor for review within two (2) school business days of notifying the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth of the decision rendered at Level II.
- The entire dispute package including all documentation and related paperwork is to be submitted to the Chancellor in one consolidated and complete package. It is the responsibility of the Academy to ensure that the dispute package is complete and ready for review at the time of submission to the Chancellor.
- The Chancellor, or a panel of at least two members designated by the Chancellor, shall schedule a conference with the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth to render a final decision on behalf of the Chancellor. The Chancellor or Chancellor’s panel shall provide a written decision within two (2) school business days. The Chancellor or Chancellor panel’s decision shall be considered the final decision of the lab school for the purpose of appealing to the State Coordinator for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth. The written notification shall be provided to the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth as well as to the head administrator and the homeless liaison. Also, the notification shall contain the name and contact information for the State Coordinator for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth along with details on appeal rights of the parent, legal guardian, or unaccompanied youth.
- The parent, legal guardian or unaccompanied youth have the option of filing an oral or written dispute with the State Coordinator for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth within three school (3) business days of receiving the Chancellor or Chancellor panel’s decision. The local homeless liaison shall provide the complete dispute record within three school business days following the request of the State Coordinator for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth. The State Coordinator shall issue a final written decision to the parent, legal guardian or unaccompanied youth and the Academy within ten school business days following receipt of a complete dispute package.
V. Original Effective Date
May 16, 2022
Appalachian State University Academy at Middle Fork McKinney-Vento Education of Homeless Children and Youth Assistance Act Statement
The Appalachian State University Academy at Middle Fork Homeless Liaison is Jazz Brown. Her contact information is email: brownjy@appstate.edu, phone: (336) 748-4085. The NC Homeless Liaison Coordinator is Lisa Phillips email: lphillip@serve.org, phone: (336) 315-7491.
The McKinney-Vento Education of Homeless Children and Youth Assistance Act (hereinafter the "McKinney Vento Act") is the primary piece of legislation dealing with the education of children and youth experiencing homelessness. The Act is also known as Title X, Part C of the Every Students Succeeds Act.
The McKinney Vento Act defines homeless children and youth to mean "individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence." (42 U.S.C. § 11434a(2)). The definition includes " i. children and youths who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; or are abandoned in hospitals; ii. children and youths who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings...; iii. children and youths who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; and iv. migratory children who qualify as homeless for the purposes of this subtitle because the children are living in circumstances described in clauses (i) through (iii)." (42 U.S.C. § 11434a(2))
For additional information regarding resources or services for homeless children and youth, please refer to the fact sheets located on the National Center for Homeless Education website: https://nche.ed.gov/nche/rights.html.
Parents and unaccompanied youth should also consult the website at https://nche.ed.gov/ibt/parent_res.php.
Additional resources can be found at:
- The U.S. Department of Education Supporting Homeless Students website: https://www2.ed.gov/about/inits/ed/supporting-homeless-students/index.html; and
- The National Center for Homeless Education website: https://nche.ed.gov/.