Students at Beverly Hills High School play softball within sight of an oil well tower (L) covered in flower designs May 7, 2003 in Beverly Hills, California.; Credit: David McNew/Getty Images
Out-of-district students have been an issue for many high-performing school districts in Southern California. Beverly Hills Unified has recently voted to give schools the authority to penalize families who don’t live in the district for enrolling their kids in its schools. The fine is calculated to be around $150 a day.
The new rules, updated two weeks ago, let the district collect "any and all damages, including compensatory damages, consequential damages, punitive damages, and liquidated damages" from "parents, guardians or others who intentionally misrepresent the student's residency in order to gain admittance to the district."
Beverly Hills Unified is one of the more aggressive districts in Los Angeles County when it comes to policing enrollment fraud. But school districts elsewhere are also turning to hardball tactics. A school district in New Jersey this year is offering a $50 gift card for tips leading to the expulsion of out-of-district kids, and last year, a district in Atlantic City kicked out a number of students in violation of the residency requirement and recouped over $30,000 in tuition costs.
Guests:
Paul Teske, Dean and Professor, School of Public Affairs, University of Colorado Denver; Teske specializes in education policy
Lisa Korbatov, Board Member, Beverly Hills Unified School District