Schools; requiring certain school districts to obtain, record, and report citizenship status of enrolling students; effective date; emergency.
Impact
The bill mandates an annual report to the State Department of Education that will summarize the citizenship status of enrolled students, categorizing them by those who provided proof of citizenship, those with legal immigration status, and those who failed to provide such proof. However, it is explicitly stated in the bill that no personally identifiable information will be included in these reports, striking a balance between data collection and privacy.
Summary
House Bill 1165 requires certain publicly funded school districts in Oklahoma to obtain and record the citizenship status or legal immigration status of students at the time of enrollment. The bill specifies acceptable forms of proof, which include a United States birth certificate, passport, driver's license, various immigration documents, and foreign passports with valid visas. The intention behind this requirement is to gather data on the citizenship status of students, possibly to address state-level concerns regarding immigration.
Contention
One point of contention relating to HB 1165 is the potential impact on students who may not have proof of citizenship or legal immigration status. While the bill clarifies that no child will be prohibited from receiving education due to a lack of documentation, critics may fear that this requirement could create a barrier to enrollment for some families. Additionally, the necessity and implications of collecting such data are likely to spur debate regarding the nature of public education accessibility and the treatment of immigrant communities within Oklahoma.
Schools; requiring a parent or guardian to provide proof of student's citizenship or legal immigration status upon school enrollment; effective date; emergency.
School reports; modifying calculation of certain graduation rates; excluding chronic absenteeism data from school site reports; requiring administration of climate surveys; effective date.
Schools; requiring school districts and charter schools to submit certain list of library materials; providing process for reporting violations; providing penalties. Effective date. Emergency.