Crackdown on out-of-district students Crackdown on out-of-district students (May 27, 2005)

New policy at MVLA won't go into effect until 2006

By Kathy Schrenk

The Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District is following the lead of nearby districts in cracking down on students from other districts attending its schools.

But Mountain View-Los Altos is taking its time putting the policy into place, according to Assistant Superintendent Brigitte Sarraf.

One nearby district -- Fremont Union, which covers parts of Sunnyvale, Cupertino and San Jose -- instituted its new policy on such students earlier this spring. Some students had to switch schools within days of being notified.

Mountain View-Los Altos is waiting until the 2006-07 school year to implement its new policy, which will likely require all parents to supply three forms of government identification or proof of residency when enrolling their kids at the Mountain View or Los Altos high schools. Currently they just need to show a utility bill, Sarraf said.

The problem for local districts is that kids from out of the area want to attend schools here because of the higher test scores and superior reputations. But the schools don't get extra money from the state to educate these students.

The students most affected will probably be the ones with attendance affidavits, said Los Altos Principal Wynne Satterwhite. This refers to students who have special permission to attend certain schools because they live with a relative or caregiver within the school district boundaries, even if their parents don't.

About 50 students in the district attend on affidavits, Sarraf said. The new policy may make it more difficult for them to prove their eligibility. "We're very concerned about the growth of our population," Sarraf said.

District officials say they have no idea how many other students will be affected.

About 200 students have had to leave the Fremont Union district this spring because they didn't prove that they were residents, according to the district's Web site.

E-mail Kathy Schrenk at kschrenk@mv-voice.com

E-mail a friend a link to this story.