States have always had the ability to regulate institutions conducting instruction or other postsecondary activities in their states. In Fall 2010, a Federal regulation was first released tying institutional and student eligibility for Title IV Federal Financial aid to an institution complying with State laws. Colleges and universities were to be…

Effective July 1, 2003, House Bill (HB) 1079 allows any student, including presumed undocumented students who meet specific criteria, to pay in-state tuition at Washington's public colleges and universities. In addition to meeting certain conditions, the affidavit states that the student will file for permanent residency at the earliest…

There is no question that students who experience homelessness, like all students, are entitled to be educated. A federal law, known as the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, requires states to provide homeless children and youth with the same access to free appropriate public education as is available to other students. The Act also requires…

This paper provides information about noncredit instruction in the California Community Colleges and updates the 2009 paper "Noncredit Instruction: Opportunity and Challenge" to incorporate subsequent changes from the last decade. Since the passage of SB 361 (Scott, 2006), noncredit instruction has seen significant changes, including the…

These Questions and Answers are intended to assist states and school districts in meeting their legal obligations to ensure that their enrollment policies and practices at the elementary and secondary school levels do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national origin, and do not bar or discourage students' enrollment in elementary…

English learners (ELs) are facing unique issues in higher education that remain largely unexplored. This research focuses on college choice, enrollment, and graduation among high-achieving ELs who were eligible for automatic admission to any public higher education institution in Texas by having graduated in the top 10% of their high school class.…

In this article, the author talks about an increasing movement that generates support for the Dream Act, the federal proposal which would allow some undocumented students to begin the path towards permanent residency. Beginning in Summer 2009, when more than 500 converged in DC for a national Dream Act graduation ceremony, students and their…

Because of the radical variance in residency requirements from state to state and sometimes from institution to institution, and because of several court cases involving this issue, the Education Commission of the States appointed a Committee to develop (1) a statement of principles for consideration in drafting legislation in connection with…

Reviews some of the circumstances that have prompted North Carolina to modify its parent-residence rule and shows how the state deals with pupil-assignment problems. (Author/IRT)

A New York court decision interprets liberally a statute concerning free tuition for non-resident students. (MF)

In recent years there have been a number of proposals to extend resident tuition and fee status to certain groups of foreign nationals (E-1) in the State of Washington. An E-1 national is "any nonimmigrant alien entitled to enter the United States under and in pursuance of the provisions of a treaty of commerce and navigation between the…

The purpose of this study was to ascertain the impact of residency and guardianship requirements on the provision of educational opportunities to homeless children and youth. Specifically, the study sought to identify existing legal entanglements, from both state and local policy sources, that resulted in the denial of a free, appropriate public…

Regulations governing classification of students for tuition purposes in each of the 50 states (including Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands) are summarized. This is followed by summaries of a number of court cases challenging the residency classification procedures used by public institutions of higher education. Each summary of state…

Examines some of the legal and practical matters involved when school boards adopt a policy giving competitive bid preferences to state and local vendors and contractors by penalizing the bids submitted by nonresident firms. (MLF)