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SDLA Compliance Resource

Request and Provide Foster-Youth Academic and Other Records Within Two Business Days

A rapid cumulative-record handoff guide for the new-school and prior-school educational liaisons, with credit, course, health, and service continuity controls.

  • Attendance
  • Pupil Records
Date(s)New-school liaison contacts prior school within two business days of the enrollment request; prior-school liaison provides records within two business days of receiving the request
Applies toSchools and LEAs transferring records for a foster child under Education Code section 48853.5

In Plain Language: The foster-youth rule is faster than the ordinary 10-schoolday permanent-record transfer. The new-school educational liaison must contact the last school within two business days of the enrollment request. The prior-school liaison must provide all required academic and other records within two business days after receiving that request, regardless of outstanding fees, fines, textbooks, or other items.

Why this matters

A delayed cumulative folder can produce incorrect placement, repeated coursework, lost partial credit, missed disability services, health risk, and graduation delay. The purpose is usable educational continuity—not merely sending whatever documents are easiest to find.

Joint ownership

Requester: new-school foster-youth educational liaison. Sender: prior-school liaison and records custodian. Content partners: registrar, teachers, counseling, health, special education/504, discipline, attendance, and program staff.

Operational workflow

  1. 1. At immediate enrollment, open a two-business-day request task and identify the prior school’s liaison/records contact.
  2. 2. Request all academic and other records through a secure method and document receipt by the prior school.
  3. 3. Prior-school staff assemble the cumulative folder, current schedule/grades, full and partial credits, attendance, health, discipline, IEP/504, assessments, and program information as applicable.
  4. 4. Send within two business days, regardless of outstanding obligations, and retain the transfer manifest.
  5. 5. New-school staff reconcile received records to placement, credits, services, SIS/CALPADS history, and unresolved follow-up.

Evidence to retain

  • Enrollment-request date and two-business-day deadline
  • Request, recipient, transmission method, and delivery confirmation
  • Cumulative-folder manifest and missing-component follow-up
  • Partial-credit and course-placement review
  • IEP/504, health, attendance, and program continuity checks

Official guidance and help

Source review completed August 30, 2026. Verify current law, official guidance, local policy, language access, individual circumstances, and the exact persisted attendance or pupil-record state before acting.