HB1495

House Bill 1495 mandates that a student’s permanent school record must accompany them when transferring to any public school district, whether resident or nonresident. These records are required to include all disciplinary history, including in-school suspensions, out-of-school suspensions, pending expulsions, and finalized expulsions. Schools are prohibited from accepting a transfer student until they have obtained the student's permanent record, with a specific exception for foster children who are governed by existing record-sharing statutes. The bill grants schools the authority to deny enrollment to students who are currently serving an expulsion or are involved in pending expulsion proceedings. Additionally, the legislation requires schools to designate staff members to verify record accuracy and establishes that providing false information may violate the Code of Ethics for Arkansas Educators. Finally, the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education is tasked with creating formal procedures and rules to implement these requirements.