When a student is in foster care, the person enrolling the student must provide one of the following documents to show they have legal authority to do enroll the child:

• DFPS Placement Authorization Form 2085, which is given to caregivers by DFPS or  Community-Based Care providers, indicates who has the legal authority and responsibility for the student.
• DFPS Designated Education Decision-Maker Form 2085-E, which is provided to the  appointed decision-maker by DFPS, says who has the legal authority and responsibility to make education decisions for the student.
• A court order naming DFPS as Temporary Managing Conservator (TMC) or  Permanent Managing Conservator (PMC) of the student.
• If the person does not have the required documents, the DFPS caseworker, Community-Based Care caseworker,  or the DFPS educational specialist may assist with providing the necessary forms.

Once identified as a student in foster care and provided with a 2085 form or court order to prove decision making authority to enroll and confirmed to be in the child’s chool of origin at the time of placement or the zoned school based on placement residence, the LEA must accept the student for enrollment, even without the normally required documents. DFPS has up to 30 days to provide all the necessary enrollment paperwork when a student enrolls at a new school.

A student placed in foster care is entitled to continue to attend the school in which the student was enrolled immediately before entering DFPS conservatorship. The student may also attend the public schools in the district in which the student’s placement is assigned and may continue to attend the school at the time of any subsequent changes in foster care placements. Students have the right to remain enrolled through the highest-grade level offered by that school, regardless if they remain in foster care. A student who meets this criteria above is eligible for attendance in the district as a regular student and should not be coded as a transfer student. 

Under ESSA, LEAs and DFPS are responsible to coordinate and promptly ensure that students receive transportation to their school of origin, when needed. This only applies to transportation to/from the school of origin, if it was determined to be in the child’s best interest to continue attending the school of origin. 

• If a need for school of origin transportation arises for a student in foster care: 
  • In some instances, LEAs may coordinate with other LEAs across neighboring school and district attendance zones.
    • Creative solutions, such as ride share options, the use of public transportation, bus passes, and  carpooling may be necessary to promote cost sharing and maintain school stability.
  • Transportation is a shared responsibility between the LEA and DFPS. However, DFPS staff cannot enter into contracts with LEAs for transportation costs. DFPS may share in the cost of transportation by utilizing DFPS staff, residential contract providers, and other members of the student’s child welfare team.
  • If there are additional costs for transporting a student to the school of origin, the LEA must provide the transportation if:
    • DFPS agrees to reimburse the LEA for the additional transportation cost, the LEA agrees to pay for the additional transportation cost, or the LEA and DFPS agree to share the additional transportation cost. 
  • If a student receives special education services, transportation may be written into the student’s Individual  Education Plan (IEP). Transportation is the school’s responsibility. 

School of Origin: 

When a student is removed from a parent or legal guardian and placed into foster care, the school that the student attended prior to entering care is considered the school of origin. If a student moves while in foster care, the school of origin  becomes the school the student attended before the residential placement change. A student in foster care enrolled (or at the time of placement in foster care) in public school may remain enrolled in their school of origin, even when moved outside the school of origin’s attendance zone, or can attend the appropriate school zoned for their placement residence. 

Education Best Interest Determination: 

How are best interest determinations made? 

• ESSA requires collaboration between the LEA and DFPS in the best interest decision-making process.
• Remaining in the “school of origin” is usually considered the best interest of the student, unless a determination is made that it is not in their best interest.
• LEA Foster Care Liaisons play an important role in collecting information from the school and communicating information to the student’s caseworker and education decision-maker to support education best interest decisions.
  • Some factors related to the determination include the appropriateness of the current educational setting and the proximity of the residential placement to the school of origin.
• DFPS must consult with the LEA foster care liaison and appropriate school personnel to gather information from educators who are knowledgeable about the student and can provide feedback on how changing schools would impact the student’s academic, social, and emotional well-being.

Who has the final say in education best interest determinations for students in Foster Care?

The child welfare professionals and the court overseeing the child welfare case are ultimately responsible for the best interest determination on whether the student will remain in their school of origin. DFPS makes final decisions about school placement based on a holistic view of the student’s overall safety, permanency, and well-being.

Best Interest Determinations for Students in Foster Care

Children currently in the conservatorship of DFPS, or currently in another state’s foster care system, or children who have ever been in foster care in Texas as a result of an adversary court hearing, are eligible for enrollment in the local public school’s pre-kindergarten program at no cost. Marble Falls ISD currently offers a program for three-year-olds and the eligibility is the same if the child is three years old by September 1st of the school year.

ALL children three, four, and five years of age who are currently in or were ever in Texas foster care as a result of an adversary hearing receive a Letter of Verification to enroll in a public school’s pre-kindergarten program from DFPS. Head Start also accepts the DFPS Letter of Verification for pre-kindergarten enrollment. If a student does not have a letter, the student’s parent or school representative, may contact the DFPS pre-k verification mailbox at prekverificationltrs@dfps.texas.gov to receive a copy of the letter.

Due to changes by the 87th Texas Legislature, HB 725 amends TEC § 29.153 so that students who were in or are currently in another state’s foster care system, residing in Texas, are eligible to receive free Pre-K, although they do not receive a verification letter. 

Foster Care Welcome Packet (English)

Foster Care Welcome Packet (Spanish)

Many students currently in Foster Care or that have been in Foster Care previously will qualify for the State College Tuition and Fee Waiver, which provides a tuition waiver for any State-Supported college, university, or trade-school in Texas. Students must enroll before the age of 25 in order to access the waiver for lifetime use, if qualified. 

Qualification criteria are: 

• The day before your 18th birthday.
• The day of your 14th birthday, if you are also eligible for adoption on or after that day.
• The day you graduated from high school or received the equivalent of a high school diploma.
• The day you were adopted, if that date was on or after September 1, 2009.
• The day Permanent Managing Conservatorship was granted to a non-parent, if that date was on or after September 1, 2009.
• You were 14 years or older on or after June 1, 2016 and left DFPS's Permanent Managing Conservatorship return to the legal responsibility of a parent.
• You were 16 years or older on or after June 1, 2016 and left DFPS Temporary Managing Conservatorship to the legal responsibility of a parent.
• You enrolled in a dual credit course or other course which a high-school student may earn joint high school and college credit, and were in DFPS conservatorship on the day of enrollment.

State PAL staff or Adoption Eligibility Assistance staff will give you a signed college Tuition Fee Waiver letter to take to the school registrar's office. Participation in PAL services is not required to be eligible for the tuition and fee waiver.

College Tuition and Fee Waiver Eligibility

The ETV program is a federally funded program designed to assist with the education and training needs of eligible youth and young adults currently or formerly in the conservatorship of DFPS.

The ETV program serves those eligible students ages 16 up to age 23 by providing up to $5,000 a year to attend college or vocational programs. The amount of ETV funds is based on the student’s cost of attendance as determined by the school and after all other financial aid assistance has been factored in. Students may not receive ETV funds for more than 5 years (whether or not consecutive).

To be eligible for the ETV Program you must:

• be at least 16 and in DFPS foster care, or are in extended foster care; or
• have aged out of DFPS foster care or were legally emancipated by a court while in DFPS foster care and are not yet age 23; or

• have been adopted from DFPS foster care after turning age 16 and not yet age 23; or
• have entered the Permanency Care Assistance (PCA) program after turning age 16 and are not yet age 23.

Other Eligible Students include:

• Youth placed in the custody of the Texas Juvenile Justice Department or under the jurisdiction of a local juvenile probation department who were receiving Title IV-E foster care payments the day before turning age 18 and are not yet age 23; or
• Tribal youth or young adults in tribal foster care who are not yet age 23.

DFPS Education and Training Voucher Information

Foster Care Dispute Resolution Guidance

TEA Foster Care Student Success Guide

TEA Foster Care PEIMS Guidance

TEA Foster Care & Student Success Education Laws and Guidance

Marble Falls ISD Community Resource Guide (English)

Marble Falls ISD Community Resource Guide (Spanish)

Recognizing and Treating Child Traumatic Stress

How to Help Children Overcome Traumatic Experiences

Establishing Secure Attachments

Child Welfare Information Gateway

Guidance for Foster Parents Helping Youth Transition to Adulthood

Preparation for Adult Living (PAL) for Foster Care Youth

Transition Planning Guide for Foster Care Youth Receiving Special Education Services