After WJAR-TV reported that a family was told they could not send their children to Johnston Public Schools because they were living in a motel in town, the ACLU of Rhode Island contacted the Rhode Island Department of Education to urge Commissioner Ken Wagner to promptly intervene.
In a letter to Commissioner Wagner, ACLU of Rhode Island executive director Steven Brown stated: "[I]t appears that Johnston officials took this action unilaterally, and failed to advise them of their right to appeal the decision and to stay enrolled in the Johnston school district until the matter was formally resolved. This is deeply troubling, since it is in direct violation of state law and regulations and is harmful to the affected children." Brown noted that the family recently moved to Rhode Island and did not have any other residence in the state, making the children Johnston residents for school residency purposes.
The full letter to the Commissioner is available here.
