Accessing City Services: How to Get a School Transfer

The beginning of the school year can be a stressful and confusing time for parents – especially if they are seeking a school transfer for their child. The advocate group Insideschools.org has done a great job of compiling information on school transfers in the city to make the process easier for parents. Below, the Office of the Public Advocate has pulled some selected information to help parents start this process.

Call the Office of the Public Advocate’s Parent Hotline at 212-669-7250 or visit www.Insideschools.org if you need more information or help transferring your child.

How School Transfers Work
The NYC Department of Education (DOE) grants school transfers for students based on medical reasons and requests based on safety reasons. They also grant requests  based on the Federal No Child Left Behind Act and the City's Progress Report Transfer Program, both of which involve academically troubled schools. Although the deadline for these two options was June 30, 2008, more information about these two transfers can be found on the Department of Education website, and here.

DOE transfers are overseen by the Office of Student Enrollment, Planning and Operations. If you need a school transfer for your child, you should contact your local DOE enrollment office. See a list of these offices, along with other parent resources.

If your child needs a school safety transfer, make sure to:

• First meet with your child’s principal or his or her designee
• Make a copy of the police report and any other documentation if your child has been involved in a violent incident
• Make note of the details of the violent or non-violent incident, along with contact information for witnesses, when requesting the transfer
• The Chancellor's regulation on safety transfers [pdf], notes that some safety transfers take place as part of No Child Left Behind. Additionally, "A student may also request a safety transfer in a situation where the student was not the victim of a violent criminal offense on school grounds. Such a request should be granted where it is determined that the student’s continued presence in the school is unsafe for the student.

If your child needs a school medical transfer, make sure to:

• Request the transfer in writing, first by contacting the school principal and Community School District
• Provide proof – from a medical professional – of your child’s medical needs.  While there is no guarantee that the transfer will be granted, children may obtain medical transfers outside a given district if it has no school that can accommodate their needs.

Need more info?
See the Chancellor's Regulations for school transfers.