Overview of AB 490

Assembly Bill 490 (2003), codified in CA Education Code §48850-48859, established comprehensive education rights for children and youth in foster care. The law aims to:

• Minimize educational disruption caused by placement changes
• Ensure immediate access to education
• Provide support services to help foster youth succeed

Key Rights

1. Right to Remain in School of Origin

• Foster youth have the right to remain in their school of origin (the school they attended before entering foster care or before a placement change)
• This right continues for the duration of the school year even if the student's placement changes
• Transportation must be provided if needed

2. Best Interest Determination

Before changing a foster youth's school, a best interest determination must be made considering:

• Appropriateness of the current educational setting
• Proximity of the new placement to the school of origin
• The student's wishes
• Safety concerns
• Special education needs

3. Immediate Enrollment

• Foster youth must be immediately enrolled in a new school, even if:
• They lack typical enrollment documents (immunization records, birth certificate, transcripts)
• They have outstanding fees, fines, or textbook charges
• They do not have clothing that meets dress code requirements
• The previous school must transfer records within 2 business days (EC §49069.5)

4. Records Transfer

• Academic records must be transferred within 2 business days of a request
• Information about the student's foster care status is confidential
• The new school must immediately request records from the prior school

5. Partial Credits

• Foster youth must receive partial credit for coursework satisfactorily completed (see related article on AB 216)

Dean/Counselor Responsibilities

1. Identify foster youth — Work with your foster youth liaison to know who your foster youth are
2. Facilitate immediate enrollment — Do not delay enrollment for missing documents
3. Ensure school stability — Advocate for the student to remain at their school of origin when possible
4. Protect confidentiality — Foster care status is private information
5. Coordinate supports — Connect foster youth with tutoring, counseling, mentoring, and other services
6. Communicate with the educational liaison — The child's social worker or caregiver