Digital Media Center
Bryant-Denny Stadium, Gate 61
920 Paul Bryant Drive
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0370
(800) 654-4262

© 2024 Alabama Public Radio
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Complaints Lead to New Student Enrollment Forms

Tommy Bice
The Montgomery Advertiser
Tommy Bice

Alabama's school superintendent is telling all Alabama public school systems to start using a new student enrollment process that makes clear a Social Security number or birth certificate is not necessary for enrollment.

Superintendent Tommy Bice sent out a standardized enrollment form after the Southern Poverty Law Center complained that more than 70 percent of Alabama's school systems were using enrollment practices that violated federal prohibitions against denying or discouraging the enrollment of immigrant children. Many of the previous forms required a Social Security number or birth certificate.

Southern Poverty Law Center attorney Jay Singh commended Bice for taking action to ensure that all children have access to Alabama's public schools regardless of immigration status or birthplace.

The Associated Press is one of the largest and most trusted sources of independent newsgathering, supplying a steady stream of news to its members, international subscribers and commercial customers. AP is neither privately owned nor government-funded; instead, it's a not-for-profit news cooperative owned by its American newspaper and broadcast members.
News from Alabama Public Radio is a public service in association with the University of Alabama. We depend on your help to keep our programming on the air and online. Please consider supporting the news you rely on with a donation today. Every contribution, no matter the size, propels our vital coverage. Thank you.