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Policy JEB
To enter kindergarten, a child must be five years of age on or before October 15th of the school year of admission. To enter grade one, a child must be six years of age on or before October 15th of the school year of admission.
Children who have not attained their sixth birthday on or before October 15th, but who have attended public kindergarten in another state and have been promoted to grade one or who are attending grade one in another state, may be placed in grade one upon being transferred to the South Portland School System.
It is recognized that exceptions to this initial placement may be justified under limited circumstances as is acceleration at any grade level. In such rare cases, enrolling five year old students may be placed in first grade at the discretion of school officials in accordance with the following:
Social and emotional maturity should have been documented such as to predict success in grade one; documentation will include recommendations by pre-school teachers, parent recommendations and pre-school testing as determined by the school principal.
The decision of placement lies with the principal and an advisory committee at the school.
The school reserves the right to administer testing as appropriate to make a proper determination of placement.
Any such placement is to be conditioned upon demonstrated success and reviewed at appropriate intervals, and
All exceptional placements are to be reported to the Superintendent F. Any parent who disagrees with the decision of the advisory committee may appeal the decision to the Superintendent whose decision shall be final.
Schools shall require birth certificates, within 60 days of enrollment, of all children whose records do not show a certified date of birth. Only an official record of birth shall be acceptable.
Legal Reference: Title 20A MRSA Sec. 5201.02
Cross Reference: IKE Promotion, Retention and Acceleration of Students Revised: June 12, 1978
Revised: June 14, 1995
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