Hundreds of parents and guardians crowded the Hazelwood School District’s Opportunity Center this week to try to enroll their children after finding out they were not registered for classes this school year.
Some frustrated parents waited hours to speak with district officials about registration and their children’s enrollment status, only to be told they did not have their children’s identifying information, medical records or proof of residency on file. Officials told some parents at the center that the district is integrating a new enrollment system and experiencing technical issues.
“My son is in the ninth grade, so I felt like that was taken away from him – his first day of high school,” said Janie Henderson, “He was eager to go, so I was kind of upset, because I feel like that he can't get that back.”
Henderson has three children in the district. Her two daughters have been in the district for years. She moved her son from the St. Louis Public School District to Hazelwood this year. Henderson enrolled her children on June 6 and received an email stating they were approved to attend their school. She found out her son was not registered last Thursday when she attended a “Meet the Teacher” event at Hazelwood West High School.
Henderson spoke to the principal, and he found her son’s application, but he was not registered. She took off work on Monday to go to the district’s opportunity center to get her son’s information corrected.
“We were in line from 9 a.m. to 4:30 pm. to get him seen,” Henderson said. “It was only one person working … we finally got to talk to somebody, and the lady told me that he had to see a nurse for approval.”
Henderson advised the registrar officials that her son's documents were up-to-date. The officials finally found his file and told her that they would have to come back the next day to finish enrolling. Her son eventually started school on Wednesday. Classes began for the district on Monday.
Many other parents and guardians had similar issues enrolling their children in the district. Some took their grievances to social media and posted how they were unaware of the district’s change in enrollment system and how it is interfering with work and disrupting their children’s lives.
The district did not respond to a request for comment.
On Wednesday, the district placed a notice on its website and emailed parents about its enrollment issues. It said the district migrated to a new system called Infinite Campus that requires additional time and processing, which has created problems.
“It has not been what we wanted for our students and families, and for that, the district apologizes,” the notice said. “Please continue to work with us as we navigate these issues. Most of our students are enrolled and have schedules at this point. However, we know there will be late registrations and changes that will need to be made.”
The notice also stated that the transition has caused problems with its transportation system.
“The district worked last week on a data sync error that impacted student data being transferred between our student information system and transportation software,” the notice said. “Initially, it appeared that it was only impacting the availability of bus route information, and that is why we asked parents to verify bus assignments over the weekend. Ultimately, it was found to also be impacting the lack of bus route assignments for some students."
The district claimed that it had resolved the transportation issues. However, Henderson has to pay for rideshares for her son to get to and from school, because his enrollment information has not yet been updated in the transportation portal. She said officials told her his information should be updated by the end of next week.
Cleo Brown is also having issues with transportation for his middle school daughter.
“For the first two days of school for my youngest, the bus never showed up,” he said.
Brown called the district’s transportation services after his daughter told him she did not catch the bus to school. He said he could not get anyone on the phone to address his concerns. He ended up leaving school and work to take his daughter to school, but she arrived after classes started.
“The school didn't mark her absent or late, but they didn't know what was going on because they had no communication from transportation,” Brown said. “We didn't get any email or any text or call.”
Brown registered his two daughters in 7th and 11th grades at Hazelwood schools earlier this summer. He did not have problems with his middle school daughter’s enrollment, but officials said his eldest daughter’s enrollment documentation was incomplete. Brown asked what was missing, and he said they could not tell what was missing from her file. He never received her schedule or laptop, so he advised her to attend school on Monday even without the items she needed. Teachers helped get her enrolled that day, and she was able to continue with classes.
“I didn't want them to miss the first day of school,” Brown said. “I think it's important for them, at least, to get to know their teachers or it could be some really important instructions given on that first day.”
Brown said the enrollment and transportation issues made his daughters anxious because they felt as if they were missing out on making new friends and meeting their teachers.
Attorneys in the area have also been working with parents and guardians who have not been able to get their children enrolled in classes in the district. They say it is causing serious challenges to families.
“One particular concern we have is that the requirement to go in person and fill out paperwork for families that may not have access to transportation or be able to take off work, that can be a barrier to immediate enrollment,” said Hopey Fink, staff attorney at Legal Services of Eastern Missouri.
She said the errors with the new system are also creating barriers for children who are experiencing homelessness. They are concerned that families and students with protections will have to provide documentation that is not legally required to enter school.
“There was a sense of frustration that I could definitely sense from these families who had been in there, and I've just spoken with several who missed out on a full day's work,” Fink said. “And it has real repercussions for families and for people's lives, not to mention the fact that kids are missing the first days of school, which are really important.”
