(a) A foster family agency with jurisdiction over a currently enrolled or former pupil, a short-term residential treatment program staff responsible for the education or case management of a pupil, and a caregiver who has direct responsibility for the care of the pupil, including a certified or licensed foster parent, an approved relative or nonrelated extended family member, or a resource family, as defined in Section 1517 of the Health and Safety Code and Section 16519.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, may access the current or most recent records of grades, transcripts, attendance, discipline, and online communication on platforms established by schools for pupils and parents, and any individualized education programs (IEP) that may have been developed pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 56300) of Part 30 or any plan adopted pursuant to Section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Sec. 794(a)) maintained by school districts, county offices of education, charter schools, nonpublic schools, as defined in Section 60010, or private schools of that pupil. A caregiver, pursuant to this section, may access the information specified in this section regardless of whether the caregiver has been appointed as the pupil’s educational rights holder pursuant to Section 319, 361, or 726 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

(b) A foster family agency, short-term residential treatment program, or caregiver may review and receive pupil records pursuant to subdivision (a) for purposes of monitoring the pupil’s educational progress, updating and maintaining the pupil’s education records as required by Section 16010 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, and ensuring the pupil has access to educational services, supports, and activities. These purposes include, but are not limited to, enrolling the pupil in school, assisting the pupil with homework, class assignments, and college and scholarship applications, and enrolling the pupil in extracurricular activities, tutoring, and other afterschool and summer enrichment programs.

(c) (1) If direct communication between a caregiver and an educational rights holder is appropriate, a caregiver who is not the pupil’s educational rights holder shall notify the pupil’s educational rights holder of any educational needs of the pupil that require the educational rights holder’s consent or participation, including, but not limited to, school placement decisions, decisions on whether to invoke or waive school of origin rights, consent for special education assessments and individualized education programs, meetings or hearings regarding attendance or discipline, and decisions regarding graduation. In instances involving significant discipline or that potentially impact a pupil’s continued enrollment and progress in school, the caregiver shall also provide the same information to the pupil’s social worker as is provided to the educational rights holder.

(2) If direct communication between a caregiver and an educational rights holder is inappropriate, the pupil’s social worker shall direct the caregiver to communicate the information specified in paragraph (1) with the pupil’s social worker or attorney instead of the educational rights holder.

(3) Nothing in this subdivision affects the responsibilities of a placement agency with regard to the education of a pupil.

(4) This subdivision shall not be construed to alter or increase a social worker’s or attorney’s decisionmaking rights and responsibilities regarding a pupil.

(d) Nothing in this section affects the duties of a local educational agency related to informing and involving educational rights holders in educational decisions affecting the child.

(Amended by Stats. 2017, Ch. 829, Sec. 2. (SB 233) Effective January 1, 2018.)