Newcomer-FAQ

• For students born outside of Canada, we need to review their immigration documents to make sure they are entitled to publicly funded education in New Brunswick.

• For students transferring into the New Brunswick education system from Out of Province, we request the student cumulative record file from the former school. The Record of Student Transfer form will be signed by the parent / guardian. More information can be found at the following link: Out of Province Registration

• For students registering from the Francophone School District, The Interdistrict Transfer form will need to be signed by the Francophone district school principal as a first step and scanned to the [email protected] email. More information can be found at the following link: Transfer from Francophone School Districts

There is no deadline to register for your neighbourhood school. However, you are encouraged to register early. Students who cannot be accommodated at their neighbourhood school will be placed on the school’s waitlist and accommodated at the next available school.

• No, please visit our Registration  page for more information.

• Documents that are written in a foreign language need to be translated into English. Any missing documents delay the processing time for your file.

• Summer is a busy time, as the Student Welcome Center is the only place open for registration for school.

• Please visit our Registration  page for more information.

Changing address during the school year

• School transfers within the Anglophone School District: with your new proof of residence, please reach out to the new catchment school to complete the transfer. If you need assistance in finding the new catchment school you can reference the school locator  on BusPlanner.

• Kindly let your children’s current school in ASDE know that you are moving and the date of their last day at school. Please ensure that you take along your child’s school supplies and personal belongings from the old school and say farewell to the teacher and classmates.

• There are a couple of steps involved in transferring to a new school in the province of New Brunswick outlined below:

o 1. The new school will ask you to complete a transfer form for each of your children. This gives permission for your children’s former school(s) to send your children’s files to their new school.

o 2. Along with the form they will ask that you provide proof of residence (placing your children in the school catchment).

o 3. Your children’s new school will communicate a start date in the new school. *Be prepared as it may take as few days for the transfer to be completed.

• Please inform your current school. Next you will take proof of your address to the new school based on your catchment. The new school staff will initiate your child’s transfer process from the former school. Please bring the following documents for address change:

o Your new rental agreement or property purchase agreement (with subjects removed). Schools may request a recent bill as well. *Note: A drivers’ license is NOT adequate.

• If your child is in English as an Additional Language (EAL) support you will need to let the SWC know for the support to follow to the new school.

Changing address in the summer

• If the new address is outside the current school’s catchment area, families need to wait for the current elementary catchment school to reopen at the end of August to update their address. Once this is done they should apply to the new catchment school. For secondary students, please check with the school regarding summer office hours. Please bring the following documents for address change:

o Your new rental agreement or property purchase agreement (with subjects removed). Schools may request a recent bill as well. *Note: A drivers’ license is NOT adequate.

o Your child’s most recent report card.

• If the new address is in the same school’s catchment area, families can update their address with the school office when their child returns to school in September.

• Going to the next grade will be done automatically by the school administration.

Your child be registered for Kindergarten in the year that he or she turns 5 years of age. The Ministry of Education only funds Kindergarten children who are 5 years of age by December 31st of that particular year.

• Students in the Anglophone East School District are allowed to register at a school outside of their catchment area as an Out of Geographic Boundary applicant. Cross boundary applications will only be considered after all in-catchment students have been accommodated. POLICY STATEMENT

• You MUST register at your English Catchment School BEFORE submitting an REQUEST-TO-RELEASE-TO-ANOTHER-DISTRICT

• Please try to submit your registration once you have all of your original required documents . Any missing documents may delay the registration process.

• Your child cannot be placed at a school until your registration is complete.

• If you are renting an apartment, you can bring your Formal Rental / Lease Agreement and a recent bill.

• If you own your house or apartment, recent ownership documents and a recent bill will be sufficient.

If you are currently looking for a place to live, your child can register for a school if you bring a “proof of address” document. See previous question for more details.

All documents must be translated into English before registering. Translations must be certified by a professional translator.

According to the Education Act and the Department of Education’s guidelines regarding eligibility for students to receive a publicly funded education, only children living with a parent/legal guardian in New Brunswick can attend school without paying fees. If you do not have one parent living with you full-time, even if you are a Canadian citizen or landed immigrant, please register at the Student Welcome Centre (SWC). You may be required to pay tuition fees.

For your child to go to school without paying tuition:

The child’s parent/guardian must be enrolled in a degree or diploma program (Designated Learning Institute – DLI) at a publicly funded institution or in a degree program at a private post-secondary institution in N.B.

For your child to go to school without paying tuition:

• the child’s parent/legal guardian must have a valid work permit issued by Immigration Refugee Citizenship Canada (IRCC), AND

• the child’s parent/legal guardian must be residing in New Brunswick

There are several ways to address this concern. We can copy only the portion of the adoption paper identifying the child’s name and the legal guardian’s name. We can also copy other relevant documents that show the relationship of the child and his/her legal guardian.

• The Department of Education’s guidelines regarding eligibility for students to receive a publicly funded education can be found here: Policy 114 – Tuition Fee to Attend New Brunswick Public School .

• Children who want to register with our school district must be in New Brunswick with a biological parent or legal guardian who is permitted to work or study in New Brunswick. If you are interested in tuition-based education, please contact the Student Welcome Centre (SWC) [email protected] for information.

The Anglophone East School District can issue a Letter of Acceptance (LOA) for students to include with their study permit application. For more information, see Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada IRCC. Eligibility for study as a non-tuition paying student is based on the accompanying parent’s immigration status. Please contact the Student Welcome Centre (SWC) [email protected] for more information.

Your child does not need his or her own study permit. The child may have either a visitor record or a study permit as long as the accompanying parent is permitted to work or study in New Brunswick. For more information, see Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

If you have been issued a visitor record by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, your child(ren) is/ are not eligible to enroll in the Anglophone East School District (ASD-E) for a publicly funded education.

• Please contact the Student Welcome Centre if you left the school district for an extended period of time so your eligibility can be verified.

•All schools follow the curriculum set by the Department of Education Curriculum Development and all secondary schools have a pathway university entrance program. Universities accept students based on marks, not the name of a particular secondary school.

• Students in kindergarten to Grade 8 are placed in the grade that matches their age. There is a formalized advancement and retention process.

• High school students may receive credit for classes completed outside of Canada or in another province.

If your child will be five years old by December 31st, they can start kindergarten in September of that year. For more information about kindergarten registration please check the following link: Transition to Kindergarten

Elementary and high school students typically attend the neighborhood school in their catchment area if you live within that school’s boundary and there is space and a program available. Find your catchment school here: BusPlanner Web .

• If all required documents are submitted, we may schedule an assessment for your child (if needed). The SWC will then upload your child’s file to your neighbourhood school. Schools have a once weekly ‘Welcome Day’ for new students to the school. Elementary schools usually need 5 working days to process each student’s file, and 5 to 10 working days for Secondary schools. Following registration, students and family may be invited to a meeting with the Intercultural Support Worker or the High School Pathway and Career Counsellor for information about the school district or high school specifically.

• Students who would benefit from initial language support prior to school entry may be invited to attend the Strong Start Program for a period of time.

• If you have not heard from the school within a period of time, phone the school directly. If your neighbourhood school is full, then your neighbourhood school will find a place for your child at a nearby school. The school will inform you of the placement as soon as it is ready. The Student Welcome Center does not have placement information.

It usually takes 1-2 weeks for elementary school students and 2 weeks for high school students between the date of registration and the first day of school. Sometimes longer at busier times. *See previous question for more details.

Your child will be placed in the next closest school that has space and a program available by the director of schools. An elementary school student can transfer to the neighbourhood school when space becomes available. Secondary school students may only transfer to the neighbourhood school at the end of the school year, provided there is space, resources and a program available to accommodate the student.

• If your child has special learning needs, bring all available medical records, psycho-educational assessments and Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) to the Student Welcome Center when you register your child. If you do not have these records, we will ask you to sign a form giving us permission to request them from their previous school.

• We will send these records to Education Support Services who will work with you to identify support systems to help your child.

Your child’s English language skills will be assessed at the Student Welcome Center on intake. Extra language support will be provided, if necessary, by staff at the school.

All elementary schools have staff who offer EAL support. Exactly how that will look varies from school to school. Your child’s new school would be happy to explain their support program to you.

All elementary schools have staff who offer EAL support. Exactly how that will look varies from school to school. Your child’s new school would be happy to explain their support program to you.

As per New Brunswick Education Act – Regulation 2001-51, the following students are eligible for school bus transportation:

► for those public school students who live farther than 2.4 km from their zone school; and

► for those public school students who live 1.5 km down a side road from the closest bus stop location.

Parents are responsible for the safety of their children to and from the school bus stop. Parents of children in K to grade 2 are required to escort their children to/from the bus stop morning and afternoon or to/from their home as walking students morning and afternoon. School bus routes and stops are subject to change according to the needs of operational requirements. Click here to check to see if your child is eligible for bussing.

Students are required to fulfill the requirements set by the Department of Education for graduation. The High School Course Selection Guide has information on the High School Graduation requirements.

The​ Anglophone East School Calendar​ has information about the school year.

Parents and local community members dedicate time, energy, and enthusiasm to school projects and they are the backbone of many special programs and initiatives. If you have even just a little bit of free time, why not become a school volunteer? There are many ways you can get involved. You can volunteer to work directly with students, or behind the scenes as a committee member or staff support. Here are just a few ideas of how you could get involved and support education in your community:

► Coach sports

► Support the breakfast program

► Be a reading buddy

► Become a mentor

► Join the Home & School Association or Parent School Support Committee (PSSC)

► Help at special events

► Lead an after-school club

The safety of students is our number one priority. All adults including volunteers who work in our schools must have training in a provincial policy regarding the safety of children (Policy 701) and a police background check. To start volunteering, complete the following:

► Read/Review Policy 701

► Complete the Policy 701 Validation Questionnaire

► Fill out and print the Volunteer Application Form and fax, mail or deliver it to the school of your choice. Alternatively you can complete this form online here​

► Have a criminal records check completed with the vulnerable sector verification at your local RCMP station. There is a fee associated with this unless you have a letter from the school that you will be volunteering at.