T.C. on behalf of minor child, D.R.H., Jr. v. Board of Education of the City of Rahway, Union County, 4/24/2023, (#124-23)

OAL Dkt. No. EDU 00212-23
Agency Dkt. No. 371-12/22
New Jersey Commissioner of Education
Final Decision
T.C., on behalf of minor child, D.R.H., Jr.,
Petitioner,
v.
Board of Education of the City of Rahway,
Union County,
Respondent.
The record of this matter and the Initial Decision of the Office of Administrative Law
(OAL) have been reviewed. The parties did not file exceptions.
Upon review, the Commissioner concurs with the Administrative Law Judge’s (ALJ)
finding that petitioner failed to sustain her burden of establishing that she or any person having
custody of her minor child was a domiciliary of Rahway during the 2022-2023 school year. The
Commissioner further concurs with the ALJ’s conclusion that D.R.H., Jr. was, therefore, not
entitled to a free public education in Rahway’s schools during that time.
Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1b, the Commissioner shall assess tuition against petitioner
for the time period during which the minor child was ineligible to attend school in Rahway.
Therefore, the Rahway Board of Education (Board) is entitled to tuition reimbursement in the
124-23

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amount of $9,803.131 for the period from the beginning of the 2022-2023 school year through
March 24, 2023, during which time petitioner’s minor child was ineligible to attend school in
Rahway.
Accordingly, the Initial Decision of the OAL is adopted as the final decision in this matter.
Petitioner is directed to reimburse the Board in the amount of 9,803.13 for the period from the
beginning of the 2022-2023 school year through March 24, 2023, for tuition costs incurred
during the time period in which the minor child was ineligible to attend school in Rahway. The
petition of appeal is hereby dismissed.
IT IS SO ORDERED.2
ACTING COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION
Date of Decision:
Date of Mailing:
1 This calculation is based on 127 school days of ineligible attendance at a tuition rate of $77.19 per day. The
Commissioner notes that these figures were derived from testimony presented to the ALJ during the hearing.
However, a transcript of the testimony was not provided to the Commissioner, nor did the record contain any
certification verifying the tuition rate or number of days of ineligible attendance. Therefore, the Commissioner
relies on the ALJ’s findings of fact.
2 This decision may be appealed to the Appellate Division of the Superior Court pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:6-9.1.
Under N.J.Ct.R. 2:4-1(b), a notice of appeal must be filed with the Appellate Division within 45 days from the date
of mailing of this decision.
April 24, 2023
April 26, 2023

New Jersey is an Equal Opportunity Employer
State of New Jersey
OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW
INITIAL DECISION
OAL DKT. NO. EDU 00212-23
AGENCY DKT. NO. 371-12/22
T.C. O/B/O MINOR CHILD D.R.H.,JR.
Petitioner,
v.
BOARD OF EDUCATION OF THE CITY OF RAHWAY
UNION COUNTY,
Respondent.
___________________________________________
T.C., pro se petitioner
Margaret Miller, Esq., for respondent (Weiner Law Group)
Record Closed: March 20, 2023 	Decided: March 24, 2023
BEFORE JOANN LASALA CANDIDO, ALAJ:
Petitioner, T.C, the mother of minor child D.R.H., appeals the determination of
the Board of Education of the City of Rahway School District (the “Board”) that D.R.H.
did not reside within the Rahway school district in the 2022–2023 school year and that
tuition reimbursement is required. 	The Board alleges that the minor child D.R.H. was
not residing at the address provided by the petitioner and seeks repayment of tuition.

OAL DKT. NO. EDU 00212-23
2
On December 2, 2022, the Board notified T.C. 	that her child was ineligible to
continue to attend school within the district. 	It’s Initial Determination of Ineligibility was
provided to T.C. on October 12, 2022. 	The petitioner filed a notice of appeal on or
about December 14, 2022, and the Board filed an answer on December 29, 2022. 	On
or about January 5, 2023, the matter was transmitted to the Office of Administrative Law
(OAL) for determination as a contested case. N.J.S.A. 52:14b-1 to N.J.S.A. 52:14F-1 to
13. 	The hearing was held via Zoom on March 20, 2023, on which date the record
closed.
At issue is whether D.R.H. was entitled to be enrolled in the district for purposes
of receiving a thorough and efficient public education free of charge for the 2022–2023
school year, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1.
Based upon the papers submitted as of the hearing date and the supplemental
submission by respondent as to tuition calculations, as well as the testimony of T.C. and
Rahway Board of Education attendance officer William White and Board Secretary
Stephen Fried, I FIND the following FACTS.
D.R.H. has been a student at Grover Cleveland since Kindergarten and is
currently in the sixth grade. 	T.C. resides in the State of Delaware since November 27,
2021. Her mother had applied for temporary guardianship of D.R.H. On September 13,
2022, Attendance Officer White went to the home of T.C.’s Aunt Joselyn Ortiz to confirm
that D.R.H. resides at her address with his grandmother Mrs. Fitzgerald. 	White was
advised that there was not room in her residence for the two of them and that the
grandmother resides in Roselle. 	T.C. submitted a Temporary Guardianship Affidavit
filed with the Superior Court on September 15, 2022, with no attached signed Court
Order. It requested Guardianship to commence on July 1, 2023.
To date, Mrs. Fitzgerald has not submitted documents of proof of residence in
Rahway. Neither she nor Ms. Ortiz testified.

OAL DKT. NO. EDU 00212-23
3
The respondent is seeking tuition for the child for the 2022-2023 school year at a
daily rate of $77.19 for 127 days (through today, March 24, 2023), for a total cost of
$9803.13.
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1(a) provides that every person in New Jersey between the
ages of five and twenty is entitled to a free education if they are "domiciled within the
school district." "Domicile" means a permanent home from which a person does not
intend to move. Lipman v. Rutgers-State Univ. of N.J., 329 N.J. 16 A-5475-18 Super.
433, 444 (App. Div. 2000). A child's domicile is normally that of his parents. Roxbury
Twp. Bd. of Educ. v. West Milford Bd. of Educ., 283 N.J. Super. 505, 521-22 (App. Div.
1995).
However, “[i]f the superintendent or administrative principal of a school district
finds that the parent or guardian of a child who is attending the schools of the district is
not domiciled within the district . . . , the superintendent or administrative principal may
apply to the board of education for the removal of the child.” N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1(b)(2).
The parents may contest a local school board’s decision regarding the student’s right to
attend school in the district to the Commissioner of Education and “shall have the
burden of proof by a preponderance of the evidence” to prove domicile in the school
district. N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1(b)(2). The State Board of Education has promulgated various
rules implementing N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1 and governing student domicile and eligibility to
attend school. N.J.A.C. 6A:22-1.1 to -6.3.
The record is clear that petitioner’s child was not domiciled in Rahway with his
grandmother. 	The aunt, Ms. Ortiz advised the District that there was no room in her
home and the grandmother, Ms. Fitzgerald did not present any documents proving she
resided at that Rahway address. 	I therefore CONCLUDE that petitioner has failed in
her burden to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that her child was domiciled in
Rahway. Tuition is sought by the Board for the period of ineligible attendance.
A school district may seek a child's disenrollment from its schools and seek
tuition reimbursement if a child is attending but domiciled in another district. N.J.S.A.

OAL DKT. NO. EDU 00212-23
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18A:38-1(b)(2). The parents or legal guardian of the child are entitled to a hearing
where they have the burden of proving domicile by a preponderance of the evidence,
which occurred today.
Based on the foregoing, I CONCLUDE that the respondent is entitled to tuition in
the amount of $77.19 per day for a total of $9803.13.
ORDER
I ORDER that the decision of respondent City of Rahway Board of Education that
D.R.H. was not eligible for a free public education in the District during the 2022-2023
school year is AFFIRMED and the pro se residency appeal of petitioner T.C. on behalf
of D.R.H. is DISMISSED.
Further, I ORDER that petitioner shall pay respondent tuition in the amount of
$9803.13.
I hereby FILE this initial decision with the COMMISSIONER OF THE DEPARTMENT
OF EDUCATION for consideration.
This 	recommended 	decision 	may 	be 	adopted, 	modified 	or 	rejected 	by 	the
COMMISSIONER OF THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, who by law is authorized
to make a final decision in this matter. 	If the Commissioner of the Department of
Education does not adopt, modify or reject this decision within forty-five days and unless
such time limit is otherwise extended, this recommended decision shall become a final
decision in accordance with N.J.S.A. 52:14B-10.

OAL DKT. NO. EDU 00212-23
5
Within thirteen days from the date on which this recommended decision was
mailed to the parties, any party may file written exceptions with the COMMISSIONER
OF THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, ATTN: 	BUREAU OF CONTROVERSIES
AND DISPUTES, 100 Riverview Plaza, 4th Floor, PO Box 500, Trenton, New Jersey
08625-0500, marked “Attention: Exceptions.” A copy of any exceptions must be sent to
the judge and to the other parties.
March 24, 2023
DATE 	JOANN LASALA CANDIDO, ALAJ
Date Received at Agency: 	March 24, 2023
Date Mailed to Parties: 	March 24, 2023
ljb

OAL DKT. NO. EDU 00212-23
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EXHIBITS
For petitioner:
None
For respondent:
R-1 	Follow-Up Residency Investigation Summary dated November 8, 2022
R-2 	Temporary Guardianship Form and Affidavit
R-3 	E-Mail Correspondence
R-4 	Two-part Affidavit Student
R-5 	First page completed of Affidavit Student
R-6 	Letter to T.C. from William White dated October 12, 2022
R-7 	Notice of Initial Determination of Ineligibility dated October 12, 2022
R-8 	E-Mail Correspondence
R-9 Tuition sought from District