DC School Enrollment Hardship Categories for Caregiver OPC Forms

The Eight Hardship Reasons OSSE Recognizes

The OSSE Other Primary Caregiver form requires you to check any applicable hardship boxes explaining why the parent cannot provide care. The 2026–27 form lists eight categories:

1. Active military assignment — the parent has an active military assignment
2. Serious illness — the parent suffers from a serious illness
3. Death — the parent is deceased
4. Incarceration — the parent is incarcerated
5. Neglect or abuse — the parent does not live with the child due to neglect and/or abuse
6. Loss of habitability — the parent is experiencing loss of habitability
7. Abandonment — the parent has abandoned the child
8. Unavailability due to deportation — the parent is unavailable due to deportation

The form says to check any categories that apply. If your situation overlaps categories, you may check more than one.

What Supporting Evidence Goes with Each Hardship

The hardship checkbox tells the school why, but you also need proof of your caregiver status. OSSE accepts five types of supporting evidence alongside the OPC form:

• An OSSE Sworn Statement
• Records from the prior school year showing the child in your care
• Medical or immunization records from the past 12 months naming you
• Unexpired government benefit documentation issued within 12 months
• An OSSE Attestation for Other Primary Caregiver completed by a legal, medical, or social service professional

The strongest pairing depends on your hardship. If the parent is incarcerated, a sworn statement plus the child's school records from last year is straightforward. If the parent's whereabouts are unknown (abandonment), the sworn statement may be your only realistic option — and that's fine, it's specifically designed for situations where no parental documentation exists.

Common Mistakes on the Hardship Section

Checking only one box. The form says to check any hardship category that applies, so more than one box may be checked.

Using vague language on the sworn statement. If you're writing the sworn statement rather than getting a professional attestation, be specific: "The child's mother was arrested on [date] and is currently held at [facility]" is stronger than "the parent is unavailable."

Confusing drug addiction with abandonment. If the parent is in a residential treatment facility with a known address, that's serious illness — not abandonment. Abandonment means the parent's location is genuinely unknown or the parent has walked away.

What If None of the Categories Fit?

The eight categories cover most kinship situations, but some caregivers don't fit neatly. If the parent is simply overwhelmed, experiencing homelessness, or dealing with a situation that doesn't match a checkbox, consult the DC KinCare Alliance (202-505-5803) or Legal Aid DC (202-628-1161) before filing. They help caregivers identify the correct category and avoid triggering unnecessary scrutiny.

The DC School and Medical Consent Guide maps each hardship category to the specific evidence types and enrollment steps that work best for that situation.

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