What should the school do if my child elopes?

Nothing stops the school from calling immediately when a child has eloped. In reality, though, staff are often scrambling behind the scenes — searching, making calls, and piecing together what happened. Some worry about liability, so they delay contacting parents until they feel they have a better handle on the situation.

You can make it part of your child’s IEP or 504 plan that you want to be notified the moment your child is considered off campus. You can be specific about the timing (“immediately” means right away, not two hours later) and the method (phone call, written notice, or both). Even if a student steps only just beyond the school gate and comes right back, parents can ask to be notified. Putting it in writing leaves less room for confusion if something goes wrong.

When a school reports that they lost track of a student, you can take concrete steps to raise concerns, push for better supports, and make sure your child stays safe moving forward.

1. Start by getting everything documented. Ask the school for a full account of what happened and make sure it’s as detailed as possible.

2. Call for an emergency IEP or team meeting. If your child is served by special education, request an emergency meeting as soon as possible. You can bring up anything you feel needs to change moving forward, such as adding 1:1 support, updating the safety plan, or starting an FBA. These meetings can be tough to navigate alone, so bring someone who knows the system if you can.

3. Make sure the right people are at the meeting. Insist on having someone from the district present so decisions can be made on the spot, not behind closed doors later.

4. Know your rights to file a complaint. Parents always have the option to file a formal complaint within the district and with the state.

5. Consider legal or formal dispute options. In serious cases, such as when a child was found far from campus, some families have taken legal action, which led to school placement changes and stronger safety measures.

For more information, see our full article Elopement in School.