Purpose of Homebound and Hospitalized Service
Homebound and hospitalized service is a self study program designed to help pupils, who are unable to attend school due to a medical condition, to keep up with their studies and to progress as far as possible given their medical condition. The homebound and hospitalized teacher carries the curriculum from the school to the home or treatment facility to enable pupils to continue with their studies. It is important to note that these are services designed to help the classroom teacher(s) communicate with the pupil while away from school.
MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Summary of Michigan’s Homebound and Hospitalized Service Requirements
State School Aid Act, MCL 388.1709 What is it? Homebound and Hospitalized Service is provided to pupils unable to attend school because of a medical condition. The homebound teacher brings the curriculum from the teacher of record to pupils in the home or in the hospital to help the pupil keep up with their studies. Who is eligible? Public school pupils certified by their attending physician or a hospital as having a medical condition that requires the pupil to be homebound/hospitalized for longer than five school days are eligible. A pupil from a nonpublic or home school that is enrolled part-time in public school may receive homebound and hospitalized services only for those nonessential elective courses that the nonpublic or home school pupil is enrolled in at the public school at the time. Where do parents apply? Parents notify the school district their child attends when the pupil is homebound or when plans are being made for a future hospitalization that will result in the loss of more than five consecutive school days. When does this service begin? The educating district must make arrangements for the service to begin as soon as possible but no later than three school days after being notified of a qualifying placement by a hospital, treatment center, other treatment facility, or the pupil’s parent or legal guardian. How much service is provided? General education pupils will receive a minimum of two 45- minute periods per week. Pupils receiving the service under the special education rules receive a minimum of two nonconsecutive hours of instruction per week. Who can provide the service? The district may use any certified teacher or idividual working under a valid substitute permit to provide the service for general education pupils. When a pupil is hospitalized outside the state, the district may contract with a certified teacher in another state or Canada. A certified special education teacher must provide the service where specified by the individualized educational planning committee.
Pupil Responsibility
The pupil must:
1. Ask for assistance and/or clarification as needed to complete assignments.
2. Attend to the class activities to the extent that they are physically capable.
3. Return materials and supplies after completing assignments.
4. Continue to work with the teacher(s) of record to do any extra work needed so that the pupil has minimum competencies needed to complete the subject or grade, after returning to school.
Parent Responsibility
Parents are responsible, under the compulsory school attendance law, to ensure the school district is notified when the pupil is homebound or hospitalized. The parent must provide the name of the attending physician or the hospital and authorize the release of sufficient information to allow the school district to determine eligibility. Parents and attending physician must complete the Parent/ Physician Medical Release form and submit to the Office of Marketing and Pupil Accounting. Secondary parents will be contacted by a building administrator, counselor, or liaison to establish a meeting to discuss Homebound services and expectations.
When the pupil is homebound, the parent should:
1. Provide access to the pupil’s home, and help schedule teacher visits so they do not conflict with medical treatments. An adult must be present when the homebound teacher visits the home.
2. Provide an appropriate environment and the necessary supervision for their child to complete assignments.
3. Help the child schedule time for study, ensuring appropriate instructional materials are available and at hand.
4. Support the child with the learning activities to the extent possible and as agreed upon with the teacher. While parents should encourage the child to keep up with school work, they should not do the work for the child. If the parent feels assignments are too difficult, or feels the child does not have the prerequisite skills needed to carry out the assignments, this information should be communicated to the teacher of the homebound and hospitalized service and/or the pupil’s classroom teacher. 2
2 - Adopted from the Michigan State Board of Education Policy on Homework, Michigan Department of Education, Lansing Michigan, 48909, November 1988.
Hour and Duration of Instruction
General education pupils must receive a minimum of two 45- minute periods of instructional serve per week (R340.5). Special education pupils must receive a minimum of two nonconsecutive one-hour periods of instructional service per week (R 340.1746). Homebound services will be provided during regular school hours unless otherwise scheduled by the district. The district is responsible to make homebound and hospitalized service available when a pupil’s classes are in session. For most pupils, the program will begin in September and end in June with winter and spring breaks.
District Information
District email addresses are available at www. swartzcreek.org. Questions regarding work or assignments can be directed to the homebound teacher or by email to the teacher of record.
Swartz Creek High School- 810.591.1800 Counseling Dept.- 810.591.1866
Swartz Creek Middle School- 810.591.1704 Counseling Dept.- 810.591.1709
Swartz Creek Virtual Learning Center- 810.591.4380
Dieck Elementary- 810.591.5270
Elms Road Elementary- 810.591.1249
Gaines Elementary- 810.591.1078
Morrish Elementary- 810.591.0581
Syring Elementary- 810.591.1301
Swartz Creek Community Schools, Updated: August 2023 This information is to be used only as a guideline. Please consult specific laws, rules and the MDE Pupil Accounting Manual for required criteria.