The Maine Constitution provides for a basic right to education.
Maine Constitution, Article
VIII, Section 1. Under Maine's compulsory attendance law, children
between 7 and 17 years old must attend school. 20-A MRSA § 5001-A. A
child as young as 5 years old by October 15th of any given school year may
enroll in school, and a child who is at least 4 years old may enroll in a
2-year preschool program. 20-A MRSA 5201(2). The adult who has a child between
7-17 under his/her control is responsible for ensuring the child attends school.
20-A MRSA 5001-A(5). As a GAL, factors to consider regarding education include
the motivation of the parties to give their child guidance and other factors
that have a reasonable bearing on the physical and psychological wellbeing
of the child. It is important to explore who helped the child become “school
ready” (counting, reading, social skills, etc.) as well as who was responsible
for enrolling the child. Were school decisions a joint decision or did one
parent make the decision while the other parent remained uninvolved?
