How to Withdraw from an Institutional School


If you decide to withdraw your child from an institutional school (i.e., a brick-and-mortar public school, an online/charter public school, or a brick-and-mortar private school) in order to homeschool, here's what you need to do:
  1. First - before doing anything else - visit the DPI website and file a PI-1206 form for the child(ren) between the ages of 6 and 18 who are being withdrawn. Follow the guidelines laid out under Paperwork Requirements here, realizing that each child will continue to be enrolled in his prior school (and marked absent if not attending) until you file the PI-1206. If you are withdrawing a child younger than the age of 6 (as of September 1 of the current year), you cannot include that child on the form (see below for more information);
  2. The moment you submit the form, you are a legal homeschooler in Wisconsin, and you have completed all the legally required paperwork(!);
  3. Before exiting the DPI site, download a copy of your completed form and print out and store a few copies as well. If you plan to write a withdrawal letter to the school district you are leaving, keep two printed copies out;
  4. Consider writing a brief withdrawal letter, similar to this sample. You are not required to do this, as the school district will receive digital notice from the DPI that you are now homeschooling. However, you may be less likely to be bothered by school officials if you write a courtesy withdrawal letter after filing the PI-1206. If you do choose to write a letter, you are not required to provide details (i.e., why you're withdrawing, any mention of homeschooling, etc.). You simply need to inform the school that your child is being formally, legally withdrawn;
  5. Print out two copies of your withdrawal letter. Sign both copies. Be sure that both parents/legal guardians sign;
  6. Take all the papers - two copies of your completed PI-1206 form and two copies of the withdrawal letter - to the school. Ask to meet with the principal (i.e. not a person of lesser authority);
  7. Explain that you are there to withdraw your child and ask the principal to sign, date and timestamp all four papers you have brought. Specify that he do so on the fronts of each paper, not on the backs, so that there is no mistake about what he is signing;
  8. Leave one copy of the PI-1206 form and one copy of the withdrawal letter with him. Take the other copies home and store them in a safe place. While unlikely when following this procedure, it's possible that a truant officer may contact you to ask about your child's whereabouts. If you can readily show him a copy of your PI-1206 form and a copy of your withdrawal letter signed by the school principal, that should be the end of the encounter;
  9. If your child has attended the school for any length of time, you should also ask for a copy of every item in his "permanent record," as you are legally entitled to such access as the child's parent, or even the complete original file because you have become the administrator of the child's legal school of record. Some administrators balk at this request, insisting you are not "qualified" to receive the records - but you actually are legally entitled to them. When requesting a copy, direct them to state statute 118.125, which clearly indicates your right to copies of everything in the child's file. If you decide to request the original and complete file, you will have to put the request for a transfer of records in writing, signing as the "Administrator" your child's legally-recognized home-based education program under state statute 118.165. By law, the district must send the records within five days of receipt of your request;
  10. Thank the staff for their time and leave joyfully. Then do something to celebrate your new-found freedom as the legal administrator of your very own private, independent, home-based educational program!
Sometimes it's not possible to meet in person with a principal. In that case and if you do want to submit a withdrawal letter, you may do so via email or certified mail instead.

If you choose email, be sure to BCC yourself and save, print, and store copies of the entire communication thread. You could still ask that he sign, date, and timestamp copies of the PI-1206 by sending it as an attachment, asking him to print it out, and scan a signed return copy to you. If you choose certified mail, you'll have proof from the postal service that your letter was received. But you may also wish to enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope in which the principal can return the signed/dated/time-stamped copy of your PI-1206 and withdrawal letter.


A Note about Children Younger than Age 6
In our current educational climate, it's not unusual for children to attend institutional school at 5, 4, or even 3 years of age. However, the compulsory attendance law has remained the same for many decades - i.e., children in Wisconsin who are younger than Age 6 are not legally mandated to be "enrolled" in any sort of "schooling." For that reason, the PI-1206 form does not (and cannot legally) tally any child younger than the age of 6, regardless of your intentions with academic learning. If you choose to withdraw such a child from his preschool/kindergarten program, you should be sure to write and submit a withdrawal letter as described above and get copies (or originals) of all items in the child's file, but you should not include that child on a PI-1206 form (i.e., if a child younger than 6 is the only child being withdrawn, you do not file a PI-1206 form; if you're also withdrawing older siblings, you file a PI-1206 for those children but not for the child who is not yet 6 by September 1). You will only begin to include such children on PI-1206 forms going forward after each one has turned 6 prior to September 1 of the relevant year.