17 year old runaway

[Guest]

I’m 17 years old. I left home about 3 months ago, after getting into an argument with my adopted mom. My adopted dad always tends to get into the argument and make things 10 times worse then they originally are. Anyways I was scared to go home that night because the last argument we had ended with his hands wrapped around my throat, then me hyperventilating, and then refusing to take me to school because they were scared I was gonna tell the school councilor and get them in trouble....anyways...so that night I stayed at work 8 hrs longer then I was scheduled, putting me at a 16 hr shift...and I still was too scared to go home, so I left work with a coworker of mine. I stayed with him for two days before realizing that staying with him wasn’t the best or smartest idea, I befriended a girl from school and lived with her the last 3 weeks of school. I was planning to go back home, I just wanted to give them time to cool down because I know how their temper is. Anyways next thing I now they had cleared out my room....some more stuff happened and the school found out I wasn’t living with my adopted parents, and since my adopted mom was a teacher...that didn’t look good. So they forced me to live in with my grandma. Things were going well for almost two months but I felt a strain in our relationship. My adopted parents would come by but would refuse to come inside cuz I was there. So I looked around and found a place to live for only $400 a month. I had packed my stuff and I was planning to move in the next week. But when I told my grandma, things got hectic, she started yelling, and throwing pots, and calling me selfish, telling me that I don’t care about anyone but myself and then threatening to shoot my dog...it had really upset me...so I decided to get a way for a little before school started. Anyways I contacted my biological mother and she came to pick me up, but just yesterday I was filed as a runaway...I have 6 months left till my 18th birthday, and I have a year left of school, what do I need to do to enroll in school? I have my social security card. But I don’t have my shot records, proof of residency, or my birth certificate. I’m going to be going to school at a different high school, all in the same district, is there someone I can contact to have it transferred over? The police dispatch I talked to said that as long as I’m safe they won’t make me come home, and I plan to get an apartment with a friend. What should I do?

[ccsmod11]

Hello There,
Thank you for contacting The National Runaway Safeline and sharing a little of your story, it takes great courage to open up and reach out for help and we are so glad that you did. First of all we are sorry you are going through such a rough time you do not deserve to be treated that way.
Some of the things you have described could be abuse, which is never okay. If you would ever like to make an abuse report you can always call The Child Help Line at: 1800-422-4453.
We are glad that you have a safe place to stay and that you have already talked to the police and it looks like they will allow you to stay. We are not legal experts but we do have some information. You could probably call your past school and see if they would be willing to forward your vaccinations to your new school. You could also call the school you want to enroll in and see what they require and how to obtain those documents.
We hope this information will be helpful to you in your situation. If you have any other questions or would like to explore your options more please give us a call. We are here 24 to listen and provide support to you. We wish you the best of luck
NRS