5008 Procedure - Attendance and Truancy

SUBJECT: Attendance and Truancy
RELATES TO POLICY SERIES: 500 Students
DATE SIT APPROVED: June 2024
DATE EL APPROVED: June 2024
DATE REVISED: June 2024

5008 Attendance and Truancy Printable PDF

Procedure 5008 Attendance and Truancy

PURPOSE
The purpose of this procedure is to outline the expectations and steps the District will take when students do not attend school.
RESPONSIBILITIES
In accordance with the Minnesota Compulsory Instruction Law, all students between the ages of seven (7) and seventeen (17) must attend school every day that school is in session unless the student has been excused from attendance because the student has already completed State and District standards required to graduate from high school, has withdrawn, or has a valid excuse for absence.
1. Student’s Responsibility
  It is the student’s right to be in school. It is also the student’s responsibility to be in school every day that school is in session.
2. Parent(s)’/Guardian(s)’ Responsibility
  It is the responsibility of the student’s parent(s)/guardian(s) to ensure that the student is attending school, to inform the school in the event of a student absence, and to work cooperatively with the school and the student to solve any attendance problem that may arise.
3. Instructional Staff’s Responsibility
  It is the responsibility of instructional staff to take period attendance and to maintain accurate attendance records for each assigned class period, except in the case of special education itinerant services that are established through the IEP process and recorded through program documentation logs. It is also their responsibility to be familiar with all procedures governing attendance and to apply the procedures uniformly.
  Attendance for part-time or shared-time students will be recorded and reported to the enrolling district. Truancy procedures, therefore, will not be initiated by District 287 for part-time or shared-time students.
4. Social Worker’s or Designee’s Responsibility
  It is the responsibility of social workers or a designee to connect with absent students and/or the student's parent(s)/guardian(s) and to work cooperatively with the student and/or the student’s parent(s)/guardian(s) to solve any attendance issues that may arise. It is also their responsibility to be familiar with all procedures governing attendance and to apply the procedures uniformly.
ATTENDANCE PROCEDURES
Attendance procedures apply to full-time students, unless the student is enrolled in an online or blended learning program in which credit is awarded for completed coursework and it can be documented that the student is regularly completing course assignments commensurate with the program’s written expectations.

Being tardy or leaving school early does not count as an absence from school for the purpose of determining whether a student has attended school that day. Cumulative instances of being tardy or leaving early do not add up to an absence or absences. Elopement or elopements from school also do not count as an absence.

Fifteen (15) consecutive unexcused absences during the school year or five (5) consecutive school days of unexcused absences during the summer will be classified as withdrawn from the program. If an online or blended learning student has not submitted coursework for 15 school days, the student will be reported as withdrawn.

Prior to an official District determination that a student has withdrawn, a designated program staff member will contact the family. This may consist of a call, email, or text home after two consecutive unexcused absences and every day thereafter leading up to the 15-day withdrawal date. The purpose of this contact will be to engage the parents/guardians and student in a discussion of the factors influencing non-attendance. Whenever feasible, the educational program will convene a meeting to discuss adjustments to the student’s schedule, coursework, student support services, etc. that may re-engage the student in school.

For special education students, the district of legal residence retains responsibility for educational programming. For State-approved alternative programs, it is the District’s

responsibility to make every effort to connect/refer a student who is officially dropped from the program with another educational program that may be more appropriate to their educational needs. Written notification or documentation of mail, phone, or text contact with the parent and district of legal residence will be maintained.

If a student returns to a District 287 program after a withdrawal, it is considered a reentry. For special education students, a referral is not required if reentry is within one calendar year from withdrawal. If the student has a significant placement intervention between withdrawal and reentry, the District will request records from that placement.
1. EXCUSED ABSENCES
  1. To be considered an excused absence, the student’s parent or legal guardian may be asked to verify, in writing, the reason for the student’s absence from school. A note from a physician or a licensed mental health professional stating that the student cannot attend school is a valid excuse.
  2. The following reasons shall be sufficient to constitute excused absences:
    1. Illness.
    2. Serious illness in the student’s immediate family.
    3. A death or funeral in the student’s immediate family or of a close friend or relative.
    4. Medical, dental, or orthodontic treatment, or a counseling appointment.
    5. Court appearances occasioned by family or personal action.
    6. Religious instruction not to exceed three hours in any week.
    7. Physical emergency conditions such as fire, flood, storm, etc.
    8. Official school field trip or other school-sponsored outing.
    9. Removal of a student pursuant to a suspension. Suspensions are to be handled as excused absences and students will be permitted to complete make-up work.
    10. Family emergencies.
    11. Active duty in any military branch of the United States.
    12. A student’s condition that requires ongoing treatment for a mental health diagnosis.
      
      [Note: State law provides that a school board may include other exemptions in the school district’s attendance policy. See Minnesota. Statutes section 120A.22, subdivision 12. When considering whether to add other exemptions, school boards should consider the intent of the compulsory attendance law, which recognizes the educational value of regular attendance and class participation, and whether the proposed exemption is consistent with the intent of the law.]
2. RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCE ACCOMMODATION
  Reasonable efforts will be made by the school district to accommodate any student who wishes to be excused from a curricular activity for a religious observance. Requests for accommodations should be directed to the building principal.
3. DISSEMINATION OF PROCEDURE
  1. Copies of this procedure shall be made available to all students and parents at the commencement of each school year. This procedure shall also be available upon request in each principal’s office. In addition, the procedure is published to the District 287 website and is available year round.
  2. The school district will provide annual notice to parents of the school district’s procedure relating to a student’s absence from school for religious observance.
4. NOTIFICATIONS AND REPORTING
  1. Preliminary Notification
    When a student has three unexcused absences in a school year, a letter must be sent to the parent(s)/guardian(s) advising them that it is the responsibility of the District to refer truant students to the appropriate county program (e.g., Hennepin County be@school program). The letter will state that if subsequent absences occur, the student may be considered truant. If the parent(s)/guardian(s) does not have an address to which to send a letter, other forms of contact should be used to convey the message.
  2. Reporting
    Upon accruing six (6) unexcused absences, a student may be determined truant. It is the responsibility of the designated staff person to inform the administrator or designee of a student who is absent on six occasions. The administrator or designee then makes the determination regarding truancy filing. Truancy is filed only after there have been reasonable attempts to conference with the student and parent(s)/guardian(s). Excused absences include student illness, family emergency, funeral, and religious holiday. Absences that are not excused include missing the bus, oversleeping, boredom, sleepiness, or did not feel like going to school. The administrator has the authority to set a time limit for parents to submit excuses before the absences are deemed unexcused.
    
    When it has been determined that a student is truant, the administrator or designee should file a report with the appropriate county program (e.g., Hennepin County be@school program). The report must identify dates and/or hours of unexcused absence, communication efforts with parent(s)/guardian(s), and any supporting data deemed appropriate by the administrator or designee. The administrator or designee may contact Child Protection in the appropriate county if in the best interests of the student.

Legal References

Minn. Stat. § 120A.05 (Definitions)
Minn. Stat. § 120A.22 (Compulsory Instruction)
Minn. Stat. § 120A.24 (Reporting)
Minn. Stat. § 120A.26 (Enforcement and Prosecution)
Minn. Stat. § 120A.34 (Violations; Penalties)
Minn. Stat. § 120A.35 (Absence from School for Religious Observance)
Minn. Stat. §§ 121A.40-121A.56 (Pupil Fair Dismissal Act)
Minn. Stat. § 260A.02 (Definitions)
Minn. Stat. § 260A.03 (Notice to Parent or Guardian When Child is a Continuing Truant)
Minn. Stat. § 260C.007, subd. 19 (Habitual Truant Defined)
Minn. Stat. § 260C.201 (Dispositions; Children in Need of Protection or Services or Neglected and in Foster Care)
Goss v. Lopez, 419 U.S. 565 (1975)
Slocum v. Holton Bd. of Educ., 429 N.W.2d 607 (Mich. App. Ct. 1988)