Ca Truant Law - has this been posted yet?

[fshinkevich]

Does not exactly apply to homeschoolers, but I know I am interested in what is going on with our states, and nations, public schools in general and thought I would share.

 

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2010/05/13/1138854/calif-bill-could-jail-parents.html

[Daisy]

Hubby thinks a better incentive would be to withhold welfare checks from parents who have chronically truant children. Spoken like a real CA public school teacher. LOL.

[Renee in NC]

I know someone who went to jail 10 years ago in NC for having a chronically truant child. She went to work at 6am and he just didn't go to school. I just assumed it was true for all states!

[nrg]

California schools are funded based on daily attendance. I think assessing parents for missed days is reasonable. If parents can't pay, students and parents could work it off.

[kalanamak]

I just assumed it was true for all states!

 

:iagree:

 

"Prosecutors would have to prove the parents failed to reasonably supervise and encourage the student to attend school."

 

This doesn't sound very wacko, and I am, as usual, perplexed by the the comment section.

 

 

[Wildiris]

Is it truant when the school calls to inform the parents/house that due to lack of California funding to schools, school will not be in session on Monday? I guess the school won't ADA for that day. Truant students are the least of California's worries.

[FaithManor]

I like the idea of canceling welfare checks for chronic truancy. I would also add disability payments as well. Around here, a huge number of people have their kids signed up for SSI and then never make them go to school!

 

However, that said, our local school district only allows three excused absences per year, no exceptions, no matter what. I've seen kids put on the bus who were throwing up but they'd already used their days and I know students who did not get to attend their own grandparent's funeral because they'd been sick earlier in the year and didn't have any time left. The policy is brutal and the school board thinks its wonderful. Of course, children of school board members are never penalized for taking more than three days.

 

So, there is the danger of too much power given to schools.

 

Faith

[kalanamak]

I

 

However, that said, our local school district only allows three excused absences per year, no exceptions, no matter what.

 

This is a court battle waiting to happen. But, what happens if you go over? A note in the mail, a 500 dollar fine, or an arrest?

[Julie in CA]

California schools are funded based on daily attendance. I think assessing parents for missed days is reasonable. If parents can't pay, students and parents could work it off.

Heh, heh, heh....that would be fine, if I weren't the one paying for it in the first place!!

[Daisy]

In this district (and I'm assuming this is CA state law), a student gets three unexcused absences.

 

Excused absences are ONLY for doctor's visits or sickness. You absolutely cannot use vacation as an excuse.

 

More than 14 absences for any reason and you get referred to the truancy board.

 

You basically either have to have perfect attendance after that or you will be called to stand before the judge who will likely give you a nice big fine and a verbal dressing down.

 

This law just gives the judge the ability to hold "jail time" over the heads of parents who have chronically truant children.

[FaithManor]

Kalamanak,

 

The first punishment for truancy (more than three days) is a week of detention for the student. After that, there is an out of school one-week suspension (but a suspended student still counts for per head funding - don't ask me how! It seems to defeat the purpose), and then from there they can fail the student for the year, regardless of their grades, and make them re-take the classes. So, the parents send the kids to school sick and then let the teachers declare them "too sick to attend' in which case they can be sent home even if they've already used their three days and without penalty.

 

Basically, the teachers completely take over the role of parents.

 

There is supposed to be some sort of waiver for sick or injured kids which involves taking medical documentation to the principal and superintendent. If this is given, then the student is considered "home-bound" until they have physician clearance to go back to school. The district then must provide tutors in the home if the student is deemed by the doctor, able to work at home. I've only seen a couple of kids get this. One was a young lady with lukemia. However, she chose to go to school on her good days. The interesting thing was that it took three weeks from her diagnosis/starting chemo, before they got the paperwork approved. So, her parents just kept her home anyway and when the truancy officer came a knocking, the mom told him she'd sue the school district if they harassed her again...she then asked him if he needed to witness her daughter vomitting in the bathroom or would like a lock of her falling-out hair to take with him! The dude apologized profusely and never bothered them again.

 

The school's policy is soooo ridiculous. Every year they get major strep going around the schools, as in, so bad that the health department threatens to make them shut down for a week. It's all because of sick kids going to school instead of staying home. I keep thinking that someone will sue. But, if the whole school district is populated by people with the same philosophy as my neighbors, then school is daycare and its easier to let the teachers take care of their kids!

 

Faith

[Kirch]

I'm curious to know why this law would only apply to parents with K-8th graders. Obviously, with younger kids it is completely up to the parents to make sure they are in school, and it's going to be much easier for high schoolers to skip school without parents' knowledge. But aren't parents of high schoolers still responsible for making sure their kids get to school?

[kalanamak]

 

The first punishment for truancy (more than three days) is a week of detention for the student. After that, there is an out of school one-week suspension (but a suspended student still counts for per head funding - don't ask me how! It seems to defeat the purpose), and then from there they can fail the student for the year, regardless of their grades, and make them re-take the classes. So, the parents send the kids to school sick and then let the teachers declare them "too sick to attend' in which case they can be sent home even if they've already used their three days and without penalty.

 

Not only is this a law suit waiting to happen, one scare of meningitis or TB and there will be several.

 

At risk of getting another unhappy reply, I requote:

 

God made the Idiot for practice, and then He made the School Board.

--Mark Twain

[Forget-Me-Not]

Wow, one more HUGE reason to be glad we're signing an R-4 this year!

 

But seriously, this must vary quite a bit by district. We had a big family reunion last week and kept DS out for a couple of days (and told the school that) and nobody batted an eye.

 

I know a neighboring county can no longer afford to pay a truancy officer, so they don't have one. I wonder how this will be enforced in counties where that is the case?

[fivetails]

In this district (and I'm assuming this is CA state law), a student gets three unexcused absences.

 

Excused absences are ONLY for doctor's visits or sickness. You absolutely cannot use vacation as an excuse.

 

 

 

Wow.

 

When I was 12, my parents pulled my siblings and I out of school for pretty much the entire month of May - so we could go to Florida. They didn't want to make the trip in July or August because it would be "too hot".

 

[and I still remember that trip - if May was the cooler time, I don't think I'd ever want to see August. We melted. :laugh: ]

[Photo Ninja]

One person quoted in the article supports this bill because of the high percentage of prisoners who are high school dropouts. But this bill won't stop high school students from dropping out, and the bill doesn't even apply to parents of high school students.

 

I suspect the driving force behind this bill is financial - schools will be able to collect more ADA money.