BOARD POLICY - 5113.2
Students
Attendance Supervision
Improving student attendance and reducing the dropout rate is a District priority. Pursuant to EC 48200, every child from the age of 6 to 18 in the District is required to attend school regularly unless otherwise provided by law in order to make a successful transition to the next grade level and to graduate with a high school diploma. All enrolled students, regardless of age, will be held to the same District school attendance rules. The Irvine Unified School District Board of Education recognizes that a vigilant supervision of attendance to improve attendance rates and graduation rates and to reduce truancy and dropout rates is vital to the learning and achievement of all children.
Because supervision of attendance is an essential component of an effective school attendance program, the Superintendent will designate a district employee to supervise attendance. The Attendance Specialist will be responsible for managing an attendance program that reaches every student, is conducted in collaboration with local resources, uses truancy and dropout data to modify interventions, and shares outcomes with the County Superintendent, all SARB representatives, and the Board of Education.
Among other duties that may be required by the Board shall be those specific duties related to compulsory full-time education, truancy, work permits, compulsory continuation education, and opportunity schools, classes, and programs. (EC 48240)
Limiting Excused Absences and Eliminating Unexcused Absences
The Coordinator of Student Services and the Attendance Specialist must ensure that the attendance program limits excused absences and decreases unexcused absences. EC 48205 enumerates the reasons for excused absences, and the Coordinator of Student Services, the Principal, or the SARB may require verification by a school official or physician if absences for health reasons appear excessive and may require prior notice from parents for absences excused for justifiable personal reasons, such as non-emergency appointments or permitted religious instruction or retreats. (EC 46014, 48205)
Students who are 18 years of age or older or who are emancipated may provide their own excuses for absences, and the Principal, Assistant Principal, or Site Attendance Clerk may require verification from a physician or designated school official when necessary. (EC 46012)
The Coordinator of Student Services shall ensure that the district Student Attendance Review Board (SARB) convenes regularly and follows all state, county, and district policies and laws to successfully conduct panel hearings and make recommendations for interventions, placements, and other actions as proscribed by California Education Code. The Coordinator will submit annual reports of the SARB to the Board at the end of each school year.
Legal References:
Education Codes
1740 Employment of personnel to supervise attendance (county superintendent)
2550-2558.6 Computation of revenue limits
37201 School month
37223 Weekend classes
41601 Reports of average daily attendance
42238-42250.1 Apportionments
46000 Records (attendance)
46010-46014 Absences
46100-46119 Attendance in kindergarten and elementary schools
46140-46147 Attendance in junior high and high schools
48200-48208 Children ages 6-18 (compulsory full-time attendance)
48210-48216 Exclusions from attendance
48240-48246 Supervisors of attendance
48260-48273 Truants
48291 Criminal complaint against parent
48292 Filing complaint against parent
48293 Relating to truants, fine for non-attendance
48320-48325 School attendance review boards
48340-48341 Improvement of student attendance
49067 Unexcused absences as cause of failing grade
Elections Code 12302 Student participation on precinct boards
Family Code 6920-6929 Consent by minor
Vehicle Code 13202.7 Driving privileges; minors; suspension or delay for habitual truancy
Welfare and Institutions Code
601-601.4 Habitually truant minors
11253.5 Compulsory school attendance
Code of Regulations, Title 5
306 Explanation of absence
420-421 Record of verification of absence due to illness and other causes
Attorney General Opinions
66 Ops. Cal. Atty. Gen 245, 249 (1983)
Court Decisions American Academy of Pediatrics et al v. Lungren et al (1997) 16 Cal.4th 307
Policy Adopted: January 12, 2010