Attendance

There are two laws which all public school districts in the state of Texas must follow regarding attendance:

1. Compulsory Attendance
2. Loss of Credit (90% Rule)
    

1. §25.085 (Compulsory Attendance)
Compulsory attendance applies to students who are at least six years old as of September 1 of the applicable school year.  The law requires a student to attend public school until the student’s 18th birthday, unless the student is exempt under §25.086. This requirement is enforced through §§25.093 and 25.094.  

Under §25.085(d), compulsory attendance applies to extended-year programs, tutorial classes, accelerated reading instruction programs, accelerated instruction programs, basic skills programs, and summer programs for students subject to certain disciplinary removals.  Under §25.085(c), it also applies to students below the age for compulsory attendance during any period that the student is voluntarily enrolled in pre-kindergarten or kindergarten.

Non-compliance by parents or students could result in filing truancy charges through the judicial system. There are options for compulsory attendance enforcement for school districts, which are outlined in §25.0951.  Section 25.093 is an offense for contributing to nonattendance, which is committed by a parent. Section 25.094 is an offense for failing to attend school, which is committed by a student.  School districts can file for BOTH parent contributing and student truancy if the child is over 12 years of age, and both parties are contributing to the nonattendance. 

2. §§25.092 and 11.158 (Ninety Percent Rule) 

Students in grades K–12 are required to attend class for at least 90% of the days it is offered to receive credit or a final grade, regardless of whether absences are excused or unexcused. 

A student who is in attendance for at least 75 percent, but less than 90 percent, of the days a class is offered may be given credit if the student completes a plan approved by the principal that provides for the student to meet the instructional requirement of the class.  (If the student is under the jurisdiction of a court in a criminal or juvenile justice proceeding, the student may not receive credit by completing such a plan without the consent of the presiding judge.)

The board of trustees is required to appoint one or more attendance committees to hear petitions from students who do not regain credit through a plan approved by the principal.  A campus attendance committee may grant credit due to extenuating circumstances.  The board is also required to adopt policies establishing alternative ways for such students to make up work or regain credit lost because of absences. 

Under §25.092, a district may establish ways to make up work or regain credit that are workable in consideration of the circumstances.  The section does not require that students spend a certain amount of time in a “Saturday school” or other educational setting equal to time missed during regular school hours. The district should be prepared with other options that give the student a reasonable opportunity to make up work or regain credit even under challenging circumstances, including excessive absences that occur late in the school year.  

Additionally, this law is not intended to penalize students for not attending a class before the student was enrolled in the class.  Students, including migrant students or transfer students, who could not have attended a class before enrollment should not have the days of class that occurred before their enrollment counted against them for purposes of “the 90 percent rule”.  As with any other student, to receive credit a student who enrolls after instruction for the year or semester has begun is required to demonstrate academic achievement and proficiency of the subject matter as required under §28.021 and 19 T.A.C. §74.26. 

Absences coded as “unexcused” can lead to truancy charges. 
These absences include:

• Family-Related absences where Pre-Approval was not requested in advance
• Absences where no communication was received by the parent
• Absences that exceed the number of days designated for parents to call in an illness without a dr. note (5 per semester for 7th-12th grade; 12 for PK - 6th grade)
• Immunizations not current/out of compliance
• Truancy or refusal to come to school 
• Weather-Related (in certain cases)

Texas Education Code Section 25.091 provides that a complaint or referral for failure to attend school is to be filed after a student has a certain number of absences "without excuse.” 

CISD has an extensive list of absences that can be coded as excused for certain circumstances. Please communicate with the school attendance secretary or administrator regarding absences to see if the absence falls under any of the reasons that are considered excused by local policy. 

The following absences are exemptions provided by Texas Student Attendance Handbook and are do not count against students for Compulsory Attendance or 90% Loss of Credit Rule: 

• Religious Holy Day
• Required Court Appearance
• Activities related to US Citizenship
• Documented Health Care Appointments (must attend school on the same day as appt. and have Dr. Note verification submitted upon return to school).
• Students in the Conservatorship of the State
• Students of Military Families
• College Visit (11th and 12th grade only/limited to 2 days per year/does not include travel days)
• Career Exploration (11th/12th grade only/limited to 2 days per year with verification from the professional/does not include travel days)
• Enlistment in the Armed Services
• Serving as an Early Voting or Election Clerk
• Obtaining a driver’s license or learner’s permit (must be at least 15 years and only 1 day per event verified by issue date of permit/license)
• Life-Threatening Illness (requires dr. note verification)
• Other local exemptions as determined by board policy

A child is not required to attend school unless he or she is at least six (6) years old on September 1st of the school year, so Kindergarten is not required.  

However, if a child is voluntarily enrolled in pre-kindergarten or kindergarten, regular attendance is required. If the child has too many unexcused absences while enrolled, compulsory attendance charges may be filed. A parent who enrolls a child in Kindergarten may choose to withdraw the child at anytime during the school year by notifying the campus administrator.

In CISD, absences that do not fall under one of the exemptions listed below, will require parents to fill out a Pre-Approved Parent Request for absences 3 days prior to the absence for administrative approval in order for it to be considered excused. 

Administrators will consider current/previous attendance, grades, and reason for the absence in considering whether or not to excuse the absence through a parent request. Parent request forms may be downloaded on the CISD website: Parent Request Absence Form or through the Skyward Attendance tile for submission online.

Pre-Approved Parent Requests for absences that are not submitted at least 3 days in advance, may not be approved and would be considered unexcused.

Absences for purposes of college visits or other exemptions are addressed in Section 25.087 (b-2), Education Code:

• Religious Holy Day
• Required Court Appearance
• Activities related to US Citizenship
• Documented Health Care Appointments (must attend school on the same day as appt. and have Dr. Note verification submitted upon return to school).
• Students in the Conservatorship of the State
• Students of Military Families
• College Visit (11th and 12th grade only/limited to 2 days per year/does not include travel days)
• Career Exploration (11th/12th grade only/limited to 2 days per year with verification from the professional/does not include travel days)
• Enlistment in the Armed Services
• Serving as an Early Voting or Election Clerk
• Obtaining a driver’s license or learner’s permit (must be at least 15 years and only 1 day per event verified by issue date of permit/license)
• Life-Threatening Illness (requires dr. note verification)
• Other local exemptions as determined by board policy

If possible, we encourage scheduling appointments outside of school hours. If appointments during the school day are unavoidable, please obtain and submit a medical note for documentation to provide to your student’s campus attendance clerk or upload the dr. note under the attendance tile in Skyward. Documentation is needed so the absence will be coded with a dr. excuse.

If you do not provide a dr. note for the absence, the absence will be coded as an illness (IL). Students are limited to 12 illnesses (IL) without a doctor note per year at PK-6th grade; and 5 per semester at 7th - 12th grade.  Any absences without a dr. note after the limit is reached, will be considered unexcused and could potentially lead to filing for compulsory attendance

A child who is under 18 years of age is required to attend public school. There are several exemptions from this requirement. A primary exemption is for students who are enrolled in a private or parochial school, including a home school. Another primary exemption applies to students who are at least 17 years of age and are either enrolled in a GED (high school equivalency) program or have received either a high school diploma or GED certificate*. The statutes stating the compulsory ages of attendance and the exemptions from attendance are Sections 25.085 and 25.086 of the Texas Education Code. If a child is required to attend school and fails to do so, criminal charges may be brought against the parent under Section 25.093 or against the student under Section 25.094 if the offence is a Class C Misdemeanor. There is some information on this topic in the attendance section of the Administrator’s Letter.

 *17 year-old in GED course
The exemption from compulsory attendance for a child attending a GED course who is at least 17 years of age applies if:  1) the child has the permission of the child’s parent or guardian to attend the course; 2) the child is required by court order to attend the course; 3) the child has established a residence separate and apart from the child’s parent, guardian, or other person having lawful control; or 4) the child is homeless.

 *16 year-old in GED course
There is a separate exemption for a child attending a GED course who is at least 16 years old.  This exemption applies if the student is recommended to take the course by a public agency that has supervision or custody of the child under a court order.  Under Article 45.054 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, a county, justice or municipal court that finds that a child who is at least 16 years of age engaged in truant conduct may order the child to take a GED examination and to attend a preparatory course.  The exemption applicable to a 16 year-old attending a GED course includes those enrolled in a Job Corps training program.  These are the only conditions under which 16 year-olds are exempt from compulsory attendance due to attending a GED course.  In addition, certain 16 year-olds may attend a GED program operated by a school district or open-enrollment charter school under §29.087.

A student is entitled to enroll in Texas public schools based on residency in the district,   regardless of pregnancy. Federal law also prohibits discrimination in an educational program on the basis of pregnancy. However, pregnancy does not exempt a student from loss of credit or compulsory attendance laws. Please contact your school nurse or the Coordinator of Student Services @ 806-677-2600 for information about pregnancy related services in CISD.

Admission to a school is not allowed until records are produced showing that:
(1) the child has been immunized in accordance with state immunization rules;
(2) the child has an exemption from immunization in accordance with state immunization rules; or 
(3) the child is entitled to *provisional enrollment. 

If a student falls out of compliance with immunization during the school year, they may be excluded from school until requirements are met. Our school nurses monitor immunization records and will notify families if they are falling out of compliance. Parents can also access student’s immunization records through their child’s Skyward portal. In CISD, any absences that accumulate due to lack of immunization compliance will be coded unexcused. 

For more information about immunization requirements, you may visit http://immunizetexas.com/ or contact the Immunization Division Customer Service team at (512) 458-7284 or (800) 252-9152.

*Provisional enrollment applies to (1) students transferring from one Texas public or private school to another; (2) students who are homeless according to the federal McKinney-Vento Act; or (3) students who have begun required immunizations and are receiving them as quickly as medically feasible.

It is well known that the adolescent years are particularly stressful years for students and making the move from elementary to middle school, and middle school to high school, can bring about behaviors that were not present before. Despite this transition, you can help your student by immediately taking one or more of the following actions:

Check Skyward regularly for absences, low conduct marks and grades. If the school calls you, do not cover for your student to get them off the hook. This tells them that there are no consequences for breaking rules.

• Contact the school if you think your student has been skipping school and if you need additional community resources.
• To prevent a truancy court filing of “Parent Contributing to Nonattendance,” it is important that you stay in communication with your student’s school regarding attendance.
• There are many district and community support services available to help you and your student with issues that may be affecting their attendance. Talk with your principal, counselor to find out more about other support services.

Students thrive with adults who care to enforce rules and are available to provide help when it's needed. Your campus will want to work with you to create the best learning environment for your student. 

Parents and guardians play a very important role regarding their children’s attendance.

Here are a few tips to consider:

• Have your student arrive to school on time and attend every class period, especially at the official attendance-taking period.
• A student who is tardy to class will be subject to the consequences established at each campus in accordance with the possible consequences in the Canyon ISD Student Code of Conduct.
• What happens if your student needs to see a doctor/dentist/therapist? If possible, we encourage you to schedule appointments outside of school hours. Obtain and submit a medical note for documentation to provide to your student’s campus Attendance Clerk. Documentation is needed so the absence will be coded correctly.
• When you receive an absence notification, please follow up with your student and the campus attendance specialist. If you have documentation for your student’s absence, please submit as early as possible (it is recommended to submit within 48 hours). If you believe a teacher has marked a student incorrectly, please have your student reach out to the teacher of the marked period.

CISD provides proactive measures to communicate absences so families and school can be on the same page with absences. 

Proactive measures may include:

• Attendance Letters autogenerated by Skyward for communication about attendance recording
• Parent square notifications
• Automated calls and text messages through Parent Square
• Emails and/or phone calls from administrator or attendance clerks
• Teacher emails and/or phone calls
• Attendance Contract
• Attendance Intervention Plan
• Referral to counselor or truancy officer
• Consequences according to Student Code of Conduct
• Home Visits

Attendance Letters from your child’s school regarding absences and truancies provide correspondence to ensure everyone is on the same page about any truancies or absences that your child is experiencing. Letters for Loss of Credit and Compulsory Unexcused Absences are auto-generated at different thresholds so that parents are aware of the progression and concern about absences.  

Parents are welcome to schedule time with the school to discuss concerns about absences, tardies, and truancies at any time. Parents may be asked to attend an Attendance Improvement Plan meeting if your student is close to reaching one of the thresholds that could affect academic progress, or if the school is going to file with the judicial system for compulsory attendance noncompliance.  It is important when you receive a letter to ensure that the absence reporting is correct, and that you are communicating with your child’s school to avoid further action.

Please contact the school as soon as the mistake is discovered. Attendance reconciliation takes place periodically throughout the year. Once attendance reconciliation is submitted to the state, we can no longer change/modify absences, so the earlier a mistake is found the better chance of getting it fixed. Also, schools may not accept dr. notes after the attendance reconciliation date has passed, so it is imperative that timely communication and regular review of attendance occurs. You can review your child’s attendance at any time by going to the attendance tile in Skyward.

This information can be found in the Texas Education Code; Please click this link to view the information at texas.gov​​​​​​