Full question:
My daughter, a High School Senior. who turned 18 December 29, 2008 wants to drop a class not needed for graduation, but the school is refusing and threatening to ID her as truant. We believe she can stop going to the class since she is now 18 and that she can no longer be charged as truant. Recently she applied to a community college and got accepted for enrollment which she is considering due to problems with her high school. Can her high school legally charge her as truant and bar her from graduation?
- Category: Education
- Subcategory: Compulsory Education
- Date:
- State: California
Answer:
The answer will depend on all the facts and circumstances involved. Generally, a person is subject to compulsory education laws in CA until they are 19 years old, unless an exemption, such as a work permit, applies. If the person is a truant, there may be requirements for notice of truancy and a hearing, depending on whether a school attendance review board exists for that school's county. The following statutes apply to all schools:
48260.
(a) Any pupil subject to compulsory full-time education or
to compulsory continuation education who is absent from school
without valid excuse three full days in one school year or tardy or
absent for more than any 30-minute period during the schoolday
without a valid excuse on three occasions in one school year, or any
combination thereof, is a truant and shall be reported to the
attendance supervisor or to the superintendent of the school
district.
(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), it is the intent of the
Legislature that school districts shall not change the method of
attendance accounting provided for in existing law and shall not be
required to employ period-by-period attendance accounting.
48260.5.
Upon a pupil's initial classification as a truant, the
school district shall notify the pupil's parent or guardian, by
first-class mail or other reasonable means, of the following:
(a) That the pupil is truant.
(b) That the parent or guardian is obligated to compel the
attendance of the pupil at school.
(c) That parents or guardians who fail to meet this obligation may
be guilty of an infraction and subject to prosecution pursuant to
Article 6 (commencing with Section 48290) of Chapter 2 of Part 27.
(d) That alternative educational programs are available in the
district.
(e) That the parent or guardian has the right to meet with
appropriate school personnel to discuss solutions to the pupil's
truancy.
(f) That the pupil may be subject to prosecution under Section
48264.
(g) That the pupil may be subject to suspension, restriction, or
delay of the pupil's driving privilege pursuant to Section 13202.7 of
the Vehicle Code.
(h) That it is recommended that the parent or guardian accompany
the pupil to school and attend classes with the pupil for one day.
The following CA statutes apply to determine is a student is exempt fromcompulsory education requirements:
48200.
Each person between the ages of 6 and 18 years not exempted
under the provisions of this chapter or Chapter 3 (commencing with
Section 48400) is subject to compulsory full-time education. Each
person subject to compulsory full-time education and each person
subject to compulsory continuation education not exempted under the
provisions of Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 48400) shall attend
the public full-time day school or continuation school or classes and
for the full time designated as the length of the schoolday by the
governing board of the school district in which the residency of
either the parent or legal guardian is located and each parent,
guardian, or other person having control or charge of the pupil shall
send the pupil to the public full-time day school or continuation
school or classes and for the full time designated as the length of
the schoolday by the governing board of the school district in which
the residence of either the parent or legal guardian is located.
Unless otherwise provided for in this code, a pupil shall not be
enrolled for less than the minimum schoolday established by law.
48222.
Children who are being instructed in a private full-time day
school by persons capable of teaching shall be exempted. Such
school shall, except under the circumstances described in Section 30,
be taught in the English language and shall offer instruction in the
several branches of study required to be taught in the public
schools of the state. The attendance of the pupils shall be kept by
private school authorities in a register, and the record of
attendance shall indicate clearly every absence of the pupil from
school for a half day or more during each day that school is
maintained during the year.
Exemptions under this section shall be valid only after
verification by the attendance supervisor of the district, or other
person designated by the board of education, that the private school
has complied with the provisions of Section 33190 requiring the
annual filing by the owner or other head of a private school of an
affidavit or statement of prescribed information with the
Superintendent of Public Instruction. The verification required by
this section shall not be construed as an evaluation, recognition,
approval, or endorsement of any private school or course.
48223.
Children who are mentally gifted and who are being
instructed in a private full-time day school by persons capable of
teaching, where all or part of the courses of instruction required to
be taught in the public schools of this state is taught in a foreign
language with not less than 50 percent of the total daily
instructional time taught in the English language, shall be exempted.
The attendance of the pupils shall be kept pursuant to Section
48222.
48224.
Children not attending a private, full-time, day school and
who are being instructed in study and recitation for at least three
hours a day for 175 days each calendar year by a private tutor or
other person in the several branches of study required to be taught
in the public schools of this state and in the English language shall
be exempted. The tutor or other person shall hold a valid state
credential for the grade taught. The instruction shall be offered
between the hours of 8 o'clock a.m. and 4 o'clock p.m.
48225.
The governing board of any school district which has
children holding work permits to work temporarily in the
entertainment or allied industries who are exempted from attending
public full-time day school under the provisions of this article, or
a county superintendent of schools, may contract with any person,
firm or corporation responsible for the education of any children, so
employed or acting on behalf thereof, to provide eligibility lists
and placement services for qualified teaching and other necessary
personnel for the tutoring of such children while so employed. Such
personnel shall not for these purposes be deemed public employees.
The contract shall require the payment of all costs of the school
district, or the county superintendent of schools in providing the
lists or services.
48225.5.
(a)
(1) Notwithstanding Section 48200, a pupil who holds a
work permit to work for a period of not more than five consecutive
days in the entertainment or allied industries shall be excused from
school during the period that the pupil is working in the
entertainment or allied industry for a maximum of up to five
absences per school year.
(2) Notwithstanding Section 48200, a pupil shall be excused from
school in order to participate with a not-for-profit performing arts
organization in a performance for a public school pupil audience for
a maximum of up to five days per school year provided the pupil's
parent or guardian provides a written note to the school authorities
explaining the reason for the pupil's absence.
(b) A pupil absent from school under this section shall be
permitted to complete all assignments and tests missed during the
absence that can be reasonably provided and, upon satisfactory
completion, shall be given full credit therefor. The teacher of any
class from which a pupil is absent shall determine, pursuant to the
regulations of the governing board of the school district, or the
county board of education, what assignments the pupil shall make up
and in what period of time the pupil shall complete those
assignments. The tests and assignments shall be reasonably
equivalent to, but not necessarily identical to, the tests and
assignments that the pupil missed during the absence.
(c) A pupil absent pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a)
shall receive instruction during the period of the absence from a
studio teacher certified by the Labor Commissioner holding
credentials as defined in Section 11755 of Title 8 of the California
Code of Regulations. The instruction shall be offered between 7 a.m.
and 4 p.m. for pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 6, inclusive,
and between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. for pupils in grades 7 to 12,
inclusive. The school district or county superintendent of schools
shall accept the work done by the pupil and the grades given to the
pupil on that work and shall provide the pupil with credit for the
instruction the pupil received from that teacher.
(d) At the request of a pupil excused from school pursuant to
paragraph (1) of subdivision (a), the pupil may be permitted to
enroll in a work experience program of the school district and shall
receive appropriate academic credit for that work experience.
(e) This section shall apply to all pupils, whether a pupil is
enrolled in regular classes or special education classes, a regional
occupational program or center, or a program of independent study, or
any other program of the school district or county superintendent of
schools.
48230.
Children who hold permits to work shall be exempted, but
such children shall be subject to compulsory attendance upon
part-time classes.
48231.
Notwithstanding Section 48201, pupils between 12 and 18
years of age who enter an attendance area from another state within
10 schooldays before the end of the school term during which such
entrance occurs are exempt for the remainder of the school term.
48232.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a child who will
be 15 years old at the time a leave of absence is to begin may take
a leave of absence from school for a period of up to one semester, if
all of the following conditions are satisfied:
(a) The school district governing board adopts a written policy to
allow pupil leaves of absence consistent with this section.
(b) The purpose of the leave is supervised travel, study,
training, or work not available to the pupil under another education
option.
(c) A written agreement is entered into that is signed by the
child's parent or guardian, the principal or administrative officer
of the school which the child would otherwise attend, a classroom
teacher familiar with the child's academic progress selected by the
child, and the district supervisor of child welfare and attendance,
and that provides for all of the following:
(1) The purpose of the leave.
(2) The length of time the child will be on leave.
(3) A meeting between, or contact with, the child and a school
official designated in the agreement at least once a month while the
child is on leave.
(4) A statement incorporating the provisions contained in
subdivision (b).
(d) The child shall be entitled to return to school at any time.
No child who takes a leave of absence shall be penalized from
completing his or her academic requirements within a time period
equal to that of classmates who did not take a leave of absence, plus
a period of time equal to the leave of absence. However, when a
child reenrolls at any time other than the beginning of a semester,
the school shall not be required to give makeup sessions during that
semester for the classes that the child has missed.
(e) A leave of absence may be extended for an additional semester
upon approval by all parties to the written agreement and the local
school attendance review board.
(f) No leave of absence may be taken that would continue past the
end of the school year in which the leave is taken.
(g) If the pupil does not contact the designated school official
as stipulated in the written agreement, the leave of absence shall be
nullified.
Any party to the written agreement may nullify the agreement for
cause at any time.
(h) No more than 1 percent of the pupils enrolled and in
attendance at each school shall be permitted to take a leave of
absence during each academic year.
Graduation requirements are governed by state laws and school district board of education policies, which vary by district. I suggest you contact the local board of education for applicable policies.
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.
