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Student Attendance

Student Attendance

As daily school attendance is critical to successful school performance, we want all students and their families in Windham County Pre-K-12 students to have support in ensuring student attendance at school. The WNESU process and procedures to ensure that students are in school and learning follows below.

Process and Expectations:

  • Absences: It is our shared responsibility to be sure that every child is safe and accounted for on every school day. If your child is absent from school please notify the attendance office within 30 minutes of your school’s start time.

  • Unreported Absences: The school will contact the parent/guardian at home or at work. If a child is not in school on a given day and we have not received notification from the parent/guardian and are not able to contact the parent/guardian, this means that we are not able to verify the child’s location. We will then contact the police/sheriff’s department as early in the day as possible and appropriate for a welfare check. This is solely to ensure our student is safe. We will then make another outreach to the parent/guardian to make a plan to prevent further unreported absences.

  • Tardiness: Being on time sets a positive tone for the day and emphasizes the importance of education. Students are expected to arrive at school no later than the stated start time for your school. Students arriving after this time are considered late and will be marked tardy. Tardiness happens from time to time but regularly coming in late means the student misses the opportunity to be greeted by everyone, eat breakfast, settle into the day, learn the schedule for the day and generally get off to a positive start. If a trend of tardiness begins to appear, we will ask the parent/guardian to create a plan with the school to ensure that students arrive on time.

  • Approach: We utilize a team approach for school attendance, including the child, their family, and school officials to explore with the student and family what obstacles are hindering school attendance. A student- centered plan will be developed to increase school attendance. Follow-up steps are set to assess if the plan is working for the student and the family. Records are kept in school files of all contacts related to this plan made with the family of the student. Interventions of last resort regarding attendance typically involve the Windham County State’s Attorney and the Department of Children and Families. Involvement of those agencies happen after habitual absences and very low family involvement with the school.

  • Team Membership: We rely on school staff to support improved attendance. If needed, staff from state and community agencies, as well as home to school liaison supports, will assist. Team meetings can be part of EST, 504, IEP, Coordinated Services Plan (ACT 264), Interaction (formerly known as Youth Services), and other necessary support for the student.

Procedure

WNESU School staff typically will use the following procedures to support families with school attendance, however families should be aware that every situation is different, so this is a not to be interpreted as the sole protocol:

Tardiness

  • After five tardy days

    • Letter to go out to family from principal

    • School personnel contacts family in person or by phone

  • After seven tardy days

    • Letter to go out to family from principal

    • Parent meeting scheduled with counselor and teacher

  • After ten tardy days

    • Letter to go out family from principal

    • Parent meeting scheduled by school staff, with principal, counselor, teacher, and any other necessary school staff.

    • At the meeting, a release of information may be signed by the family to allow discussion between the school and outside agencies if necessary.

Absences

  • After five absent days

    • School personnel contact family in person or by phone, AND by mail.

    • Based on the previous year, families may be referred to community supports or state agencies once an absence trend is identified.

  • After ten absent days

    • Letter to go out to family including, if appropriate, a request for information related to any medical diagnoses that your student may be experiencing that is preventing them from attending school.

    • Parent meeting scheduled with Educational Support Team (EST) or Attendance Committee and school personnel (including teacher, counselor, and principal.)

    • A referral to community support may be necessary at this stage.

  • After fifteen absent days

    • Letter to go out to family

    • Parent meeting scheduled according to guidelines established in Coordinated Services Plan Meeting (Act 264) with school personnel and representatives from outside agencies. These could include DCF, designated mental health, family support, and truancy agencies, as well as law enforcement.

  • Subsequent Absences

    • Depending on the situation, the school will continue to refer to community supports and will determine if a referral to DCF or the Windham County State’s Attorney will be necessary.

Family Court Involvement

  • State’s Attorney

    • An affidavit goes to Windham County State’s Attorney detailing the amount of absences, records of  outreach between the school and the family, and what supports have already been put in place.

    • The State’s Attorney will review the materials and determine if they believe the student is a Child in Need of Services.

    • If the State’s Attorney makes this determination, a  prosecutor will file a case in the Windham County Family Court to formally intervene with the student’s habitual absences.

  • Family Court

    • This is to ensure that a plan will be followed to remedy the absences and have your student regularly go back to school.

    • The Family Court judge evaluates any case filed by the State’s Attorney and determines if conditions need to be imposed on the family related to your student’s attendance. If a case is brought, you will be entitled to an attorney for both you and your student.

Please note: The School is not formally involved with truancy cases brought by the State’s Attorney (meaning that the school is not suing your family). Any truancy cases in Court are brought by the State of Vermont.

Schools have been encouraged to consider making referrals earlier than the timelines set forth here, if a student struggled with attendance last year and shows signs of similar issues in the previous school year.