District of Columbia Code Division VI. Education, Libraries, and Cultural Institutions. § 38-203. Enforcement; penalties.
Current as of January 01, 2020 | Updated by FindLaw Staff
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(a) An accurate daily record of the attendance of all minors covered by § 38-202 and this section shall be kept by the teachers of each educational institution. These records shall be open for inspection at all times by the Board, the Superintendent of Schools, school attendance officers, or other persons authorized to enforce this subchapter.
(b) Repealed.
(c)(1) The absence of a minor covered by § 38-202(a) without valid excuse shall be unlawful.
(2) An absence of a minor covered by § 38-202(a) who is enrolled in a public school is deemed unexcused unless the minor's parent, guardian, or other person who has custody or control of the minor provides the school with a valid excuse for the minor's absence within 5 school days upon the minor's return to school.
(3) The absence of a minor from a District of Columbia Public Schools school or a public charter school shall be deemed excused if:
(A) The cause of the minor's absence falls into a category identified in 5A DCMR § 2102.2; or
(B) For School Year 2021-2022:
(i) The minor is absent from school following a determination that the minor or a member of the minor's household is a close contact, pursuant to current Department of Health guidelines, of a person who tested positive for the COVID-19 virus, and the period of the minor's absence from the school is not longer than the period of quarantine for COVID-19 recommended by the Department of Health;
(ii) The minor did not have access to distance learning, as defined in § 38-971.01(3), but would have been eligible to receive distance learning pursuant to § 38-971.02(1)(B), had the act been in effect during the period of the minor's absence from the school;
(iii) The minor is participating in distancing learning pursuant to § 38-971.02 and has a valid excuse for an absence listed in 5A DCMR § 2102.2; or
(iv) The minor's school determines the absence to be excused.
(4) Paragraph (3)(B)(iv) of this subsection shall not apply after January 15, 2022.
(d) The parent, guardian, or other person who has custody or control of a minor covered by § 38-202(a) who is absent from school without a valid excuse shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
(e) Any person convicted of failure to keep a minor in regular attendance in a public, independent, private, or parochial school, or failure to provide regular private instruction acceptable to the Board may be fined not less than $100 or imprisoned for not more than 5 days, or both for each offense.
(f) Each unlawful absence of a minor for 2 full-day sessions or for 4 half-day sessions during a school month shall constitute a separate offense.
(f-1) Repealed.
(f-2) Repealed.
(g) For the 1st offense, upon payment of costs, the sentence may be suspended and the defendant may be placed on probation.
(h) For any person convicted under this section, the courts shall consider requiring the offender to perform community service as an alternative to fine or imprisonment or both.
(i) Within 60 days after the end of a school year, each public, independent, private, or parochial school shall report to the Office of the State Superintendent of Education, and make publicly available the following data for each school or campus under its authority based on the preceding school year:
(A) The number of minors, categorized by grade, or equivalent grouping for ungraded schools, who had unexcused absences for:
(i) One to 5 days;
(ii) Six to 10 days;
(iii) Eleven to 20 days; and
(iv) Twenty-one or more days;
(A-i) [Not funded]
(B) The number of minors, categorized by grade, or equivalent grouping for ungraded schools, that the school reported to the Child and Family Services Agency pursuant to § 4-1321.02(a-1) and (a-2);
(B-i) [Not funded]; and
(C) The policy on absences, including defined categories of valid excuses, that it used.
(j) By August 1, 2012, the Mayor shall develop, through rulemaking, appropriate enforcement mechanisms to ensure that each school, principal, and teacher is in full compliance with the requirements of this chapter and any regulations issued pursuant to this chapter.
(k) By November 30 of each year, the Office of the State Superintendent of Education shall publicly report on the state of absenteeism in the District based on data from the preceding school year, including an analysis of truancy and chronic absenteeism by school or campus and the impact of current laws on improving school attendance.
The superintendent may waive the requirement that an applicant submit to an examination to obtain a certificate of authority under this chapter, provided that the applicant is licensed as a public insurance adjuster in another state that required the applicant to submit to an examination as a condition of licensure. Prior to waiving the examination requirement with respect to a public insurance adjuster licensed in another state, the superintendent shall issue a notice at least sixty days prior to the effective date of the waiver identifying the applicant's other state of licensure. The notice shall be issued in a manner deemed appropriate by the superintendent. Once the superintendent has issued a notice under this section identifying an applicant's other state of licensure, the superintendent need not issue subsequent notices as to applicants licensed in the same state in order to waive the examination requirement for those applicants.
Cite this article: FindLaw.com - District of Columbia Code Division VI. Education, Libraries, and Cultural Institutions. § 38-203. Enforcement; penalties. - last updated January 01, 2020 | https://codes.findlaw.com/dc/division-vi-education-libraries-and-cultural-institutions/dc-code-sect-38-203/
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