Reply to Faking the Grade -- Columbia Heights Education Campus

Forum Index » DC Public and Public Charter Schools

Reply to "Faking the Grade -- Columbia Heights Education Campus"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=NathanBacaABC7][quote=Anonymous]Are there not truancy laws? Why aren’t kids and their parents reported after the max number of absences?[/quote]

There are truancy laws. DC Code states after around 15 unexcused absences -- I don't have the exact number in front of me -- kids and their families are supposed to be referred to child protective services and the Attorney General's Office for scrutiny. We have records that indicate that rarely happens, despite students racking up those numbers of unexcused absences.[/quote]

And yet it does happen in cases that make headlines for how crazy it is that parents were referred, like the Mom who took her child on a trip to pick up an adopted baby, and the Deal music prodigy who missed school for performances. [/quote]

I work at a school where we regularly report AND NOTHING HAPPENS! The reports aren't because kids are on educational trips or other important family outings. They are simply truant day in and day out, over an entire school year and usually in the past years too. Seriously, there are so many agencies that need to be reviewed -- from the places that don't report, to what happens once a report is made, and what happens when reports are made multiple times for the same families over and over.

I've been in DC a long time. Remember Banita Jacks? Relisha Rudd? Let's stop worrying about the kids who missed school because their parents have the wherewithal (and the resources) to keep them out of school for a few days for a family trip and can document it. Some of these kids are missing from school for horrific reasons - like abuse and neglect. That alone should make DC take all reports seriously and follow every one of them up.

Even if the issue isn't child abuse, educational neglect is serious. Whether it's perpetrated by a system that gives kids grades they haven't earned for coursework they haven't mastered or perpetrated by families whose kids miss months of the school year without consequence.

[/quote]

Also what at DCPS counts as an unexcused absence? Because a parent brought a note that says they were sick after the fact and once called by attendance monitor, so now absence excused! There may be needs to be a special inter-agency dept. to track this as CFSA is already overwhelmed with abuse/fostercare cases this can't be just dumped on them to investigate they would never have time there are so many truant kids. Agreed educational neglect is a real issue and needs to be addressed! [/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics