As described in the Technology and Connectivity section of this guidance, remote learning did not work for everyone during the spring 2020 school closures. In many schools and districts, large numbers of students did not log on or otherwise participate in online learning opportunities. It is therefore critical for schools to use a variety of creative methods to reach out to students and their families who did not engage in distance learning. School policies and procedures must focus on the academic consequences of lost instructional time and address absences before students fall behind in their learning. Initiating an educational neglect or Person in Need of Supervision (PINS) proceeding should be a last resort; schools and districts should work with their local departments of social services prior to bringing any legal action against students or their families.

Attendance for Instructional Purposes

• Schools are responsible for developing a mechanism to collect and report daily teacher/student engagement or attendance regardless of the instructional setting.

  The District will develop a mechanism to collect and report daily teacher/student engagement or attendance regardless of the instructional setting.

Attendance for Reporting Purposes

• Attendance of any school-age student of compulsory age, who resides in the district or is placed by a parent/guardian in another public school district, a charter school, or is placed by a district administrator or the CSE of the school district in educational programs outside the district (such as, another school district, BOCES, approved private in-State or out-of-State school, and State supported school) must be reported in SIRS. To date, the reporting of daily attendance of Prekindergarten students is not required;

  The District will report daily attendance in SIRS.

• Attendance must be reported by any reporting entity that is required to take attendance;

Attendance will be reported as required;

• Resident students of compulsory age who were not in attendance in a public school, including charter schools, nonpublic school, or approved home schooling program in the current school year must be reported until they exceed compulsory school age, they no longer reside in the district, or the district has documentation that the student has entered another educational program leading to a high school diploma;

Resident students of compulsory age who were not in attendance in a public school in the current school year will be reported until they exceed compulsory school age, they no longer reside in the district, or the District has documentation that the student has entered another educational program leading to a high school diploma;

• Students who drop out while still of compulsory school age must be kept on the school attendance register until they exceed compulsory school age or move out of the district. 

Students who drop out while still of compulsory school age will be kept on the school attendance register until they exceed compulsory school age or move out of the District.

Attendance for State Aid Purposes

School districts report certain enrollment, attendance, and school calendar information through the State Aid Management System (SAMS). While this data submission process differs from other procedures, the underlying data provided should be consistent with all other attendance reporting and requirements.

As discussed in the Budget and Fiscal Matters section of this guidance, the minimum annual instructional hour requirement and 180 days of session requirement are also both reported through SAMS. For both the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years, school districts will be required to continue to submit the same information through SAMS that has been required in previous years, namely aggregate instructional days and hours, as well as daily calendars. Under regulatory changes adopted as an emergency rule by the Board of Regents on July 13, 2020, school districts may be eligible to apply for a waiver from the minimum instructional hour requirement for both the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years to the extent that “the district is unable to meet such requirement as a result of an Executive Order(s) of the Governor pursuant to the State of emergency declared for the COVID-19 crisis, or pursuant to Education Law §3604(8), as amended by Chapter 107 of the Laws of 2020, or reopening procedures implemented as a result of the COVID-19 crisis”. Successful application of the waiver will shield school districts from a reduction in aid for failure to meet the minimum instructional hour requirement. However, the 180 days of session requirement is in statute, and for the 2020-21 school year there are currently no statutory provisions that would allow a school district to provide fewer than 180 days of instruction over the course of the full school year.

For charter schools, instructional time requirements are set forth in Education Law Section 2851(2)(n) and Commissioner’s Regulation Section 175.5. These requirements were effectively waived as stated above. See the Budget and Fiscal Matters section of this guidance for additional details.

Chronic Absenteeism

Extensive research indicates that missing ten percent of school days tends to be the “tipping point” when student achievement declines. Chronic absence, or absenteeism, is defined as missing at least ten percent of enrolled school days, which in New York State is eighteen days per school year, or two days per month.

Chronic absence includes all absences from instruction, both excused and unexcused. Instead of school policies and procedures focusing on truancy, it is essential for school attendance policies to focus on the academic consequences of lost instructional time and for the school procedures to address absences before students fall behind in school.

During these challenging times, the development of positive school relationships may be a lifeline for students disconnected from school.
Although flexibility is recommended when monitoring attendance in a remote instructional model, for students who have not engaged in remote learning and school staff outreach to parents/guardians has been unsuccessful, districts and other schools should explore a variety of methods for reaching out such as: phone calls to families are often the simplest solution and provide an immediate opportunity to offer resources and assess student and family needs where families do not respond to phone calls, texting may offer a lower-stress alternative and a subsequent phone call can be arranged seeking out adults in the school who have established a connection with the student and/or family may yield improved results. Counselors, coaches, social workers, and psychologists are often logical choices, in addition to teaching staff. Social media contact or using friends to reach out can also be effective strategies.

Assign each student an “ally” – an adult who is responsible to check in on the student every day, whether instruction is in-person, remote, or online.
School districts and other school entities have the responsibility to provide translation for families who speak a language other than English in the home.

Once contact is made, emphasis should be on addressing the student’s or family’s barriers to “attendance” or engagement with instruction.

Educational Neglect

An allegation of educational neglect may be warranted when a custodial parent or guardian fails to ensure a child’s prompt and regular attendance in school or keeps the child out of school for impermissible reasons resulting in an adverse effect on the child’s educational progress, or imminent danger of such an adverse effect. Educational neglect should not be considered where the parent/guardian has kept their child home because they believe it is unsafe for their child to attend school in person during the pandemic, and the child is participating in remote learning opportunities.

Schools and districts are urged to reach out to their local departments of Social Services (LDSS) with any questions or concerns related to child welfare. The LDSS point of contact (POC) for your area may be found through the following link: LDSS POCS. The Statewide Central Register of Child Abuse and Neglect, the hotline to report child abuse and neglect, should be contacted only as a last resort, after you have exhausted all other strategies to connect with students and families.

Reporting and investigation of suspected cases of educational neglect present a range of complex issues and challenges for local social services districts and school districts. It is in the best interest of these agencies, school districts, and the families they serve, to collaborate in addressing their concerns. From the process of reporting – a school responsibility – and throughout the process of investigation, which is the purview of Child Protective Services (CPS), there will be numerous opportunities for timely intervention and collaboration involving students, parents, school officials, and CPS staff. This collaborative approach should lessen the need for Family Court referral and proceedings.

Persons in Need of Supervision (PINS)

Under the Family Court Act Article 7, a PINS proceeding may, in certain circumstances, be initiated to have a person under eighteen years of age, who does not attend school, is incorrigible, ungovernable, habitually disobedient and beyond the lawful control of a parent, or other person legally responsible for such child’s care, or appears to be a sexually exploited child, adjudicated by the Family Court as a PINS.

Before taking such drastic action, outreach to the appropriate LDSS may provide the student and family access to additional services designed to prevent a young person from being adjudicated a PINS. Family Support Services programs have been established to provide comprehensive services to children and families. The LDSS point of contact (POC) for your area may be found through the following link: LDSS POCS.

Resources
Attendance Playbook: Smart Solutions for Reducing Chronic Absenteeism in the COVID Era