Attending Class In Newark: How Many Days Can A Student Miss?

We all need to take a day off now and then… students included.

But according to a recent report, around 10 percent of the students in New Jersey had “high chronic absentee rates” during the 2013-14 school year, meaning that they missed more than 18 days of school.

The report – done by the Advocates for Children of New Jersey – cited Newark’s public and charter schools among the districts in need of improvement.

• See related article: Newark’s Schools Have High Absentee Rates, Report Says

NEWARK’S ATTENDANCE RULES

In Newark’s public schools, administrators begin to reach out to a student’s parents when their unexcused absences reach five to nine cumulative absences.

When a student’s unexcused absences reach 10 or more, school administrators make a mandatory referral to the court program required by the New Jersey Administrative Office of the Courts.

In addition, the district has a “buy back” program that allows a student to receive credit for days of unexcused absences if that student “completes additional assignments to the satisfaction of the school administrator.”

• See the district’s full attendance policy online here.

STATE LAW

According to the NJ Department of Education, student absenteeism can lead to “low academic achievement, school dropout, delinquency and gang involvement.”

“School districts that have established multi-systemic approaches and policies pertaining to student absenteeism typically experience fewer numbers of dropouts and a greater number of graduates,” the NJDOE states on its website.

The New Jersey compulsory education law requires all children between the ages of 6 to 16 to attend school.

State attendance regulations require each district board of education to develop, adopt and implement policies and procedures regarding the attendance of students, including the adoption of a definition of “unexcused absence,” the provision of mandated services for students with between one and nine cumulative unexcused absences, and a mandated court referral for “truant students,” those with ten or more unexcused absences.