student’s family.
• Mandated court appearances (additional
documentation required).
• The lack of transportation that is normally
provided by a district other than the one the
student attends (parental documentation is
not required for this reason).
• Extraordinary education opportunities preapproved
by district administrators.
(Opportunities must meet certain criteria.
See below for details).
* Note: The total number of days absent includes both excused and unexcused absences.
Definitions
documentation (see
details of specific
reason).
“In attendance” shall mean a student if present at his/her assigned school/class, or an activity sponsored
by the school (ex. Field trip), for at least half of the regular school day. A student who is serving an outof-school
suspension or expulsion, should always be considered absent.
“Absence” means an excused absence, unexcused absence or disciplinary absence, as those terms are
defined by the State Board of Education or an in-school suspension that is greater than or equal to onehalf
of a school day.
“Truant” shall mean a student a student age five to eighteen, inclusive, who has four unexcused absences
in any one month, or ten unexcused absences in one school year.
“Chronically absent child” is an enrolled student whose total number of absences at any time during a
school year is equal to or greater than ten percent of the total number of days that such student has been
enrolled at such school during such school year.
“District chronic absenteeism rate” means the total number of chronically absent children in the
previous school year divided by the total number of children under the jurisdiction of the Board of
Education for such school year.
“School chronic absenteeism rate” means the total number of chronically absent children for a school in
the previous school year divided by the total number of children enrolled in such school for such school
year.
Attendance Policy K-12
Excused Absences (Grades K - 12)
A student’s absence from school shall be considered excused if written documentation of the reason for
the absence has been submitted within ten school days of the student’s return to school or in accordance
with Section 10-210 of the Connecticut General Statutes and meets the following criteria:
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