Michigan Votes Forum

Introduced in the House on October 30, 2007

Click here to view bill details.

It is time to enforce truancy laws. Educational neglect used to be something that protective services investigated. However, for middle and high school students and their parents, it simply is just not done anymore. It would be nice if all parents vauled education and insisted their kids attend school every day. However, that is simply not the case sometimes. For those parents, stricter leagal consequences may be helpful.

Parents rights vs. educational system becomes a debatable issue here. I believe this one is worth the money and effort to help protect the vulnerable children's rights. Unfortunately, there is big loop holes out there currently and the children are the one's missing out.

"It would be nice if all parents vauled education and insisted their kids attend school every day" is what your kids are exposed to everyday then all the truancy laws in the world won't make up for bad parents. "For those parents, stricter leagal consequences may be helpful." Get the state out of our business. Just another way to take our money.

If you really want the state to abandon its truancy laws, then make sure at the same time I will not be taxed to support your stupid kid who decides to stay ignorant and subsequently can't support itself. As long as I will have to support your uneducated and indigent spawn as a taxpayer, though, I will insist on having effective truancy laws and enforcement.

I just read the posts here and I hope those of you who so adamantly support stronger truancy laws can blame your ridiculously poor grammar and spelling on truancy! If not then this is proof that truancy is not the problem and truancy laws are a waste.

 As a parent of a 6 year old whose immunity is well on its way to being built up, I have a problem with these laws.  Schools send notes home about communicable diseases saying not to send your child in if they have these symptoms.  I will not send my child to school sick.  That is my policy.  Other parents do send their children to school ill breeding sickness.  What am I to do?  Am I to send my child to school sick just because of the truancy policies? Should I take him to school with a fever vomitting? 

 how about sending him to a private school with a little more common sense in it's attendance policies.

how about homeschooling him?

 

Schools allow up to 10 absences a marking period to allow for illness, appointments, etc. So the obvious answer is no, you don't send your child to school vomitting with a fever. 40 days a school year is a lot of lee-way. These laws are designed for children missing excessively.  There is even some lee-way with the 10 absences, it's obvious that some children can/will fall ill with chicken pox, a bad flu, etc that may last longer than 10 days... there is always an exception as long as the parent is informing the school of what is going on.  This is targetted at the parents who just don't bother to send their kids to school because they are too tired or don't care, or whos children are frequently and excessively 'ditching' school. 

 you're right, momma...

but i think that if the public schools do not enforce a sensible truancy policy, the extra 10% in detroit, will not get the education we pay for.

it's a matter of value for the dollar. if a child is not sick, not excused, and not in school, they are truant, and the parents should be held responsible. perhaps if the wonderful parents of those kids who skip school excessively were fined each time they did, or made to perform community service of some sort, we would eventually get to THE SEAT OF THE PROBLEM.

 

 I agree. I am a mother of four children ages 14, 13, 11 and 8. We are a family of six. When one person gets sick, it spreads through our house like wildfire, then when the last person gets through it, the next virus has started.(this only occurs during flu season). 

I received a POLICE DELIVERED truancy paper from the school today because of the number of days my son has missed. I found this extremely demeaning as a parent. I WILL NOT SEND MY CHILD TO SCHOOL SICK! If more parents kept their ill children home, maybe attendance wouldn't be such a huge issue in the schools.

The thing that gets me is I have given the school written excuses from a doctor taking my child off from school for "X" amount of days and the state and school get to override a doctors orders?

So, let me see if I understand this..... I am to send my child to school vomitting, fever, body aches, headaches and ignore a doctor who says keep him home? Wow! Last time I checked, this is MY CHILD whom I am responsible for, whom I have to pay the doctor bills for, whom I have to take care of when sick and I have to cave to these stupid laws all so the schools can get their "numbers" to get their money? Ummmmm...... not going to happen. Bottom line, my kid is sick, my kid stays home. PERIOD! That is being a responsible parent!

I can see if a parent is truly being "educationally neglectful" ( as my paper stated) by letting a child continually stay home for no reason other than to let them stay home, but who are these people to say when and how often someone can be sick? I had no idea we could pick and choose when to be sick! I choose then to NEVER be sick.

This is a ridiculous law and it needs to change. This is a great example of why I am a current law student. This is the type of law I aim to change. I will not change my policy as a parent and if that means I go to court, so be it.

 Wow! How old are you? What makes you think any child you may be referring to is stupid? You are the one who looks stupid making a comment like that!

Anonymous Citizen:

If you really want the state to abandon its truancy laws, then make sure at the same time I will not be taxed to support your stupid kid who decides to stay ignorant and subsequently can't support itself. As long as I will have to support your uneducated and indigent spawn as a taxpayer, though, I will insist on having effective truancy laws and enforcement.

Grow up and get off your high horse.

 I agree with you crazycajun as far as holding parents responsible for kids that SKIP school. However, parents that keep children home for being ligitimately sick should not fall under this law. I have recently received a truancy paper from my son's school and what kills me, is he has been taken off of school by a doctor for the times missed. I find this very demeaning as a parent when I feel that I am being responsible by keeping my sick child home. I will continue to keep any one of my four children home when they are sick and if that means I go to court, so be it!

 sick children should not be a problem for truant officers. they are easy to verify, especially if the school is kept informed. it's the chronic skippers, the 'mall crawlers' and the 'joy riders' that need attending to.

I am being taken to court because my son missed 35 days of school. 10 of which were for a tonsillectomy, 7 were from having severe strep WITH scarletina, and 13 of which were from a severe head injury he received AT SCHOOL! He slipped on water in the bathroom and bashed his face/head on the toilet. 4 months later he still has brusing around the eye and a bump on his cheek. If he hit his head just an inch higher he would have been killed and this is how the school thanks me for NOT suing them... they take me to court for my child's truancy! I understand that there are parents who do not care about their children going to school and they have problems, BUT it should be up to the school district to personalize each case. I mean this is ridiculous!

Did a doctor recommend your child stay home from school for 13 days for a head injury?