Nebraska Statutes 79-209. Compulsory attendance; nonattendance; school district; duties; collaborative plan; considerations; referral to county attorney; notice
(1) In all school districts in this state, any superintendent, principal, teacher, or member of the school board who knows of any violation of subsection (2) of section 79-201 shall within three days report such violation to the attendance officer of the school, who shall immediately investigate the case. When of his or her personal knowledge or by report or complaint from any resident of the district, the attendance officer believes that there is a violation of subsection (2) of section 79-201, the attendance officer shall immediately investigate such alleged violation.
Terms Used In Nebraska Statutes 79-209
- Administrator: means any certified employee such as superintendent, assistant superintendent, principal, assistant principal, school nurse, or other supervisory or administrative personnel who do not have as a primary duty the instruction of pupils in the public schools. See Nebraska Statutes 79-101
- Attorney: shall mean attorney at law. See Nebraska Statutes 49-801
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Person: shall include bodies politic and corporate, societies, communities, the public generally, individuals, partnerships, limited liability companies, joint-stock companies, and associations. See Nebraska Statutes 49-801
- Process: shall mean a summons, subpoena, or notice to appear issued out of a court in the course of judicial proceedings. See Nebraska Statutes 49-801
- School: means a school under the jurisdiction of a school board authorized by Chapter 79. See Nebraska Statutes 79-101
- School board: means the governing body of any school district. See Nebraska Statutes 79-101
- State: when applied to different states of the United States shall be construed to extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories organized by Congress. See Nebraska Statutes 49-801
- Teacher: means any certified employee who is regularly employed for the instruction of pupils in the public schools. See Nebraska Statutes 79-101
- Year: shall mean calendar year. See Nebraska Statutes 49-801
(2) All school boards shall have a written policy on attendance developed and annually reviewed in collaboration with the county attorney of the county in which the principal office of the school district is located. The policy shall include a provision indicating how the school district will handle cases in which excessive absences are due to illness. The policy shall also state the circumstances and number of absences or the hourly equivalent upon which the school shall render all services to address barriers to attendance. Such services shall include, but not be limited to:
(a) Verbal or written communication by school officials with the person or persons who have legal or actual charge or control of any child; and
(b) One or more meetings between, at a minimum, a school attendance officer, a school social worker, or a school administrator or his or her designee, the person who has legal or actual charge or control of the child, and the child, when appropriate, to attempt to address the barriers to attendance. The result of the meeting or meetings shall be to develop a collaborative plan to reduce barriers identified to improve regular attendance. The plan shall consider, but not be limited to:
(i) The physical, mental, or behavioral health of the child;
(ii) Educational counseling;
(iii) Educational evaluation;
(iv) Referral to community agencies for economic services;
(v) Family or individual counseling;
(vi) Assisting the family in working with other community services; and
(vii) Referral to restorative justice practices or services.
(3) The school may report to the county attorney of the county in which the person resides when the school has documented the efforts it has made as required by subsection (2) of this section that the collaborative plan to reduce barriers identified to improve regular attendance has not been successful and that the child has been absent more than twenty days per year. The school shall notify the child’s family in writing prior to referring the child to the county attorney. Failure by the school to document the efforts required by subsection (2) of this section is a defense to prosecution under section 79-201 and adjudication for educational neglect under subdivision (3)(a) of section 43-247 and habitual truancy under subdivision (3)(b) of section 43-247. Illness that makes attendance impossible or impracticable shall not be the basis for referral to the county attorney.
(4) Nothing in this section shall preclude a county attorney from being involved at any stage in the process to address excessive absenteeism.
Source
- Laws 1901, c. 70, § 2, p. 456;
- Laws 1903, c. 95, § 2, p. 552;
- Laws 1905, c. 141, § 1, p. 578;
- Laws 1909, c. 130, § 1, p. 474;
- R.S.1913, § 6925;
- Laws 1919, c. 155, § 9, p. 350;
- Laws 1921, c. 53, § 2, p. 231;
- C.S.1922, § 6509;
- C.S.1929, § 79-1914;
- R.S.1943, § 79-1922;
- Laws 1949, c. 256, § 17, p. 696;
- Laws 1986, LB 528, § 8;
- Laws 1994, LB 1250, § 5;
- R.S.1943, (1994), § 79-211;
- Laws 1996, LB 900, § 13;
- Laws 1998, Spec. Sess., LB 1, § 6;
- Laws 1999, LB 272, § 28;
- Laws 2010, LB800, § 35;
- Laws 2011, LB463, § 19;
- Laws 2012, LB933, § 1;
- Laws 2014, LB464, § 34;
- Laws 2019, LB595, § 39;
- Laws 2020, LB751, § 1.