How much school can I allow my child to skip in Illinois? Here's what the law requires

Belleville News-Democrat - 3/21/2024

Mar. 21—Students who miss 10% or more of the school year with or without a valid excuse are considered chronically absent in Illinois, but what is considered a valid excuse?

Statewide, the Land of Lincoln has a 28.3% chronic absenteeism rate across various grades, according to the Illinois Report Card, but some local schools have higher chronic absenteeism rates.

While students who miss lots of school days due to excused absences are counted toward a district's chronic absenteeism rate, the days do not count against a student for potential truancy penalties.

Here's what to know about Illinois state law on attendance and what automatically qualifies as an excused absence.

What does Illinois state law say about attendance?

As of Jan. 1, 2022, Illinois law dictates schools receiving public funds must allow each student to take up to five days off for mental or behavioral health. Students are not required to provide a doctor's note to take these days, and will be allowed to make up missed work, NPR reported in September 2021.

Attendance policies vary by school district, and local staff have the authority to develop their own guidelines as long as they coincide with the state law and allow students to take up to five mental health days, make accommodations for religious holidays, give students the option to take one day off for a civic event, make exceptions for students who experience a death in the immediate family or other family emergency, and meet other requirements.

School districts, charter schools and any schools receiving public funds are required to provide and communicate at least annually an absence and truancy policy that must include:

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"A definition of a valid cause for absence in accordance with Section 26-2a of the School Code.

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A description of diagnostic procedures to be used for identifying the causes of unexcused student absenteeism, which shall, at a minimum, include interviews with the student, his or her parent or guardian, and any school officials who may have information about the reasons for the student's attendance problem.

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The identification of supportive services to be made available to truant or chronically truant students, which shall include, but need not be limited to, parent conferences, student counseling, family counseling, and information about existing community services that are available to truant and chronically truant students and relevant to their needs.

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Measures to track and address chronic absenteeism, including collecting and reviewing data to identify students who need extra support," according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

"At the local level, districts have some flexibility and autonomy," Illinois Department of Education spokesperson Lindsay Record wrote in a recent email to the News-Democrat.

Illinois state law requires schools make certain exceptions for absences, including for religious holidays and other reasons, but local school districts may add additional exceptions to their policies, Record continued.

The law says school district officials may refer a parent or guardian of a "chronic truant" to local public entities, such as a police department, for fines or fees only if certain requirements have been met. Those requirements include offering resources, especially for children who are experiencing homelessness or have a documented disability.

An adult with custody of a child who has been given notice of their child's truancy and knowingly "permits such a child to persist in his truancy within that school year" can be found guilty of a Class C misdemeanor and fined up to $500 and/or 30 days of imprisonment, according to Illinois law.

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