September is Attendance Awareness Month for schools across the country. We know that when students are absent from school, they miss important instruction and may fall further behind on their path to completing their grade level or graduating.
Dallas ISD provides support and encouragement to students to attend school every day, through its Attendance for Credit Program at each campus. Beginning on Wednesday, Sept. 22, parents will begin to receive school messenger notification if their student has missed excessive days of instruction since the beginning of the school year.
Dallas ISD’s Attendance for Credit program is based upon Texas Education Code 25.092, which states in part, “…a student in any grade level from kindergarten through grade 12 may not be given credit or a final grade for a class unless the student is in attendance for at least 90 percent of the days the class is offered.” The Dallas ISD Board of Trustees also provides guidance for the program in policy FEC.
Attendance for Credit letters with information for parents of students who have incurred excessive absences will also be available for download starting on Sept. 22, 2021, at this link. Instruction for how to download letters is available here. If a parent or guardian receives a letter, it will provide information for contacting the campus to discuss ways for students to improve attendance and remain on track with instruction.
Each Dallas ISD campus with students in grades kindergarten through 12 has an Attendance for Credit committee that supervises opportunities for students to restore missed instructional time via the campus Principal’s Plan. The Attendance for Credit committee also encourages communication between parents, students, and the campus to address issues families face that adversely affect attendance.
For more information about Attendance for Credit, please go to https://www.dallasisd.org/Page/39088 or contact your student’s campus.
