School Attendance Requirement
South Carolina law requires regular school attendance for every child who is at least five years old on or before the first day of September of a particular school year, until the child turns 17 years old. § 59-65-10.
- There are several, limited exceptions to this requirement which are listed in § 59-65-30.
- Parents are primarily responsible for ensuring their child attends school regularly, and they face statutory penalties if they neglect that responsibility. § 59-65-20.
- A parent whose child is not six years of age on or before the first day of September of a particular school year may elect for their child not to attend kindergarten by signing a written document making the election with the school district in which the parent resides. § 59-65-10.
Truancy Defined
Reg. 43-274 outlines the state requirements for school attendance and provides a clear and concise definition of truancy. The regulation uses a three tiered approach for defining the varying levels of truant behavior. A child is deemed to be a truant, a habitual truant, or a chronic truant depending on the surrounding circumstances, as described below:
A child, at least 6 but not yet 17 years old, who has accumulated three consecutive unlawful absences or a total of five unlawful absences.
A child, at least 12 but not yet 17 years old who (1) fails to comply with the intervention plan developed by the school, the child, and the parents or guardians, and (2) accumulates two or more additional unlawful absences.
A child, at least 12 but not yet 17 years old, who (1) has been through the school intervention process; (2) has reached the level of a habitual truant and has been referred to family court and placed under an order to attend school; and (3) continues to accumulate unlawful absences.
Reg. 43-274 requires school districts to adopt policies that define and list lawful and unlawful absences and provides the following guidance:
Lawful absences include but are not limited to:
- absences caused by a student's own illness and whose attendance in school would endanger his or her health or the health of others,
- absences due to an illness or death in the student's immediate family,
- absences due to a recognized religious holiday of the student's faith, and
- absences due to activities that are approved in advance by the principal.
Unlawful absences include but are not limited to:
- absences of a student without the knowledge of his or her parents, and
- absences of a student without acceptable cause with the knowledge of his or her parents.
Suspension is not to be counted as an unlawful absence for truancy purposes.