Bill > SB0319

This bill addresses chronic absenteeism in Indiana schools by establishing a comprehensive policy to identify, track, and support students with attendance challenges. The legislation defines a "chronically absent student" as a student enrolled in kindergarten through 12th grade who is absent at least 10% of school days and has not responded to intervention strategies. The bill requires the Department of Education to review absence categorizations, create best practices for reducing absenteeism, and develop guidelines for intervention strategies. Schools must implement an early warning system to identify students at risk, including those with high absence rates, suspensions, or academic struggles. A school-based team will be responsible for monitoring this system and developing targeted interventions. The bill mandates that schools create an attendance policy, convene attendance conferences, and work with a child study team to provide support for students with attendance issues. Schools must collect and document detailed data about absences, including rates broken down by student subgroups like economic status, race, disability, and language learners. Beginning in 2026, schools will be required to submit this data annually, and the Department of Education will develop improvement targets for schools with high absence rates and identify potential causes of absenteeism through various research methods. The overall goal is to keep students engaged in education and provide supportive interventions rather than punitive measures.

Education

https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2025/bills/senate/319/details