Board holds first reading of updated attendance policy to add mental and behavioral health excuses

The Petaluma Joint Union High School District board held a first reading of proposed revisions to BP/AR 5113, Absences and Excuses, including an explicit allowance for excused absences when a student is absent for mental or behavioral health reasons following a recent Education Code update.

District staff told the board the most notable change is the addition of illness language that covers mental and behavioral health. The administrative regulation also adds guidance on verification methods, bereavement durations, and excused absences for students working in the entertainment or allied industries. Staff said the revisions include parameters for students who access grief-support services or require additional safety planning.

Board members asked how makeup work would be handled when an absence is excused. Staff pointed to the board policy language stating that when an absence is excused the student’s teacher shall “determine identical or reasonably equivalent assignments and tests to those missed during the absence, which the student shall be permitted to complete for full credit within a reasonable amount of time as determined by the teacher.” The presenter said the AR provides additional operational detail and that administrators and teachers will implement the makeup-work process.

Why it matters: the change creates an explicit excused-absence category for mental and behavioral health, clarifies verification and bereavement parameters and reinforces that students with excused absences must be given opportunity to complete missed work for credit.

Next steps: this was a first reading; the board did not adopt the changes at this meeting and will consider a future second reading for adoption.