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Pittsburgh SD revises attendance policy; habitually truant students blocked from transferring to private cyber charters without court order
Summary
The board adopted policy language aligning with a November 2025 school-code change: three unexcused days triggers parent notice, six or more defines 'habitually truent,' and effective Jan. 2026 habitually truant students may not transfer to private cyber charter schools unless a judge approves.
Pittsburgh SD clarified how it will enforce compulsory-attendance and transfer rules after a recent change to the school code. The district’s presenter said a student is considered truant after three unexcused school days and that the district must notify the parent or person in parental relation within 10 days of the third unexcused absence, in the person’s preferred language where possible.
The updated policy defines "habitually truent" as a student who has missed six or more school days with unexcused absences. Presenter Miss Satler said, "Effective January 2026 under Act 47 of 2025, a student who is habitually truent is prohibited from transferring to a cyber charter school unless a judge determines that it is in the student's best interest." She added the change does not prohibit transfer to the district's own cyber program but would bar transfers to private cyber programs absent a court order.
The policy requires the notice to include resources to help the student return to compliant attendance and opportunities for academic recovery. Board members clarified operational details: the notice window is up to 10 days after the third unexcused absence (to accommodate nonconsecutive absences across a school year), and the staff member responsible for sending the notice will usually be the school attendance officer or the staff person who handles attendance at that building.
Some board members raised concerns about extending benefits to families who opt out of the public system. Director Diod said she "struggle[s] with the first part of that policy that allows families who choose to not participate in the public school system to benefit from the resources and extracurriculars of the public system," a point the board discussed but did not resolve into a policy change during the workshop.
Next steps: the presenter said the policy language will be finalized for public posting with consistent terms (for example, replacing "person in parental relation" with "parent/guardian" where appropriate) and that the attendance changes take effect in January 2026 under the cited state act.
