Maybe we should start homeschooling our five children. Although the idea of my wife getting dragged off to the slammer for a few hours for failure to write absent notes is quite intriguing. That is exactly what happened to a Pittsburgh woman who failed to write absentee notes for 3 kids after taking them on vacation.
MOUNT PLEASANT (KDKA) — A Mount Pleasant mother found herself doing time in jail because of her son’s attendance problems at school.
Jessica Heiser’s son is a student at Rumbaugh Elementary School. The school district filed a complaint with the magistrate after her son missed nine unexcused days in a single school year.
She claims at least five of those days were spent in New York visiting family for the holidays.
“My kids get sick. Every child gets sick and you can’t – you never know what’s going to happen so maybe I forgot to write an excuse, but I’m human, you know, I’m a mom and things happen,” Heiser said. “You have three kids – you can’t remember to write each excuse.”
Actually, she was jailed for her failure to pay the fine for her kids unexcused absences, but still.
I am gonna start tearing up my kids notes without telling my wife as an experiment. This could get interesting.
February 4, 2011 at 1:59 pm
I don't know what it's like there — but those vacation days would not have been excused here even if the mother had written a note.
In our district only 'documented' illness (a note from a doctor or hospital required) or death in the immediate family (requiring an obituary) can be excused.
February 4, 2011 at 2:24 pm
Wait…when did we begin paying "fines" for unexcused absences? It always comes back to money.
February 4, 2011 at 3:57 pm
Fines?!? What the frell?
My high school officially required a doctor's note that someone was ill, but they never got around to pushing it with my mom for some reason….
(home schooling is looking better and better)
February 4, 2011 at 4:13 pm
What about when the doctor doesn't want to see your kids? When my crowd came down with chicken pox, I had a lengthy phone consult with the doctor. Under NO circumstances did he want them in the office exposing others in the waiting room. If anything had gotten ugly, he would have directed me to the ER.
February 4, 2011 at 5:09 pm
Just a thought –
The schools are responsible for underaged children for part of the day. If they turn up missing and no one questions it, would they not be responsible for not alerting the police?
I'm not trying to be difficult, but this mother might have been a bit more responsible, and maybe she has a history of stretching the rules.
February 4, 2011 at 10:05 pm
Patrick, are you suggesting that you would like to see your wife in jail for sport, or because she deserves a break from you?
February 5, 2011 at 2:25 am
A fine? Wow. Homeschooling is a great option.
February 5, 2011 at 11:35 am
A fine? That's new. I can understand the school's requirement for a note when a student misses school. I think this parent was not responsible. How come the father couldn't write a note explaining the son's absence? Did they call the school on the days when their son was absent? I think there is more to this story that was not reported.
February 5, 2011 at 10:08 pm
A recusant's fee. Yikes. Freedom isn't free.
February 6, 2011 at 1:21 am
I guess I don't get it. Pardon my ignorance as I am a resident alien in your great country, but why is a resident whose taxes pay for the existence of a public institution so beholden to that institution? I know that taxes to pay for government-funded and government-controlled schools is mandatory, but are not private citizens still responsible for their children's education, and therefore their participation and attendance at educational institutions? If a parent needs to take a child out of classes for an extended period of time why isn't it their decision? What is this matter of excused and unexcused absences – doesn't the parent make that determination because they are the one responsible for their child? On what authority was the school acting when they reported the mother to the magistrate? For that matter, why is their a process for reporting parents at all? Why are parents (and taxpayers for that matter) so beholden to civil servants?
February 6, 2011 at 8:06 pm
"you have three kids…you can't remember to write each excuse"? WHAT?! Am I missing something here? A parent can't keep track of three children and that's excusable. But if a public school can't keep track of thousands of children, that's unexcusable? Rather than the same old anti-public school/anti-government knee-jerk reactions, why not let common sense prevail? Schools are required to enforce the law. If the law was being broken by the parent, that is the parent's fault, not the law's and definitely NOT the school's fault. We're quick to DEMAND TEACHER ACCOUNTABILITY and quick to excuse parents from any parental accountability. Is that really the Christ-like position that we should be taking? After all, are not the parents the first models of good citizenship?
February 7, 2011 at 5:11 am
3:06, you failed to explain to 8:21, but have amply demonstrated why parents are ntr free to educate and raise children as they see best; that is, Americans cannot decipher between citizenship and servitude.
February 7, 2011 at 2:04 pm
I sent notes/called in every day that my son was sick for a week (5 school days) with strep throat, plus additional assorted sick days. Notified the office, and every teacher individually by email IN ADVANCE of my son missing 3 days of school to see his big brother graduate from USMC boot camp. Have had at least one kid at this particular school for the last 12 years running. STILL got a letter in the mail saying "your child has missed 10 days of school so far this school year…if you miss 18 or more, you are subject to being called to court to explain his absences." It's about the $$ they miss when the kids aren't in school. There is a reason I will be homeschooling the next 3, probably thru high school.