                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

COMPULSORY ATTENDANCE REQUIRED; EXCUSES AND WAIVERS; ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION
PROGRAM ATTENDANCE; EXEMPTIONS FROM ARTICLE (§ 22.1-254)

A. As used in this subsection, &#8220;attend&#8221; includes participation in
educational programs and courses at a site remote from the school with the
permission of the school and in conformity with applicable requirements.
			Except as otherwise provided in this article, every parent, guardian, or
other person in the Commonwealth having control or charge of any child who will
have reached the fifth birthday on or before September 30 of any school year and
who has not passed the eighteenth birthday shall, during the period of each year
the public schools are in session and for the same number of days and hours per
day as the public schools, cause such child to attend a public school or a
private, denominational, or parochial school or have such child taught by a
tutor or teacher of qualifications prescribed by the Board and approved by the
division superintendent, or provide for home instruction of such child as
described in &#xA7; 22.1-254.1.
			As prescribed in the regulations of the Board, the requirements of this
section may also be satisfied by causing a child to attend an alternative
program of study or work/study offered by a public, private, denominational, or
parochial school or by a public or private degree-granting institution of higher
education. Further, in the case of any five-year-old child who is subject to the
provisions of this subsection, the requirements of this section may be
alternatively satisfied by causing the child to attend any public educational
pre-kindergarten program, including a Head Start program, or in a private,
denominational, or parochial educational pre-kindergarten program.
			Instruction in the home of a child or children by the parent, guardian, or
other person having control or charge of such child or children shall not be
classified or defined as a private, denominational or parochial school.
			The requirements of this section shall apply to (i) any child in the custody
of the Department of Juvenile Justice or the Department of Corrections who has
not passed his eighteenth birthday and (ii) any child whom the division
superintendent has required to take a special program of prevention,
intervention, or remediation as provided in subsection C of &#xA7; 22.1-253.13:1
and in &#xA7; 22.1-254.01. The requirements of this section shall not apply to
(a) any person 16 through 18 years of age who is housed in an adult correctional
facility when such person is actively pursuing the achievement of a passing
score on a high school equivalency examination approved by the Board but is not
enrolled in an individual student alternative education plan pursuant to
subsection E, and (b) any child who has obtained a high school diploma or its
equivalent, a certificate of completion, or has achieved a passing score on a
high school equivalency examination approved by the Board, or who has otherwise
complied with compulsory school attendance requirements as set forth in this
article.

B. A school board shall excuse from attendance at school:

   1. Any pupil who, together with his parents, by reason of bona fide religious
   training or belief is conscientiously opposed to attendance at school. For
   purposes of this subdivision, &#8220;bona fide religious training or
   belief&#8221; does not include essentially political, sociological or
   philosophical views or a merely personal moral code; and

   2. On the recommendation of the juvenile and domestic relations district court
   of the county or city in which the pupil resides and for such period of time
   as the court deems appropriate, any pupil who, together with his parents, is
   opposed to attendance at a school by reason of concern for such pupil&#8217;s
   health, as verified by competent medical evidence, or by reason of such
   pupil&#8217;s reasonable apprehension for personal safety when such concern or
   apprehension in that pupil&#8217;s specific case is determined by the court,
   upon consideration of the recommendation of the principal and division
   superintendent, to be justified.

C. Each local school board shall develop policies for excusing students who are
absent by reason of observance of a religious holiday. Such policies shall
ensure that a student shall not be deprived of any award or of eligibility or
opportunity to compete for any award, or of the right to take an alternate test
or examination, for any which he missed by reason of such absence, if the
absence is verified in a manner acceptable to the school board.

D. A school board may excuse from attendance at school:

   1. On recommendation of the principal and the division superintendent and with
   the written consent of the parent or guardian, any pupil who the school board
   determines, in accordance with regulations of the Board, cannot benefit from
   education at such school; or

   2. On recommendation of the juvenile and domestic relations district court of
   the county or city in which the pupil resides, any pupil who, in the judgment
   of such court, cannot benefit from education at such school.

E. Local school boards may allow the requirements of subsection A to be met
under the following conditions:
			For a student who is at least 16 years of age, there shall be a meeting of
the student, the student&#8217;s parents, and the principal or his designee of
the school in which the student is enrolled in which an individual student
alternative education plan shall be developed in conformity with guidelines
prescribed by the Board, which plan must include:

   1. Career guidance counseling;

   2. Mandatory enrollment and attendance in a preparatory program for passing a
   high school equivalency examination approved by the Board or other alternative
   education program approved by the local school board with attendance
   requirements that provide for reporting of student attendance by the chief
   administrator of such preparatory program or approved alternative education
   program to such principal or his designee;

   3. Mandatory enrollment in a program to earn a Board-approved career and
   technical education credential, such as the successful completion of an
   industry certification, a state licensure examination, a national occupational
   competency assessment, the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, or the
   Virginia workplace readiness skills assessment;

   4. Successful completion of the course in economics and personal finance
   required to earn a Board-approved high school diploma;

   5. Counseling on the economic impact of failing to complete high school; and

   6. Procedures for reenrollment to comply with the requirements of subsection
   A.
   				A student for whom an individual student alternative education plan has
   been granted pursuant to this subsection and who fails to comply with the
   conditions of such plan shall be in violation of the compulsory school
   attendance law, and the division superintendent or attendance officer of the
   school division in which such student was last enrolled shall seek immediate
   compliance with the compulsory school attendance law as set forth in this
   article.
   				Students enrolled with an individual student alternative education plan
   shall be counted in the average daily membership of the school division.

F. A school board may, in accordance with the procedures set forth in Article 3
(&#xA7; 22.1-276.01 et seq.) of Chapter 14 and upon a finding that a school-age
child has been (i) charged with an offense relating to the Commonwealth&#8217;s
laws, or with a violation of school board policies, on weapons, alcohol or
drugs, or intentional injury to another person; (ii) found guilty or not
innocent of a crime that resulted in or could have resulted in injury to others,
or of an offense that is required to be disclosed to the superintendent of the
school division pursuant to subsection G of &#xA7; 16.1-260; (iii) suspended
pursuant to &#xA7; 22.1-277.05; or (iv) expelled from school attendance pursuant
to &#xA7; 22.1-277.06 or 22.1-277.07 or subsection C of &#xA7; 22.1-277, require
the child to attend an alternative education program as provided in &#xA7;
22.1-209.1:2 or 22.1-277.2:1.

G. Whenever a court orders any pupil into an alternative education program,
including a program preparing students for a high school equivalency examination
approved by the Board, offered in the public schools, the local school board of
the school division in which the program is offered shall determine the
appropriate alternative education placement of the pupil, regardless of whether
the pupil attends the public schools it supervises or resides within its school
division.
			The juvenile and domestic relations district court of the county or city in
which a pupil resides or in which charges are pending against a pupil, or any
court in which charges are pending against a pupil, may require the pupil who
has been charged with (i) a crime that resulted in or could have resulted in
injury to others, (ii) a violation of Article 1 (&#xA7; 18.2-77 et seq.) of
Chapter 5 of Title 18.2, or (iii) any offense related to possession or
distribution of any Schedule I, II, or III controlled substances to attend an
alternative education program, including, but not limited to, night school,
adult education, or any other education program designed to offer instruction to
students for whom the regular program of instruction may be inappropriate.
			This subsection shall not be construed to limit the authority of school
boards to expel, suspend, or exclude students, as provided in &#xA7;&#xA7;
22.1-277.04, 22.1-277.05, 22.1-277.06, 22.1-277.07, and 22.1-277.2. As used in
this subsection, the term &#8220;charged&#8221; means that a petition or warrant
has been filed or is pending against a pupil.

H. Within one calendar month of the opening of school, each school board shall
send to the parents or guardian of each student enrolled in the division a copy
of the compulsory school attendance law and the enforcement procedures and
policies established by the school board.

I. The provisions of this article shall not apply to:

   1. Children suffering from contagious or infectious diseases while suffering
   from such diseases;

   2. Children whose immunizations against communicable diseases have not been
   completed as provided in &#xA7; 22.1-271.2;

   3. Children under 10 years of age who live more than two miles from a public
   school unless public transportation is provided within one mile of the place
   where such children live;

   4. Children between the ages of 10 and 17, inclusive, who live more than 2.5
   miles from a public school unless public transportation is provided within 1.5
   miles of the place where such children live; and

   5. Children excused pursuant to subsections B and D.
   				Further, any child who will not have reached his sixth birthday on or
   before September 30 of each school year whose parent or guardian notifies the
   appropriate school board that he does not wish the child to attend school
   until the following year because the child, in the opinion of the parent or
   guardian, is not mentally, physically, or emotionally prepared to attend
   school, may delay the child&#8217;s attendance for one year.
   				The distances specified in subdivisions 3 and 4 shall be measured or
   determined from the child&#8217;s residence to the entrance to the school
   grounds or to the school bus stop nearest the entrance to the residence of
   such children by the nearest practical routes which are usable for walking or
   riding. Disease shall be established by the certificate of a reputable
   practicing physician in accordance with regulations adopted by the Board.

J. Subject to guidelines established by the Department, any student who is
absent from school due to his mental or behavioral health shall be granted an
excused absence.

K. Subject to guidelines established by the Department, each school board (i)
shall permit one school day-long excused absence per school year for any middle
school or high school student in the local school division who is absent from
school to engage in a civic event and (ii) may permit additional excused
absences for such students who are absent for such purpose. Local school boards
may require that the student provide advance notice of the intended absence and
require that the student provide documentation of participation in a civic
event.

L. Subject to guidelines established by the Department, any student who is a
member of a state-recognized or federally recognized tribal nation that is
headquartered in the Commonwealth and who is absent from school to attend such
tribal nation&#8217;s pow wow gathering shall be granted one excused absence per
academic year, provided that the parent of such student provides to the
student&#8217;s school advance notice of such absence in the manner required by
the school.

HISTORY: Code 1950, § 22-275.1; 1952, c. 279; 1959, Ex. Sess., c. 72; 1968, c.
178; 1974, c. 199; 1976, cc. 681, 713; 1978, c. 518; 1980, c. 559; 1984, c. 436;
1989, c. 515; 1990, c. 797; 1991, c. 295; 1993, c. 903; 1996, cc. 163, 916, 964;
1997, c. 828; 1999, cc. 488, 552; 2000, c. 184; 2001, cc. 688, 820; 2003, c.
119; 2004, c. 251; 2006, c. 335; 2010, c. 605; 2012, cc. 454, 642; 2014, c. 84;
2017, c. 330; 2018, cc. 486, 585; 2020, c. 869; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 104, 105;
2022, c. 233.