Black Oak Mine Unified School District Committed to Educational Excellence

The Black Oak Oak Mine Unified School District is committed to communication and to parent
engagement. Engagement requires that we all share a fundamental understanding of how
things work. In this case, that means understanding how student attendance works in the
State of California and why it is so critically important that we continue to promote student
attendance.

 

Most broadly, every student between the ages of 6 and 18 (unless graduated) are required to
attend school - public education is compulsory. All public school districts have a responsibility
to enforce compulsory school attendance laws. This is part of the reason that you receive so
many notices when your student happens to be absent.

 

Of course, schools are funded based on student attendance. Schools receive a daily rate for
every student in attendance - this funding is known as apportionment. Schools do not receive
funds for any days not in attendance, regardless of whether or not the absence is “excused” by
the parent/guardian. Student attendance is averaged over the course of a school year -
Average Daily Attendance (ADA).

 

Therefore and using simple numbers for illustration, a school district is required to offer 180
days of instruction. If the average daily attendance is only 97%, regardless of the reasons for
the absences, the district is funded on only 175 of those days. In short, it means schools are
operating 5 school days for which there is no apportionment.

 

Obviously, school districts are incentivized to increase school attendance from a financial
perspective, but district funding is not the MOST important benefit of full student attendance.

 

Most importantly, increased student attendance results in increased student achievement, the
results of which can be felt over a lifetime. Students who earn their high school diploma are
able to earn 3x more than students without a high school diploma and the pursuit of higher
education, including learning of a trade, increases that number to 7x (US Bureau of Labor
Statistics). Full school attendance is of critical value to the student, literally from a financial
perspective.

 

In clear recognition of the value of student school attendance and in appreciation of some of the
difficulties our families face, the BOMUSD created the FAST Program. The FAST Program is
specifically designed to support full student attendance by working to eliminate the barriers to
full attendance; especially, for our families with economic hardships. Our FAST Counselor,
Bridget Isham, is completely committed to student attendance by supporting families with a
huge array of resources available through our Community Resource Center.
In the State of California, schools, in part, are “graded” on their level of student attendance.
This Chronic Absenteeism “grade” is indicated on the California School Dashboard. Most
recently, Chronic Absenteeism is VERY HIGH for the BOMUSD and in this case, VERY HIGH is
not good. Chronic Absenteeism is defined as the number of students who have missed 10%, or
more, of the school year. For 180 days, this means 18, or more, absences, regardless of the
cause. Collectively, we must do a better job of promoting full attendance - it is in the best
interests of our students.

 

Again, public education is compulsory in the State of California - students are required to attend.
And, again, schools are required to make every effort to enforce attendance. In addition to the
notices we are required to send to parents, the BOMUSD participates in the Student Attendance
Review Board (SARB) process. The SARB Board is a county-level board, with representatives
from agencies throughout the county. It is the sincere hope of the BOMUSD that we do not
have to use the SARB Board to enforce student attendance. As such, the BOMUSD also
operates a local review board - the Student Attendance Review Team (SART). The BOMUSD
SART makes every effort to assist our families with whatever the resources families need for full
student attendance.

 

Without question, school districts have a financial interest in promoting student attendance and,
again, this is never the primary reason for promoting student attendance. Promoting full
attendance is ultimately for the benefit of our students and their families. Parents expect the full
benefit of the tax-payer resources committed annually to public education.

 

The BOMUSD will continue to do all we can to support our students and their families. We look
forward to continuing to partner with you in your child’s education. Please take a moment to
look through the resources we provide in support of our students and their families and please,
as you have questions about student attendance, reach out to your site administrator.