Attendance Requirements

It is each parent’s duty to require his or her school-aged children to attend school, monitor the students' attendance, and request a conference with school officials to discuss any attendance concerns. In HISD schools, a student must attend at least 93 percent of the days the course meets during the school year in order to receive credit for a course. Students with excessive absences will automatically be referred to the Attendance Committee at the school to determine whether credit may be awarded.

State law provides that if a student is absent from school without parental consent for any portion of the school day for three days in a four-week period or for ten or more days in a six-month period, the student and the student’s parent or legal guardian are subject to prosecution by the Harris County Justice of the Peace Courts. The student may also be referred to a juvenile court.

Principals may excuse absences for personal illness, death in the family, or other legitimate reasons. Teachers will give students an opportunity to make up work for all absences. Students and parents must use the established school process for appealing credit lost due to excessive absences.