Fact Sheet: Truancy

This resource is a general guide for people with disabilities and their families, not legal advice. For legal advice on your or your child's specific situation, please talk with a lawyer.

Introduction

Wisconsin law says students must be educated between the ages of 6 and 18. Parents and guardians are responsible for making sure their children are either home-schooled or that they go to school during regular hours. (Wisconsin Statute Section 118.15). 

At its simplest, “truancy” means unexcused absence from school. Wisconsin’s definition of truancy is when a student is absent for part or all of a school day without an acceptable excuse from a parent or guardian. Habitual truancy is when at least five of the unexcused absences happen in a semester. (Wisconsin Statute Section 118.16). 

Each school district gets to define how much of a school day counts as “part,” so it can be helpful to ask for the district’s truancy policy.

Once a student is habitually truant, the school attendance officer may file truancy proceedings with the local court. Note that “may” is different than “must” – the district gets to decide when and whether to file.

Before a school can refer a student to court, the school must do all the following:

• Tell the parent or guardian when the student's unexcused absences reach the definition of habitual truancy. (The school must list the possible penalties in this notice. The fact that the penalties are listed is not an indication of whether a court referral will actually happen.)

• Meet with the student’s parent or guardian to discuss the student’s truancy or have tried to meet with the student’s parent or guardian and gotten no response or were refused.

• Give the student an opportunity for educational counseling to determine whether changing the student’s curriculum would fix the student’s truancy, and consider changing the curriculum.

• Evaluate the student to determine whether learning problems may be causing the truancy and, if so, take steps to overcome the learning problems. (Evaluation is not necessary if tests done within the last year show the student is performing at grade level.)

• Do an evaluation to determine whether social problems may be causing the truancy and, if so, take appropriate action or make appropriate referrals.

Resources from the Department of Public Instruction

• Answers to Frequently Asked Compulsory School Attendance Questions (Updated 2020). Outlines the rights and responsibilities related to attendance in Wisconsin schools, and what Wisconsin law says about required school attendance and truancy-related enforcement.

• Best Practice Approaches to Truancy Reduction: Information for School Attendance Officers. An issue-brief with a best-practice problem-solving approach to truancy “that diverts youth from the youth justice system and addresses any underlying school and family-system needs contributing to truancy.”

• Frequently Asked Questions: When Mental Health Challenges Contribute to Absences. Information for schools about situations when mental health challenges affect attendance. Gives useful language about the goals of the youth justice and child protection systems, and the importance of considering whether the student’s needs align with involving these systems.

• Non-attending Minor Students and Attendance Process FAQ. Focuses on what steps schools should take in specific attendance-related situations. Key quote: “For students with a disability, attendance concerns should be addressed through the IEP process.”

• Guidelines for Termination of Open Enrollment Due to Habitual Truancy. Habitual truancy is one reason that a non-resident school may end open enrollment for a student for the next semester or year, whether or not they have a disability or not. This 2019 information bulletin gives guidelines DPI will consider if a parent appeals a school district ending their child’s open enrollment for this reason.