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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsParents Face Truancy, Neglect Claims for Keeping Kids at Home During COVID
Alicia Shannon, the parent of two middle schoolers in Columbus, Ohio, has been keeping her children home since the school year began. One of Shannons main concerns is a lack of vaccine mandates in schools in her state and a lack of information about the effects of long COVID, particularly in young people. While Shannon believed she was making the best choice for her childrens health by keeping them away from in-person schooling, it seemed the government disagreed. On September 30, she received a letter from the schools principal about Shannons childrens absences. Based on Ohio law, your childs absences have been defined as excessive, reads the letter, which was shared with Teen Vogue. With this in mind, the State of Ohio Truancy Law requires this letter to be sent to inform you that your child has met or exceeded these limits.
The letter has left Shannon at a loss. I feel defeated, she told Teen Vogue. This type of response from my kids' school produces more anxiety and mistrust. I can only logically conclude they are sacrificing children on the altar of the economy. Teen Vogue reached out to Columbus Public Schools for comment.
Shannon is one of many parents who have faced consequences from their childs school or their local government for keeping their children out of the classroom due to COVID-19, particularly amid the recent Omicron wave. Several parents of children in DC Public Schools (DCPS) say that the school district has taken steps to report them to Washington DCs Child and Family Services Agency for educational neglect after they opted to keep their kids home without approval. In New York City, the Department of Education has logged 207 reports of educational neglect through October 31, according to data from the Administration for Childs Services (ACS.)
According to Tajh Sutton, a member of Parents for Responsible, Equitable, and Safe Schools (PRESS) in New York City, parents are facing similar actions in cities and towns across the country when opting to keep their children out of in-person school. Around the end of October and beginning of November we saw hundreds of ACS cases being held against families for what they called educational neglect, which was really just terrified parents doing their best to keep their kids safe, Sutton told Teen Vogue.
https://www.teenvogue.com/story/truancy-parents-covid
Fullduplexxx
(7,818 posts)Ms. Toad
(33,915 posts)It is ridiculously easy to do in many places (including Ohio).
https://www.time4learning.com/homeschooling/ohio/laws-requirements.html#recordkeeping