After the death of her parents, an Indianapolis student’s attendance began to lapse — her guardians were busy, and school became a lower priority. Monarca Academy administrators talked to her guardians, and they promised she’d make it to school. But absences continued to stack up and Francisco Valdiosera, executive director of Monarca Academy, referred the case to the Department of Child and Family Services for educational neglect. The student, whom school officials did not identify, ultimately received counseling and her attendance improved. But a new state law could have students' guardians and parents prosecuted, causing them to spend more time in the courtroom than the classroom.

As of July 1, Indiana school districts must meet with parents about their student’s absences and offer services to help improve their attendance. For elementary students who are habitually truant — defined as having 10 or more unexcused absences in a school year — districts must take a more punitive approach by referring those cases to the county prosecutor under Senate Enrolled Act 282.

Parent Prosecution Becomes Mandated in Indiana

While school officials have always had the ability to seek parent prosecution for truant students, the General Assembly took the step of mandating this course of action in order to combat rising absenteeism.

“Hearing from numerous schools, there is a problem with attendance. Our great educators are saying we want to teach these kids, but if they’re not there, it’s really hard,” said Sen. Linda Rogers, R-Granger, who co-authored SEA 282. “It’s become exacerbated after COVID.”

The new law also requires schools and prosecutors to inform parents that their students’ absenteeism could have legal consequences, including parent prosecution resulting in misdemeanor charges that may carry a fine or jail time. And lawmakers may take further steps as they consider solutions this summer for older students who are absent.

Parent prosecution in the criminal justice system for absenteeism has been rare.

Reporting by the Arnolt Center for Investigative Journalism and Chalkbeat Indiana found that, before the law went into effect, prosecutors and school districts rarely turned to the criminal justice system to tackle chronic absenteeism. In Marion County, which educates over 165,000 students, only 15 referrals were made to the prosecutor’s office in 2023, and in LaGrange County, with over 7,300 students, only 23 were made.

Read the full article about parent prosecutions by Aleksandra Appleton, Annika Harshbarger, Brookelyn Lambright, Brenna Polovina, Karl Templeton and Emma Walls at Chalkbeat.