Good attendance fosters responsibility; therefore, it is essential for the success of an instructional program that enables students to achieve and reach their full potential. Children ages seven through eighteen, unless the child graduates from high school prior to his/her eighteenth birthday, are required by law to attend school with few exceptions. Students of any age who legally enroll in the Lafayette Parish School System are subject to all federal, state, and parish policies and laws regarding attendance.

A student is considered to be in attendance when he/she is physically present at a school site or is participating in an authorized school activity and is under the supervision of authorized personnel.

Elementary and middle school students may miss no more than fourteen days per year in order to be eligible to receive credit. In middle school, minimum attendance requirements shall be applied to every course in which the student is enrolled. Due to block scheduling, high school students can miss no more than four days in a scheduled A/B semester course or seven days in a scheduled A/B full year course (as per LPSS Policy File: JBD).

The parent or legal guardian of a student shall enforce the attendance of the student at the school to which the student is assigned or will be held accountable in a court of law. A student shall be considered habitually absent or habitually tardy after the fifth unexcused absence or fifth unexcused check-in or out within any school semester.