Attendance

Rachael Akins - Attendance Counselor 

Alvin Dunn - District Data Manager

Laura Smith - District Data Clerk

The Bledsoe County Board of Education firmly supports and enforces all Tennessee laws regarding compulsory school attendance. I believe that, first and foremost, this responsibility lies with the parents. Children must be trained at an early age that attending school is vital to be successful in life. This same responsibility of attendance not only applies to the lives of our children while they attend school, but will carry on in life with attendance in college and on the job. 

If your child misses school regularly or is habitually tardy, he/she may be showing early signs of truancy. Students must remember:

• It is the student's responsibility to arrive on time and attend all classes.
• It is the student's responsibility to notify teachers and staff when absent and request/complete make-up assignments. 

A student's presence in class is required to maximize the attainment of instructional goals and objectives. For students who exhibit patterns of non-attendance, interventions will be initiated. The habit of truancy is not acceptable in Bledsoe County Schools and will not be tolerated. 

PARENTS: As of July 1, 2018 the state of Tennessee initiated House Bill No. 2376, which is relative to education, specifically updates and revisions regarding school attendance, truancy, and discipline. All school systems are required by law to notify parents and guardians when their child has accumulated three unexcused absences and again at five unexcused absences and that new notices are to be sent after each successive accumulation of five unexcused absences. Any child attending public school who has five unexcused absences during a school year is considered truant and in violation of said law.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Jennifer Terry, Bledsoe County Attendance Supervisor, at 423-447-2914 or 423-447-2474 or email - jterry66@bledsoecountyschools.org.