FRANKFORT, Ky. ( FOX 56 ) — Is summer over already? As families get back into their school routines there are some new laws to know.
Including a crackdown on school skippers. According to the Kentucky Department of Education, 29.8% of the state’s entire student population was considered “chronically absent” in the 2022-23 school year. Under the law created by House Bill 611 parents could face tougher penalties.
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“This is not, ‘I was out sick with the doctor’s note’ or ‘I was on an educational field trip,’ anything like that. 15 days with no excuse for missing would allow these cases to be referred to the county attorney for formal court action,” Rep. Jared Bauman (R-Louisville), the bill’s primary sponsor, said during a committee hearing on the bill.
Lawmakers also want to see test scores improve. This year’s Kids Count report showed Kentucky’s reading and math proficiency down significantly among Kentucky students, based on 2022 scores. That same year lawmakers passed Senate Bill 9 or the “Read to Succeed” Act to focus on improving literacy scores. This year a similar bill was passed to target math.