Title 14, Education

§ 2704. Report of non-public schools to Department. (a) All persons conducting nonpublic schools shall report end of the year attendance information to the Department of Education annually, on or before the July 31, on such forms as shall be prescribed by the Department of Educat…

§ 2705. Exemption of children from compulsory attendance requirements. (a) Other provisions of this title notwithstanding, a child may be exempted from § 2702 of this title upon request of the parent, guardian or other person legally having control of that child when the request …

§ 2706. Contagious diseases. Any child affected with diphtheria, measles, scarlet fever or smallpox shall be excluded from the schools until permission of the proper school officer for the child to return is granted; and intercourse between pupils of the schools and the family or…

§ 2707. Religious holidays. (a) A pupil’s absence from school for the observance of a religious holiday is a necessary and excused absence. (b) A list of religious holidays on which a pupil’s absence shall be excused shall be created by the Secretary of Education and placed in re…

§ 2721. Definitions. In this chapter: (1) “Court” means either the Justice of the Peace Court or Family Court. (2) “Parent” means a biological or natural parent, an adoptive parent, a person legally charged with the care or custody of a person under 18 years of age, a person who …

§ 2722. Absences and truancy. (a) Subject to the rules and regulations of the local school board, pupils enrolled in the free public schools may be excused by the superintendent of schools or persons authorized by the superintendent. Pupils enrolled in charter schools may be excu…

§ 2723. Responsibility of police officers. (a) Any pupil under the age of 16 identified by a police officer as being off school property without official authorization may be returned to that pupil’s home school. (b) Any pupil under the age of 16 identified by a police officer as…

§ 2724. Notification to parents and students. At the beginning of a school year each school district or public school shall notify each student and the parent of each student of the school attendance requirements of this Code, including the procedures and penalties applicable to …

§ 2725. Absences without excuse; truancy conferences. (a) If a student has been absent from school without a valid excuse 1 or more days, the principal of the school may take such action as the principal considers appropriate. (b) If a student is truant, the principal shall sched…

§ 2726. Procedure for truancy conferences. The provisions of § 4122 of this title shall apply to truancy conferences. The principal shall determine the date, time and place of the conference and shall give all participants notice at least 1 week prior to the conference. In conduc…

§ 2727. Notice of violation and compliance. No person shall be prosecuted for violation of § 2702 of this title if that person, within 3 days from the time that the person is notified by the superintendent of schools or persons authorized by the superintendent, presents an excuse…

§ 2728. Procedure for court adjudication. (a) When the school charges a parent or a student with a violation of § 2702 of this title, the school shall file a written complaint in the court. The complaint shall be on such form(s) as the court may require. The school shall be the c…

§ 2729. Failure to send; affirmative defense; penalties. (a) If a charge is filed against a parent for a violation of § 2702 of this title, the court shall determine whether the evidence establishes beyond a reasonable doubt that the parent has violated the section. (b) In the pr…

§ 2730. Failure to attend; penalties. (a) The school may file a civil charge of truancy against the student in the Justice of the Peace Court if: (1) The student is age 12 or older; and/or (2) The Court determines that a parent who is charged with violating § 2702 of this title h…

§ 2731. Enforcement of court order. (a) The court with jurisdiction over the matter shall retain jurisdiction until all terms of the court’s order have been complied with regardless of any change in the student’s age, marital status or choice of educational source or location. (b…

§ 2732. Appeals. (a) A parent convicted within the Justice of the Peace Court of a violation of § 2702 of this title may appeal to the Court of Common Pleas in the county in which the judgment was given. The appeal shall be filed within 15 days from the date of conviction. On app…

§ 2733. Jurisdiction; venue. (a) The Justice of the Peace Court and the Family Court shall have concurrent jurisdiction of complaints filed pursuant to this subchapter. (b) All complaints under this subchapter shall be filed in a Justice of the Peace Court in the county where the…

§ 2734. Disposition and accounting of fines. The fines provided for by § 2729 of this title shall, when collected, be paid over by the officers collecting the same to the treasurer of the board of education of a reorganized school district according to the residence of the person…

§ 2735. Special procedure for expungement of truancy records. (a) At the time that a case is closed because there has been compliance with all Family Court or Justice of the Peace Court orders issued pursuant to this subchapter, the following shall be automatically expunged: (1) …

§ 2736. Payment to Woods Haven School for Girls. Repealed by 76 Del. Laws, c. 280, § 423, effective July 1, 2008.