2020-21 Student Attendance Accounting Handbook

1 2020 2021 Student Attendance Accounting Handbook Texas Education Agency August 2020 Page 2 2020 2021 State Board of Education KEVEN ELLIS Chair Lufkin District 9 GEORGINA C. P REZ Secretary El Paso District 1 RUBEN CORTEZ, JR . Brownsville District 2 MARISA B. PEREZ-DIAZ Converse District 3 LAWRENCE A. ALLEN, JR. Houston District 4 KEN MERCER San Antonio District 5 DONNA BAHORICH Houston District 6 MATT ROBINSON Friendswood District 7 BARBARA CARGILL Conroe District 8 TOM MAYNARD Florence District 10 PATRICIA HARDY Fort Worth District 11 PAM LITTLE Fairview District 12 AICHA DAVIS Dallas District 13 SUE MELTON-MALONE Waco District 14 MARTY ROWLEY Vice Chair Amarillo District 15 Page 3 2020 2021 Foreword All public school districts and open-enrollment charter schools in Texas are required to submit Student Attendance data

2 Through the Texas Student Data System Public Education Information Management System (TSDS PEIMS). The Student Attendance Accounting Handbook ( Handbook ) supports that requirement and establishes related Student Attendance Accounting requirements. The Handbook : describes the Foundation School Program (FSP) eligibility requirements of all students, prescribes the minimum standards for all Attendance Accounting systems, lists the documentation requirements for Attendance audit purposes, and details the responsibilities of all district and charter school personnel involved in Student Attendance Accounting .

3 The Handbook is for all Texas school district and charter school personnel involved in the Student Attendance Accounting process. No school district or charter school official (or any other person in your district or charter school) has the authority, either implied or actual, to change or alter any rules, regulations, or reporting requirements specified in this Handbook . Mike Morath Commissioner of Education Page 4 2020 2021 Acknowledgments The following were involved in the development of this publication. David Marx Director, Financial Compliance Yolanda Walker Manager, Financial Compliance Texas Education Agency Staff members from the following divisions.

4 Charter Schools College, Career and Military Preparation Curriculum Financial Compliance Early Childhood Education Early College Education Governance & Investigations Informational Technology Services Instructional Resources & State programs Legal Services Research and Analysis Special Education programs Special Operations Special Populations Standards and Support Services State Funding Page 5 2020 2021 Page 6 2020 2021 Texas Education Agency 2020 2021 Student Attendance Accounting Handbook Contents SECTION 1 OVERVIEW .. 17 Student Attendance and FSP Funding.

5 18 Taking and Recording Student Attendance .. 19 Reporting of Attendance Information t o TEA .. 19 Storage of Attendance Information .. 19 Auditing of A ttendance Information .. 20 How to Use This Handbook .. 20 Significant 21 SECTION 2 AUDIT REQUIREMENTS .. 23 General Audit Requirements .. 23 Accounting System Requirements .. 24 Paper-Based Attendance Accounting Systems vs. Automated Attendance Accounting Systems .. 24 Automated Attendance Accounting Systems .. 25 Paperless Attendance Accounting Systems .. 25 Disaster Recovery.

6 26 Attendance System Procedures Manual .. 26 Required Documentation .. 26 Student Detail Reports .. 27 Campus Summary Reports .. 29 District Summary Reports .. 30 Reconciliation of Teacher s Roster Information and Attendance Accounting Records .. 31 Additional Required Documentation .. 31 SECTION 3 GENERAL Attendance REQUIREMENTS .. 33 Responsibility .. 33 Membership and Eligibility for Attendance and Foundation School Program (FSP) Funding .. 34 Page 7 2020 2021 ADA Eligibility Coding .. 34 Funding Eligibility.

7 37 Age Eligibility .. 40 Dual Credit (High School and College or University) .. 43 Enrollment Procedures and Requirements .. 43 Residency .. 43 District Responsibility to Secure Student Records .. 44 Documentation of Identity and Age .. 45 Failure to Receive Student Records and Discrepancies in Student Names .. 46 Entry and Reentry Dates .. 46 Student Entitlement to Attend School in a Particular District .. 46 Homeless Students .. 49 Immunization .. 49 Infants and Toddlers with Auditory or Visual Impairments or Both.

8 50 Students Who Have Earned a Texas Certificate of High School Equivalency (TxCHSE) or Have Been Court Ordered to Obtain a TxCHSE .. 50 Withdrawal Procedures .. 50 Students 19 Years of Age or Older .. 50 Temporary Absences and Withdrawal .. 51 Students Whose Whereabouts Are Unknown .. 51 Information and Record Transfer .. 51 Students 21 Years of Age or Older and Placement in a Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP) or JJAEP .. 52 Compulsory Attendance .. 52 General Attendance -Taking Rules .. 53 Manual Entries for or Corrections to Student Attendance Data.

9 54 Time of Day for Attendance Taking .. 54 Requirements for a Student to Be Considered Present for FSP (Funding) Purposes .. 56 Excused Absences for Compulsory Attendance Purposes .. 61 Instruction Provided Outside of the Regular School Day .. 62 Attendance Accounting during Testing Days .. 62 Attendance and Students Who Are Not in Membership or Are Served outside the Home District .. 62 63 Effective Dates for Program Changes .. 63 Students Attending Nonresidential Treatment Facilities .. 63 General Education Homebound (GEH) Program.

10 64 GEH Policy Requirements .. 64 GEH Committee .. 64 GEH Funding Chart .. 65 Test Administration and GEH .. 66 Transition from GEH to the Classroom .. 66 Transitioning Students with Chronic Illness between Homebound and the Classroom .. 67 Students with a Recurring Chronic or Acute Health Condition .. 67 Calendar .. 68 Makeup Days and 71 Closures for Bad Weather or Other Issues of Health or 73 Summer School and State Funding .. 78 Page 8 2020 2021 Data Submission .. 80 Quality Control .. 81 Examples.