The mission of the School Attendance Review Board (SARB) is to help students stay in school, attend school regularly and graduate. SARB is a community-based effort to bring together resources to assist families with attendance and truancy issues. The SARB level is the district's last opportunity to keep students and families out of the court system. SARB's intervention with each student begins after a completed referral packet has been received from the respective school.
A serious attendance problem often begins with a few unexcused absences. Principals, Deans, Counselors, teachers, nurses, and a school attendance review team may be brought in to help students at the school site level. When the school has exhausted all resources and a student's attendance has not improved, then a family may be referred to a SARB hearing.
The responsibilities of the School Attendance Review Board (SARB) are set forth in Education Code Sections 48321 and 48322; and Welfare and Institutions Code Sections 601, and 601.2.
SARB is a group of concerned individuals consisting of parents, school district staff and community service agency representatives who meet regularly to help resolve student attendance and behavior issues referred to them by a school administrator or parent/guardian. The intent of SARB is to improve student attendance by effectively addressing individual and family problems of minors related to attendance or behavior problems and to do so through maximum utilization of community resources.
When the efforts of SARB are not successful and the student and/or parent or guardian do not comply with the recommendations and/or directives made by the SARB, as a last resort, SARB may request legal action through the Juvenile Court and/or District Attorney's Office.
For additional information, please read our District's SARB Parent Information.
California Education Codes
48200 - Children Between Ages of 6 and 18 Years
Each person between the ages of 6 and 18 years, not otherwise exempted, is subject to compulsory full-time education.
48260 (a) - Definition of Truant
Any pupil subject to compulsory, full-time education or to compulsory continuation education who is absent from school without valid excuse three full days in one school year or tardy or absent more than any 30 minute period during the school day without a valid excuse on three occasions in one school year, or any combination thereof, is a truant and shall be reported to the attendance supervisor or to the superintendent of the school district.