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Florida school district halts excused absences for kids kept home over COVID-19 concerns

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Students in a Central Florida school district will no longer receive excused absences if they are kept home by parents concerned over COVID-19 cases, school officials said Wednesday.

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In a news release also posted to its Facebook page, Orange County Public Schools said the new ruling will go into effect on Monday.

“The number of cases has continued to decline, and we continue to require face masks for adults and strongly encourage them for students,” the release stated. “It is also an additional strain on our teachers as they continue to manage assignments for large numbers of absent students.”

State officials have not extended the quarantine code used to accommodate absences in the district’s attendance records, WFTV-TV reported. That means students “should be considered truant for nonattendance,” the district said.

“We simply must discontinue the provision,” district officials said.

“If a parent wishes to continue keeping their child out of school, they can still enroll in Home School Education,” the district said in its release. “You can officially enroll in Home School Education by contacting the OCPS School Choice Office.”

Officials did say, however, that parents should keep students home who are exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19.

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