Mich. Comp. Laws » Michigan Compiled Laws / Chapter 380 / Act 451 of 1976

Mich. Comp. Laws § 380.1561

Compulsory attendance at public school; enrollment dates; exceptions.

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THE REVISED SCHOOL CODE


Act 451 of 1976


380.1561 Compulsory attendance at public school; enrollment dates; exceptions.

Sec. 1561.

    (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, for a child who turned age 11 before December 1, 2009 or who entered grade 6 before 2009, the child's parent, guardian, or other person in this state having control and charge of the child shall send that child to a public school during the entire school year from the age of 6 to the child's sixteenth birthday. Except as otherwise provided in this section, for a child who turns age 11 on or after December 1, 2009 or a child who was age 11 before that date and enters grade 6 in 2009 or later, the child's parent, guardian, or other person in this state having control and charge of the child shall send the child to a public school during the entire school year from the age of 6 to the child's eighteenth birthday. The child's attendance shall be continuous and consecutive for the school year fixed by the school district in which the child is enrolled. In a school district that maintains school during the entire calendar year and in which the school year is divided into quarters, a child is not required to attend the public school more than 3 quarters in 1 calendar year, but a child shall not be absent for 2 or more consecutive quarters.

    (2) A child becoming 6 years of age before December 1 shall be enrolled on the first school day of the school year in which the child's sixth birthday occurs, and a child becoming 6 years of age on or after December 1 shall be enrolled on the first school day of the school year following the school year in which the child's sixth birthday occurs.

    (3) A child is not required to attend a public school in any of the following cases:

    (a) The child is attending regularly and is being taught in a state approved nonpublic school, which teaches subjects comparable to those taught in the public schools to children of corresponding age and grade, as determined by the course of study for the public schools of the district within which the nonpublic school is located.

    (b) The child is less than 9 years of age and does not reside within 2-1/2 miles by the nearest traveled road of a public school. If transportation is furnished for pupils in the school district of the child's residence, this subdivision does not apply.

    (c) The child is age 12 or 13 and is in attendance at confirmation classes conducted for a period of 5 months or less.

    (d) The child is regularly enrolled in a public school while in attendance at religious instruction classes for not more than 2 class hours per week, off public school property during public school hours, upon written request of the parent, guardian, or person in loco parentis.

    (e) The child has graduated from high school or has fulfilled all requirements for high school graduation.

    (f) The child is being educated at the child's home by his or her parent or legal guardian in an organized educational program in the subject areas of reading, spelling, mathematics, science, history, civics, literature, writing, and English grammar.

    (4) For a child being educated at the child's home by his or her parent or legal guardian, exemption from the requirement to attend public school may exist under either subsection (3)(a) or (3)(f), or both.

    (5) For a child who turns age 11 on or after December 1, 2009 or who was age 11 before that date and enters grade 6 in 2009 or later, this section does not apply to the child if the child is at least age 16 and the child's parent or legal guardian has provided to school officials of the school district in which the child resides a written notice that the child has the permission of the parent or legal guardian to stop attending school.

History: 1976, Act 451, Imd. Eff. Jan. 13, 1977 ;-- Am. 1995, Act 289, Eff. July 1, 1996 ;-- Am. 1996, Act 339, Eff. July 1, 1996 ;-- Am. 2009, Act 204, Imd. Eff. Jan. 4, 2010 ;-- Am. 2016, Act 532, Eff. Apr. 9, 2017

Constitutionality Notes:

    Shared time instruction of sectarian, nonpublic school students in and of itself is not violative of the Establishment Clause of the United States Constitution even where benefits to religion appear substantial; it is only where it is clear that the program was motivated wholly by religious considerations that a conflict with the clause would exist. Snyder v Charlotte Schools, 421 Mich 517; 365 NW2d 151 (1984).

    Shared time instruction clearly is not intended to benefit one or all religions; rather, the purpose is secular: to provide educational opportunities at public schools for all resident school-age children whether they attend public or religious or secular nonpublic schools. Snyder v Charlotte Schools, 421 Mich 517; 365 NW2d 151 (1984).

PopularName Notes:

Act 451

AdminRule Notes:

    R 340.71 et seq. of the Michigan Administrative Code.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 28 cases (2 in the last 5 years), 1979–2024 · leading case: Clonlara, Inc v. State Board of Education
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Clonlara, Inc v. State Board of Education (1993) mich · cites it 8× “[2] School Code; MCL 380.1561 et seq.; MSA 15.41561 et seq.”
Sheridan Road Baptist Church v. Department of Education (1986) mich · cites it 10× “The Court of Appeals reversed the trial court's decision and upheld each provision of the act as applied.”
Lansing Schools Education Ass'n v. Lansing Board of Education (2010) mich · cites it 2× “Further, the foregoing discussion shows that plaintiffs could not satisfy any meaningful standing test.”
People v. DeJonge (1993) mich · cites it 6× “Because the DeJonges taught their children at home without the aid of certified teachers, the Ottawa Area Intermediate School District charged them with violating the compulsory education law, as codified in the School Code, MCL 380.1561(1), (3); MSA 15.41561(1), (3).”
Snyder v. Charlotte Public School District (1985) mich · cites it 6× “* * * "(3) A child shall not be required to attend the public schools in the following cases: *528 "(a) A child who is attending regularly and is being taught in a state approved nonpublic school, which teaches subjects comparable to those taught in the public schools to…”
People v. Bennett (1993) mich · cites it 8× “41532[1]); (2) the home curriculum must be comparable to that offered by the local public school, and the parents must obtain a statement to this effect from the local superintendent who must also keep a copy on file in his office (MCL 380.1561[3][a]; MSA 15.41561[3][a]); (3)…”
People v. Woolfolk (2014) michctapp “” MCL 380.1561(1). The code also considers a child “aged 7 to his or her .”
Gary B. v. Snyder (2018) mied · cites it 4× “Mich. Comp. Laws § 380.1561 . If access to literacy is a fundamental right, Defendants would be liable for depriving Plaintiffs of it.”
Hanson v. Cushman (1980) miwd · cites it 4× “Plaintiffs, Lowell and Carol Hanson, seek a declaratory judgment declaring the Michigan Compulsory Attendance Law, Mich. Comp.Laws § 380.1561, 1 unconstitutional as applied, “in that it denies parents the right to educate their children in their own home where the parents can…”
Doe v. Department of Corrections (2015) michctapp · cites it 2× “16 See MCL 380.1561, outlining compulsory school attendance as well as certain exceptions.”
King v. City of Eastpointe (2003) ca6 “See Mich. Comp. Laws § 380.1561 ("[E]very parent, guardian, or other person in this state having control and charge of a child from the age of 6 to the child's sixteenth birthday shall send that child to a public school during the entire school year.”
Clonlara, Inc. v. Runkel (1989) mied · cites it 3× “If an attendance officer investigates the non-attendance of a child and determines that no exemptions under § 380.1561 apply, the officer sends a notice to the parents requiring the child to appear at an appropriate school, public or non-public.”
Show all 28 citing cases →
— Mich. Comp. Laws § 380.1561(1) — 7 cases
People v. DeJonge (1993) mich “Because the DeJonges taught their children at home without the aid of certified teachers, the Ottawa Area Intermediate School District charged them with violating the compulsory education law, as codified in the School Code, MCL 380.1561(1), (3); MSA 15.41561(1), (3).”
People v. Woolfolk (2014) michctapp “” MCL 380.1561(1). The code also considers a child “aged 7 to his or her .”
People v. Woolfolk (2014) mich
People v. Bennett (1993) mich “41532[1]); (2) the home curriculum must be comparable to that offered by the local public school, and the parents must obtain a statement to this effect from the local superintendent who must also keep a copy on file in his office (MCL 380.1561[3][a]; MSA 15.41561[3][a]); (3)…”
Clonlara, Inc. v. Runkel (1989) mied “If an attendance officer investigates the non-attendance of a child and determines that no exemptions under § 380.1561 apply, the officer sends a notice to the parents requiring the child to appear at an appropriate school, public or non-public.”
— Mich. Comp. Laws § 380.1561(2) — 1 case
People v. DeJonge (1991) michctapp
— Mich. Comp. Laws § 380.1561(3) — 2 cases
People v. DeJonge (1993) mich “Because the DeJonges taught their children at home without the aid of certified teachers, the Ottawa Area Intermediate School District charged them with violating the compulsory education law, as codified in the School Code, MCL 380.1561(1), (3); MSA 15.41561(1), (3).”
Clonlara, Inc v. State Board of Education (1991) michctapp
— Mich. Comp. Laws § 380.1561(3)(a) — 7 cases
Sheridan Road Baptist Church v. Department of Education (1986) mich “The Court of Appeals reversed the trial court's decision and upheld each provision of the act as applied.”
Clonlara, Inc v. State Board of Education (1993) mich “[2] School Code; MCL 380.1561 et seq.; MSA 15.41561 et seq.”
People v. Bennett (1993) mich “41532[1]); (2) the home curriculum must be comparable to that offered by the local public school, and the parents must obtain a statement to this effect from the local superintendent who must also keep a copy on file in his office (MCL 380.1561[3][a]; MSA 15.41561[3][a]); (3)…”
Snyder v. Charlotte Public School District (1985) mich “* * * "(3) A child shall not be required to attend the public schools in the following cases: *528 "(a) A child who is attending regularly and is being taught in a state approved nonpublic school, which teaches subjects comparable to those taught in the public schools to…”
Sheridan Road Baptist Church v. Department of Education (1984) michctapp
— Mich. Comp. Laws § 380.1561(3)(e) — 1 case
Snyder v. Charlotte Public School District (1985) mich “* * * "(3) A child shall not be required to attend the public schools in the following cases: *528 "(a) A child who is attending regularly and is being taught in a state approved nonpublic school, which teaches subjects comparable to those taught in the public schools to…”
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