By Travis Pokorney

Students who are truant ten days or more in a six-month period will be sent to truancy court, a policy that has been reinstated this year by RISD after being abolished for the 2015-2016 school year because of increased absences.

“Some people just need that extra nudge,” assistant principal Michael Westfall said. “This policy ensures that students are in class, getting a diploma and not goofing off.”

An absence is truant if the student is absent without parent knowledge or permission. After a student receives three truant absences, they will be issued a warning.

“I think the effectiveness of this is going to depend on the student,” teacher Christy Choat said. “Some kids will show up for fear of court, but there will always be some who ‘play hooky’, anyway.”

Junior Ted Hogan believes that bringing back this policy will decrease truancy throughout RISD.

“It’ll scare some students for sure, especially when they see their friends going to court for skipping,” Hogan said.