Roanoke Rapids herald. [volume] (Roanoke Rapids, N.C.) 1914-192?, 1919-08-15
Compulsory Attendance Law

CHILDREN BETWEEN CERTAIN
AGES AND TO REGULATE AND
RESTRICT THE EMPLOYMENT
OF CHILDREN AND TO PROVIDE
FOR THE ENFORCEMENT OF
THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT
AND OF CHAPTER SO. PUBLIC
LAWS OF 1913, AND CHAPTER
867, PUBLIC LAWS OF 1909.
The General Assembly Of North Caro-
lima do enact:
Section |. Every parent, guardian
or other person in the State Of North
Carolina having. charge or control of a
child between tne ages Of eight and
fourteen years shall cause such child to
attend school continuously for period
equal to the time which the public
school in the district in which the child
resides shall be in session. The princi-
pal, superintendent, or teacher who is
in charge of such school shall have the
right to excuse the child from temper
ary attendance on account of sickness
or distance of residence from the
school, or other unavoidable cause
which does not constitute truancy as de-
fined by the State Board of Education.
Sec. 2. Any parent, guardian, or
other person referred to in section one
of this act, violating the provisions Of
the aforesaid section, shall be guilty Of
q misdemeanor, and upon conviction
shall be liable to fine Of not less than
five dollars 1857 nor more than twenty
five dollars (S25) and upon failure or re-
fussl to pay such fine the said parent,
guardian, or other person shall be i'm
prisoned not exceeding thirty days in
the county jail.
Sec. "a. II shall be the duty of the
State Board of Education to formulate
such rules and regulations as may be
necessary for the proper enforcement
of the provisions of this act. Said
board shall prescribe what shall consti-
tute truancy, what causes may consti-
tute legitimate excuse for temporary
nonattendance due to physical or men,
tai inability to attend and under what
circumstances teachers, principals, or
superintendents may excuse pupils for
nonattendance due to immediate de-
mands of the farm or the home in GER
tain seasons of the year in the several
sections of the State. 1t shall be the
duty of all school officials to carry out
such instructions from the State Board
of Education, and any school official
failing to carry out such instructions
shall be guilty of q misdemeanor: Pro-
vided, that section one of this act shall
not be in force in any city or county
that has q higher compulsory attend
shce law now in force than that prOvid-
ed herein; but in any such case it shall
be the duty of the State Board of Edu-
cation to investigate the same and de-
eide that any such law now in force has
q higher compulsory attendance feature
than that provided by this act: Pro-
vided, that wherever any district is
without edequate building or buildings
for the proper enforcement of this act
the county boards of education may be
allowed not more than two years from
July the first, one thousand nine hun
dred and nineteen, to make full and
ample provisions in every district.
Sec. 3. The county superintendent
of public welfare or chief school attend
ance officer or truant officer provided
for by law shall investigate and prose-
cute all violations of the provisions of
section one of this act
Sec. 4. The State Superintendent of
Public Instruction shall prepare such
rules of procedure and furnish such
blanks for teachers and other school Of
fcials as may be necessary for report
ing each case of truancy or lack of at
tendance to the chief attendance officer
referred to in section three hereof.
Such rules shall provide, among other
things, for notification in writing to
the person responsible for the nonat
tendance of any child, that the case is
to be reported to the chief attendance
officer of the county unless the law is
Immediately complied with. County
boards Of education and governing
bodies of city schools shall have the
right to appoint town or district attend
ance officers when deemed by them
necessary, to assist in carrying out the
provisions Of sections one. two, three,
and four Of this act. and the rules and
instructions which may be promulgated
by the State Superintendent Of Public
Instruction. But in every case in which
II becomes necessary to prosecute for
n0nattendance the case shall be refer
red to the chief attendance officer of
the county for further action: Provided,
that in towns or cities having special
attendance officers paid out Of town or
city funds said officers shall have full
authority to prosecute for violations of
this act.
Sec. s. No child under the age of
fourteen years shall be employed, or
permitted to work, in or about or
connection with any mill, factory, can
merry, workshop, manufacturing estab-
lishment, laundry, bakery, mercantile
establishment, office, hotel, restaurant,
barber shop, bootblack stand, public
stable, garage. place of amusement,
brick yard, lumber yard, or any mes
senger or delivery service, except in
cases and under regulations prescribed
by the commission hereinafter created:
Provided, the employment in this Sec
tion enumerated shall not be construed
to include bona fide boys and girls can
ming clubs recognized by the Agricultu-
raj Department of this State; and such
canning clubs are hereby expressly ex-
smpted from the provisions of this act.
Sec. ga. 1t shall be the duty of the
county boads of education of each county
in the State of North Carolina to cause
this act to be published in full in some
newspaper published in the county if
there be one. and if there be none, then
in circular form and distributed over
the county at least four weeks prior to
the opening of the schools atoer the first
dey Of July, one thousand nine hundred
and nineteen. adv.