| Of cautionary notes from the school about overdue homework, absences, and tardies. |
| Returning on time is crucial, because a late return can be considered a tardy, and too many tardies can blotch an employment record. |
| A new report found that 1 million elementary school students were truant — defined as having three or more unexcused absences or tardies — in California last year. |
| By the time these students get to secondary school, they are at risk for dropping out of the educational system and usually has a history of suspensions, fighting, excessive absences and tardies. |
| About 1 million elementary school students in the state were truant — defined in California as three or more unexcused absences or tardies — during the 2012-13 school year. |
| Between the 2003-04 and 2004-05 school years, tardies dropped from 45,008 to 18,289, a 59 percent decrease. |
