North Carolina General Statutes 115C-381. School social workers; reports; prosecutions
Terms Used In North Carolina General Statutes 115C-381
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- in writing: may be construed to include printing, engraving, lithographing, and any other mode of representing words and letters: Provided, that in all cases where a written signature is required by law, the same shall be in a proper handwriting, or in a proper mark. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
- Local school administrative unit: means a subdivision of the public school system which is governed by a local board of education. See North Carolina General Statutes 115C-5
- state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, shall be construed to extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories, so called; and the words "United States" shall be construed to include the said district and territories and all dependencies. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
- Superintendent: means the superintendent of schools of a public school system or, in his absence, the person designated to fulfill his functions. See North Carolina General Statutes 115C-5
The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall prepare such rules and procedures and furnish such blanks for teachers and other school officials as may be necessary for reporting such case of unlawful absence or lack of attendance to the school social worker of the respective local school administrative units. Such rules shall provide, among other things, for a notification in writing, to the person responsible for the nonattendance of any child, that the case is to be reported to the school social worker of the local school administrative unit unless the law is complied with immediately. Upon recommendation of the superintendent, local boards of education may employ school social workers and such school social workers shall have authority to report and verify on oath the necessary criminal warrants or other documents for the prosecutions of violations of this Part: Provided, that local school administrative units shall provide in their local operating budgets for travel and necessary office expense for such school social workers as may be employed through State or local funds, or both. The State Board of Education shall determine the process for allocating school social workers to the various local school administrative units, establish their qualifications, and develop a salary schedule which shall be applicable to such personnel: Provided, that persons now employed by local boards of education as attendance counselors shall be deemed qualified as school social workers under the terms of this Part subject to the approval of said local boards of education.
The school social worker shall investigate all violators of the provisions of this Part. The reports of unlawful absence required to be made by teachers and principals to the school social worker shall, in his hands, in case of any prosecution, constitute prima facie evidence of the violation of this Part and the burden of proof shall be upon the defendant to show the lawful attendance of the child or children upon an authorized school. (1955, c. 1372, art. 20, ss. 3, 5; 1957, c. 600; 1961, c. 186; 1963, c. 1223, ss. 8, 9; 1981, c. 423, s. 1; 1985, c. 686, s. 3.)