KY3 report: Outside counseling visits marked "unexcused" by Lamar School District

A KY3 report examines a controversy in the Lamar R-1 School District where outside counseling appointments are being marked as "unexcused."

The school district is asking parents to schedule their students' outside counseling sessions outside of school hours, because they're interfering with education.

Lamar schools noticed an increased number of students missing out on classes like P.E., art and music.

Lamar High School Principal Jennifer Beem says, "There's 63 district wide, and most of those students attend once, some twice, per week."

Beem says in most cases, the counselors actually come and pick the students up and the school doesn't know the appointment time beforehand.  We called two counseling offices in Lamar to try and confirm the routine, but received no response.

"And they are gone for about an hour and a half," says Beem. "That's about two class periods."

The district policy is that ten or more absences per semester during one class period is reported to juvenile authorities and could result in lost credit toward graduation.  "It's just difficult to miss that classroom instruction from the teacher," says Beem.

The superintendent sent a letter to parents, explaining outside counseling absences will be unexcused.  He asked that parents schedule appointments outside the school day. 

Lamar parent Shannon Burgess says, "I feel if the child needs it, then they should be able to take their hour if they need to, out of their day.  I would rather them miss a class and get the opportunity to make up that work and then still go to their counseling."