Resident tells Henrico board proposed makeup-work policy P7-08-008 would weaken attendance accountability

A Henrico County resident told the school board she opposed a proposed makeup-work policy, saying it would remove distinctions between excused and unexcused absences and reduce accountability for students.

"How can you in good conscience talk about accountability and propose that work can be made up for full regardless of whether an absence is excused or not?" Marlene Sherlock of the Fairfield district said during the public forum. She argued the proposal (identified in her remarks as policy P7-08-008) would "erase" lines that motivate attendance, create extra grading work for teachers and send the wrong message to parents and students.

Sherlock pressed the board on practical consequences: she said the policy could encourage missed class time without consequence, force teachers to extend grading windows, and fail to distinguish between students who legitimately miss class and those who cut class. She asked the board to consider the message the policy sends and to preserve accountability measures.

Under the meeting's public forum rules, board members did not respond to commenters during the session; a district staff member will follow up with speakers, the meeting host said. The board did not take action on P7-08-008 during the meeting and no formal response to Sherlock's remarks was recorded in the meeting minutes.