In a Penn*Link e-mail dated November 28, 2017, Matthew S. Stem, Deputy Secretary of PDE’s Office of Elementary and Secondary Education provided clarity to help address many inquiries that arose from an earlier March 2017 Penn*Link that contained initial guidance concerning the applicability and implementation of Act 138 of 2016. The latest Penn*Link states that, although charter school employees are not authorized to exercise the “police powers” available to school district employees, including law enforcement powers for filing citations, making arrests, and inspecting places of employment, charter schools do retain certain responsibilities for ensuring that students and parents/guardians comply with compulsory attendance laws, as well as to ensure that truancy prevention and elimination efforts required by those laws are implemented. In addition, charter schools must develop an attendance policy that includes providing communication and collaboration with each student’s resident school district in line with Act 138. PDE is also providing a chart on how charter schools and school districts should collaborate to implement compulsory attendance and truancy requirements. PDE will also soon issue additional guidance relating to compulsory attendance and truancy laws via a Basic Education Circular (BEC).  Questions regarding compulsory attendance and truancy laws should be directed to Carol Kuntz, Director for the Office for Safe Schools at (717) 783-6469.