Tennessee School Demands 37 Doctor Notes, Gym Teacher Issues Absentee Ruling

Tennessee school, battling a wild surge in 37 doctor notes for chronic absenteeism, now enlists gym teachers as medical detectives. “Can a school demand so many notes?” and “What counts as excused absence in Tennessee?” rank high as parents petition. One staffer muses, “I never thought my whistle would diagnose flu.”
After gym teachers pivoted from dodgeball to note-verifying, parents discovered the school’s new policy lets a hamster-filled terrarium double as the nurse’s office. Trending: “Who decides school excused absences?” and “What if a doctor won’t write a note?” The janitor wonders if next week’s attendance will be certified by the vending machine.
In one semester, Tennessee’s attendance team collected more doctor notes than cafeteria chicken nuggets consumed on free lunch Fridays—an all-time district record.