D.C. Piano Prodigy Misses 10 Days of Public School, Gets Labeled “Truant.” Now She’s Homeschooled.
9th September 2014
Avery Gagliano was kicking some international piano-playing butt while maintaining straight As at her D.C. public middle school last year.
But traveling abroad for competitions meant she wound up with more than the 10 days of “unexcused” absences allowed by the district on her record. Despite her parents’ attempts to provide school administrators with supplementary materials about the educational nature of the trips, the district refused to budge.
In fact, this spring when Gagliano returned (victorious!) from a competition in Connecticut, D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) declared her officially truant and assigned an officer to her case.