Madeline Soto's death sparks Orange County parents' plea for absence alert policy changes
ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. - Orange County parents are urging the district to update its absence alert policy in the wake of the death of Madeline Soto, a 13-year-old girl whose body was found days after she didn't make it to school last Monday morning.
"Up to 10 hours from drop off to that 5 p.m. notification call. Those 10 hours can be very impactful in finding a person," said Sarah Terrell, a parent at Hunter's Creek Middle School in Orlando, the school Soto attended.
Terrell is one of the parents leading the charge for Orange County Public Schools to change its absence alert policy. She started a petition after the teenager was reported missing last week, and ultimately found dead by law enforcement in a rural area in St. Cloud on Friday afternoon.
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A body believed to be that of Madeline Soto, a Florida 13-year-old who disappeared last week, was found Friday, officials said. Her mom's boyfriend, Stephan Sterns, is considered a "prime suspect" in the girl's disappearance, but has not been arrested or charged related to her disappearance or death. He was arrested on charges of sexual battery and possessing child sex abuse material on his cell phone, officials said.
"Notify parents promptly in the morning of student absences to avoid a scenario where a student is absent without parent’s knowledge for 10 hours, like in the case of Madeline Soto," Terrell said in the description of a petition she started on change.org. "Every minute counts when a child is missing!"
In the early days after Madeline Soto was last seen, her mom Jennifer Soto told FOX 35 that she reached out to Hunter's Creek Middle School on Monday afternoon when she couldn't find her daughter during after-school pickup.
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Jenn Soto talks Madeline Soto's disappearance (full interview)
Jenn Soto, Madeline Soto's mom, spoke to FOX 35's Hannah McKenzie this week about the disappearance of her 13-year-old daughter. "Maddie" Soto has been missing since Feb. 26, days after her 13th birthday, and hours after she was dropped up at school. Jenn Soto's boyfriend, Stephan Sterns, dropped Maddie near the school, but the girl never made it to class.
"I emailed one of her teachers. They confirmed that she was absent all day. At that point is when I called 911 because I realized something was truly wrong," Jennifer Soto said.
Right now, Orange County Public Schools uses an automated system to alert parents via phone, call and text whenever a student is absent from school.
"The notification is sent to the primary contacts on record with the school and is sent each day if a student is marked as absent," OCPS said in a statement to FOX 35. "The district considers a student absent when they miss more than half of the school day."
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The final cut-off for teachers to submit attendance is at 3:30 p.m. Middle schools in Orange County release students just after 4 p.m., while high schools and elementary schools get out at 2:20 p.m. and 3 p.m. (for the most part), respectively.
"Once attendance is finalized in the system, a report is run and the message is sent to families informing them of their student being absent from school. The district is always reviewing procedures to make any possible improvements," the statement continued.
Terrell said she believes parents should be notified that their students are marked absent in the morning – and others agree. The petition on change.org has over 10,000 signatures and counting as of Monday afternoon.
"I think, ideally, you would get a notification within the first period," Terrell said. "I would always be on the side of over-communication instead of under-communication. So, if I get a notification every period of the day – I'm fine with that."
The approach to student absence alerts varies across Central Florida:
- Seminole County: Parents of younger students report getting automated calls before 11 a.m.
- Osceola County: Parents with younger students will hear about absences before noon, while high school parents will get a notification starting at 5 p.m.
- Lake County: Parents are notified within the first two hours of the school day
- Marion County: Automated messages go out at various times throughout the morning
- Brevard County: Elementary school parents are notified in the late morning, while parents of secondary school students get alerted in the late afternoon. District leaders say the timing depends on call volume
- Volusia County: Calls to parents of elementary school students start around 10 a.m., while attendance calls for secondary students start between 5 and 6 p.m., once attendance has been recorded for each class period
Orange County School Board Member Alicia Farrant, who represents Hunter's Creek Middle School, said she's aware of the chatter online and has been in talks with district leaders about concerns, and plans to have more conversations with the school board about it.
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"It will be a process if there was a change. But the promise that I've made to parents is that I will bring this to the table for the discussion to be made," Farrant said.
Although investigators believe Madeline Soto was killed before school started, Terrell said she believes an earlier absence alert may have raised questions about her sooner.
"We now know that a policy change wouldn't have saved Madeline's life. It can save the life of a student in the future," Terrell said.