Almost 70 percent of students at Palo Alto High School are technically "truants," according to the California Department of Education's Safe & Healthy Kids Program office.

Paly's truancy rate is 44 percent higher than the average rate for K-12 schools in the state, the agency reported.

But in a kind of "only in Palo Alto" twist, many students are cutting one class to study for another, or cram for a test, or finish an assignment, rather than hanging out, heading to the beach or partying, according to a Campanile student-newspaper article by Chiara Leifer.

Leifer's lengthy article reported that Paly's truancy rate dropped from 56 to 41 percent from 2006 to 2007 but shot up to 69 percent in 2008. (During the same period, Gunn High School's truancy rate rose from 31 to 38 percent from 2006 to 2007, and then to 54 percent in 2008, according to the California Department of Education.)

The Department of Education defines a truant as a student missing more than 30 minutes of class without an excuse three times during the school year.

After a Paly student cuts a class three times, a truancy letter is to be mailed to the student's parents. Students will be dropped from a class if they cut more than four times, according to Paly's attendance policy.

In Leifer's article, Assistant Principal Jerry Berkson said other school districts that receive funding based on attendance might be more inclined to enforce truancy rules. He said problems with attendance are less noticed because Paly is "a quality school, but legally students are supposed to be in school."

While truancy may imply a lack of academic discipline, some Paly students are actually cutting classes to study or complete homework, Leifer reported.

When asked what students do when they cut class, senior Tiffany Yeung told the Weekly: "A lot of times students are studying for tests or doing homework. Students would do whatever to maintain their grades.

"There's a lot of pressure from parents to get into a good college and kids don't always have time for homework, so they cut class."

Senior David Dows agreed: "A lot of people cut class to go to the library."

Yet sophomore Alix Seymour said some students cut class for other, more traditional reasons: "They don't like the class or the teacher or they want to hang out with friends," she said.