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Prince George's County students who need to take state-mandated tests are getting extra encouragement this year — from police.

Police and school officials said Monday they are beefing up anti-truancy efforts especially during High School Assessment testing, exams students must pass beginning this year to receive a diploma in Maryland.

"This is going to be a part of our daily work," Roberto L. Hylton, the county's acting police chief, said Monday after the announcement at Frederick Douglass High School in Upper Marlboro.

Students must pass four state tests in English, government, algebra and biology, earn a combined score of 1,602 on the four tests or complete an alternative project to show they have learned the material to receive a diploma in Maryland.

Most of the students who take the tests pass, so officials hope the extra effort to get students to attend school on test days will increase their chances of graduating.

Eighty percent of the seniors who took the government exam passed, 72 percent passed algebra, 65 percent passed biology and 75 percent passed English, according to statistics presented to the board in December.

School officials told the school board Dec. 1 that 2,744 students, or about 35 percent of the senior class, were in danger of not graduating because they had not met testing requirements. Officials said 181 students had not taken any of the four exams.

Hylton said the anti-truancy effort will be done during regular patrols. If officers see students outside of school during the day, the school will be contacted to check the student's status and, if the student is found to be truant, he or she will be returned to the school. Students will not face any charges, officials said.

"This is about returning them to the place where they should be in the first place," said Interim Superintendent William R. Hite Jr.

Hite said the goal of the partnership is to make it "uncomfortable" for students to be anywhere but at school during the school day.

Board member Pat J. Fletcher (Dist. 3) said the agreement is important because it means truancy rules will be enforced countywide, rather than being enforced in some areas and not others.

"This makes it consistent, across the board," Fletcher said.

Today marks the last day of the first round of HSA testing in 2009. The next scheduled test dates are May 18 through May 21 and June 2 through June 5.

During the 2007-08 school year, 5.29 percent of the county's students were habitually truant, meaning they had unlawfully missed more than 20 percent of the school year, up from 4.17 in the 2006-07 year.

Earlier this school year, board members held "truancy walks" to encourage merchants to call police if they see truant students. Anyone who sees truant students during the school day is asked to call 301-333-4000, county police's non-emergency number.

E-mail Megan King at mking@gazette.net.