“I know that there’s parents that really don’t care if their kids go to school, but we’re not one of those,” Martinez said.

She said her daughter loves school, and not only had a doctor’s appointment Wednesday, but woke up with severe allergy symptoms.

Thursday, Ryder and Makel, 13, met for the first time. Ryder handed off the notes she took for her, homework assignments and a gift: lip gloss and candy.

Makel said her friends thought it was “all cool and everything” that Ryder had sat in for her.

Ryder said the district office and Rio Vista each received a critical phone call, perhaps from the same person. She said reaction otherwise was overwhelmingly positive.

Jan Edwards, a public relations expert who is a lecturer in the mass communication and journalism department at California State University, Fresno, said it appears the district accomplished what it set out to do: “It certainly hit the mark of drawing attention to the issue.”