Attendance

School attendance is important because class activities and direct instruction cannot be duplicated by assigning work.  Please make every attempt to have your student in school every day and be on time. 

Absences

Certain absences are considered to be excused according to state guidelines.  Excused absences include: 

• Personal illness or attendance in school endangering a student’s health or the health of others.
• A serious illness or death in a student’s immediate family requiring absence from school.
• A court order or an order by a governmental agency, including pre-induction physical examination for service in the armed forces, mandating absence from school.
• Observing religious holidays, necessitating absence from school. 
• Conditions making attendance impossible or hazardous to student health or safety.
• Serving as a page in the General Assembly. 

Please remember that if your student is absent from school, upon his/her return he/she should give the teacher a signed note, or a doctor’s note stating the reason for his/her absence.  Notes should be received within 5 days of the students return to be considered for review to be excused. Should the reason be one noted above, your student’s absence will be marked excused. After five, seven, and ten unexcused absences parents will receive a letter and/or a call from our social worker or counselor. Possible interventions for unexcused absences, excessive excused absences, tardies, or excessive early checkouts may include, but are not limited to, the following:  Student/Parent Conferences, Working closely with a School Counselor, Referral to School Social Worker,  or Referral to Social Service Agencies. 

If a student is absent one or two days, the teacher will give the make-up work when he/she returns.  If the student is absent more than two days, parents may request make-up work.  Please allow 24 hours for the teacher to gather needed materials. Some assignments, such as assessments, will be given once the student returns to school and may not be completed at home.  Vacations and family outings are unexcused absences.  Please do not ask teachers to provide make-up work in advance for planned trips. The teacher will work with the student and family upon return. 

Partial Day Attendance

To be counted present for the whole day, students must attend for at least the equivalent of half the school day. This does not have to be continuous time.