ABSENCES AND ATTENDANCE. Regular attendance is essential to success in school
since discussions and work done in class can never be fully recovered.
Regular and punctual attendance is expected of all The Ohio
Department of Education has a definitely stated policy regarding absences
from school (3321.04 RC). In brief, the policy is as follows: Absences from
school for any reason other than those listed below and recommended by the
State Department of Education is not
acceptable and will carry disadvantages to the student. Those reasons
acceptable by the State of 1.
Personal illness (may require doctor’s VERIFICATION). 2.
Illness in the immediate family (requiring doctor’s orders or parent
need, that the student remain at home). 3.
Medical, Dental, or Legal appointments (requires formal
verification).
4.
Death of a relative. 5.
Religious holidays. (A student may be excused for the purpose of
observing a religious holiday, provided it is required by his religion. If
observance of such holiday only requires attendance at a religious service,
the student should attend such service before or after school, if possible.) 6.
Other emergencies or circumstances that constitute good and sufficient
cause as determined by a house principal or the attendance officer. ABSENCES - EXCESSIVE. There is a positive correlation between a child’s attendance and achievement. Class attendance is important because it is not possible to make up totally that which is missed. Each classroom experience is an important part of the child’s education. The primary responsibility for school attendance is
placed with the parents. The parent is responsible for permitting only those
absences that can be excused under the recommendations of the State
Department of Education and the regulations of A student who misses more than seven (7) meetings of any class per
semester for any reason, excused or unexcused, will be considered not to have
earned credit for that class. *See
Loss of Credit appeals process. The only
exceptions to this rule are: 1.
Hospitalization for an extended period of time. 2.
Epidemic - quarantine called for by a physician. 3.
School-sponsored activities and trips. 4.
Any situation or emergency as declared by the school administration. ABSENCE REPORTING. Parents are responsible for
informing the school of his/her child’s absence and the reason for the
absence before Student’s
name and grade Date(s) of
absence and return date, if known Reason for
absence Phone number
where parent/guardian can be reached These calls may
be subject to verification by the Attendance Office. Upon receiving
the absent list for the day, an automated all system will telephone all
parents who have not notified the school of their child’s absence;
therefore, parent/guardians shall provide the school with their current home
and/or work telephone numbers as well as emergency telephone numbers. By law,
the primary purpose of this contact is to ensure that the parent is aware of
the student’s absence from school. After being
absent for part of a school day or if a student arrives after 7:40 A.M., he/she must
report to the Attendance Office before
reporting to class to sign in on the attendance sheet. Students not providing a note or having a call to verify an absence within
two (2) school days will have the absence deemed unexcused and no credit
would be issued for work missed. TARDINESS TO CLASS/SCHOOL A tardy is
defined as arrival to school or class after the tardy bell has rung. It is
strongly suggested that a student be in his/her seat prior to bell sounding
to avoid any misunderstandings. If a student arrives late but before As the students
accumulate tardies, the following consequences may
result: 4 tardies One (1) ASD and parent notification 8 tardies Two (2) ASDs
and parent notification 12 tardies
Three (3) days of In-School Exclusion 16 tardies
Five (5) days of In-School Exclusion Tardies for Period 2 to
the end of day will be managed by individual teachers following the tardy
referral process. Late arrivals in
the morning will be counted tardy prior to the end of second period. After that time a one-half (1/2) day absence
will be recorded. Late arrivals are to produce a written excuse from their
parent/guardian or a doctor/dentist. All tardies
are unexcused unless accompanied by a doctor or dentist’s note.
Oversleeping, car trouble, and missing the bus are examples of unexcused
tardiness. The Principal or his/her designee shall make the final
determination between excused and unexcused tardiness. Habitually truant is defined as a school-aged child who is absent from school without
legitimate excuse for five or more consecutive days, seven or more days in a
school month, or 12 or more school days in a school year. “School month” defined as four
weeks. Chronic truant is defined as a school-aged child who is absent from school without
legitimate excuse for seven or more consecutive days, ten or more school days
in a month, or 15 school days in one year. Legitimate excuse (1) enrollment in another school, (2) bodily or mental condition that
prevents attendance, (3) home instruction, (4) demonstrated need to perform
duties at home, (5) possession of an age of schooling certificate. Excused absence (1) illness (illness of a family member), (2) doctor/dentist/legal
appointment, (3) funeral, (4) religious observation, (5)
other emergency circumstances that constitute good or sufficient cause as
determined by the school administrator. PLANNED ABSENCE. The student needs to tell his-her teachers about the absence and make arrangements to make up the work. The parent needs to call the Attendance Line in advance and give the dates and reason for the student will be missing school, such as vacation, surgery. etc. The following
criteria apply to all Planned Absences:
1. Planned absences are not to be requested during those days established for semester or final examinations. 2. It will be the student's responsibility to
make arrangements for makeup work and/or tests missed upon return to school.
Students are permitted one day of makeup time per one day of absence.
Teachers will not be expected to tutor individual students. 3. All work and/or tests are expected to be
made up in the prescribed period of time. Failure to do so will result in
"0" credit to be computed in the student's current grading period
average. 4. Absence in excess of seven (7) consecutive
school days may require individual tutoring at the parent's expense. 5. A college official must verify that a
college visit has been successfully completed. VACATIONS. While we always encourage
activities that give families time together, we do want to stress the importance
of school attendance for students. We ask that family vacations be planned
for days when school is not in session. A Planned Absence Form can be picked
up from the attendance office. All
vacation days will be counted toward the student’s seven-day limit. Students are to
make arrangements with the classroom teacher for all makeup work necessary to
receive academic credit for the time they were on vacation. Students are not
permitted to take exams prior to scheduled times. Makeup tests may be given
within a week after the student's return. Attendance Guidelines 1. Excessive absence from school shall be a factor when assessing a student's semester or yearly performance for credit purposes. 2. Attendance in class: No credit will be given when a student exceeds
the allotted number of days absent for that period of time. However, the
student will have the right of appeal to an Attendance Committee that will
take the individual case under consideration. 3. Maximum days a student is allowed to be
absent from class: A. Days
per course: 1. For a semester course: 7 days 2. For a year course: 14 days (7
days per semester) 4. Absences:
What constitutes an absence? A. Absences
may include the reasons cited earlier. B. Students
must be in class more than half a period or they will be considered absent
for the period. The teacher will keep the official record in the classroom. C. Planned
absences are considered absent days when determining the total number of days
absent from class for any period of time. D. Late
arrivals (to school) and permitted leaves are considered absent periods/days
when determining the total number of periods/days absent from class.
(Students will not be given permission to leave during the school day without
parents' or guardians' consent.) NOTE: School-related activities or functions are not counted as an absence from class. For example: Calls from the office; assemblies; field trips; sporting events; etc. that are scheduled during school hours. 5. Notifications of attendance problems: A. Parents
and students will be notified of attendance problems prior to loss of credit. B.
Means of notification: 1. Attendance concerns may be noted on mid-period reports by teachers 2. Days
absent will be noted on 9-week grade card. 3. An
Attendance Warning Letter will be sent home by the attendance officer
when a student has reached five periods/days of the allowable absences. 4. Other
informal means (e.g. phone calls to parents) may be used as the need arises. 6. Notification of loss of credit: A. Once
a student has accumulated the number of absences to deny him/her credit a
letter will be sent home by mail regarding the student's loss of credit and
right to appeal. 7. Attendance Committee appeal: A. Parent
Responsibility: All appeals must be
heard by the attendance officer. The
student and a parent or guardian must be present at the appeal. **It is expected that parents/student
bring as much documentation as possible to present during appeals.** B. It
will then be determined whether to grant credit, deny credit, or in some
circumstances postpone credit. All determinations will be based on
documentation from health professionals, etc. If credit is postponed, students
will be required to meet strict attendance guidelines for the next semester,
and may be asked to reappear with parents at the end of the following
semester for a final determination. C. Seniors
and students who have been denied credit in semester classes may appeal at
the end of the
semester. D. Appeal
notification: The Attendance Officer will provide written notification to the
parent or guardian regarding the appeal decision. 8. Attendance Failures A. Students
who will not receive credit for a first semester class due to the attendance
policy will remain in the class second semester. B. If
a student fails a semester course, placement next semester will be dependent
upon space availability. Students may find it necessary to take
correspondence courses or summer school. 9. Permitted
Leave Requests A. Before 7:25 a.m., or after 1st
period, students needing to leave school before the end of the day should
bring to the attendance office, a written note from his/her parents
requesting the dismissal. Please include the complete name of student, ID#,
reason, and time leaving school. The name will appear on the attendance list
along with the time the student is expected to be dismissed. The pass
received in the attendance office will allow the student to go to his/her
locker and leave the school grounds. If the student returns to school later that
day he/she must check into the attendance office. Failure to check
into the office may result in disciplinary action. B. Permitted Leaves will count toward a class absence. C. At
10. Seniors and CBI students A. Any
student found on school property with early dismissal privileges and not
assigned to a teacher/coach may have his/her early release privileges
revoked. Students are not allowed to return to school property until ILLNESS DURING THE SCHOOL DAY. Whenever a student becomes ill at school and wants to
go home, the student will report to his/her house office with a pass from
his/her current teacher. A student must sign in. At no time should an ill
student remain in a restroom or unsupervised area. No student will be excused
to go home unless one of the parents or designee is personally contacted and
the school is given permission to release a student. After two attempts have
been made to reach a parent without success, the student must return to class.
Students will only be permitted to be out of a class for one period. LEAVING THE SCHOOL. Leaving the school or school
grounds without permission violates State Law. Once students arrive on school
grounds, they may not leave again without first reporting to the Attendance
Office and following proper procedures. Violations
of this procedure will result in disciplinary action and referral to Juvenile
Court in accordance with the COLLEGE VISITATIONS. Prior arrangements for students to visit
colleges must be made with the guidance counselor. Students are encouraged to
make college visitations during times school is in recess and during the
summer months. Students are permitted to three (3) visitations during the
school year, and will not be counted toward total absences or for exam
exemptions. AFTER HOURS. Students
are to be out of the building by |
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