SUBJECT: COMPREHENSIVE STUDENT ATTENDANCE POLICY
Statement of Overall
Objectives
School attendance
is both a right and a responsibility.
The School District is an active partner with students and parents in
the task of ensuring that all students meet or exceed the New York State
Learning Standards. Because the School
District recognizes that consistent school attendance, academic success and
school completion have a positive correlation, the School District has
developed, and, if necessary, will revise a Comprehensive Student Attendance
Policy to meet the following objectives:
a)
To increase school completion for all students;
b)
To raise student achievement and close gaps in student
performance;
c)
To identify attendance patterns in order to design
attendance improvement efforts
d)
To know the whereabouts of every student for safety
reasons
e)
To verify that individual students are complying with
education laws relating to compulsory attendance;
f)
To determine the District’s average daily attendance
for State aid purposes.
Description of Strategies to Meet Objectives
The School
District will;
a)
Create and maintain a positive school building culture
by fostering a positive physical and psychological environment where the
presence of strong adult role models encourages respectful and nurturing
interactions between adults and students.
This positive school culture is aimed at encouraging a high level of
student bonding to the school, which in turn should lead to increased
attendance.
b)
Maintain accurate recordkeeping via a Register of
Attendance or record of attendance, absence, tardiness or early departure of
each student.
c)
Utilize data analysis systems for tracking individual
student attendance and individual group trends in student attendance problems.
d)
Develop early intervention strategies to improve school
attendance for all students.
Determination of
Excused and Unexcused Absences, Tardiness and Early Departures
Based upon our District’s
education and community needs, values and priorities, the School District has
determined that absences, tardiness and early departures will be considered
excused or unexcused according to the following standards.
For the purpose of determining
absences and tardiness, the following definitions for excused and unexcused
absences will be used.
Excused Absence
An absence, tardiness or early
departure may be excused if due
to religious observance, quarantine, court attendance and
other absences required for legal reasons, bereavement, approved college
visits, approved cooperative work programs, or school sponsored activities such
as music lessons, field trips, athletic contests, visits in the guidance office
with college representatives, visits to the school nurse’s office, activities
approved by a teacher or administrator, late school buses, absences/tardiness
related to 504 or special education
requirements, disciplinary suspensions or assignments, or emergency situations,
as approved case-by-case by the Principal.
Appointments with a doctor,
dentist, orthodontist, certified/licensed counselor or other medical professionals, as well as court dates or other
legal appointments will be considered to be excused absences only if the
following criteria is met. The District
must be provided with a completed excused form which includes the date and time
of the appointment – verified by the establishment where the appointment
occurred. The form must be turned into
the nurse’s office upon returning to school.
In the event a student reports to
the nurse’s Office, he/she must sign in at the nurse’s office first, and then the
student must return to class as soon as possible upon approval from the school
nurse. If a student who has reported to the nurse’s office is absent for more
than ½ the class period he/she will be marked as NA (nurse’s office absence),
which will be counted as an absence from that class. A student who has reported
to the nurse’s office and is absent for less than ½ the class period will be
marked as NO (nurse’s office), which will not be treated as an absence.
If these criteria are not met, the
absence will be considered to be unexcused.
Students are required to make up all the work missed when
absent from school. For an excused
absence students will have five (5) days from the date of their return to
school to complete all missed assignments.
If the absence occurs at the end of a marking period the student will be
given an incomplete for ten (10) school days.
Assignments not completed within the time period, or within a time
period agreed upon by the teacher and the student, will not be scored. Teachers are not required to fulfill these
provisions for unexcused absences.
Unexcused
An absence, tardiness or early
departure is considered unexcused if the reason for the lack of attendance does
not fall into the above categories (e.g. family vacation, hunting, babysitting,
haircut, oversleeping, visiting relatives/friends, baby-sitting/work/job
interview not approved by school work release, or all other appointments not
related to medical/dental/court)
If
questions arise as to whether an absence is excused or unexcused, an administrator
will be consulted to make a determination.
Student
Attendance/Course Credit
District personnel believes that
classroom participation is related to and affects a student’s performance and
grasp of the subject matter and, as such, is properly reflected in a student’s
final grade. For purposes of this
policy, classroom participation means that a student is in class and prepared
to work.
Consequently, for each marking
period, a certain percentage of a student’s final grade may be based on
classroom participation as well as the student’s performance on homework,
tests, papers, projects, etc. as determined by the building administrator
and/or classroom teacher.
Students are expected to attend all
scheduled classes. Consistent with the
importance of classroom participation, unexcused student absences, tardiness,
and early departures will affect a student’s grade, including credit for
classroom participation, for the marking period.
Attendance
Requirement
Students are required to maintain
an 89% attendance rate in all of their classes.
Any student who exceeds the designated number of absences: ten (10) in a
½ credit course, twenty (20) in a full credit course, will be denied credit in
that course unless; an attendance contract is developed to make up class time
and missed work. The contract can
include, but is not limited to, the following methods: summer school for middle
school students, attendance at school during vacation times, meeting
teachers/tutors after school, attendance at ASAC, due dates for all missed
assignments, other resources available to fulfill the terms of the contract. Students that do not adhere to the contract
may not be eligible to sit for exams or attend summer school, and may face
further consequences outlined in this document.
In order for the contract to be valid, it must be signed by the student
and the parent/guardian.
Notification Process
When students are in danger of
violating the attendance requirements (outlined in the previous section)
parents will be notified. Notifications
will include, but are not limited to the following methods:
-Letters to students
-Letters sent home to parents
-Phone calls
-Conferences
Attendance Committee
A committee of relevant school
employees will meet regularly to discuss intervention plans for individual
students and other areas of potential need.
This committee may include, but will not be limited to, the following
people: the Principal, the Assistant Principal, the grade level counselors, the
School Nurse, and the SRO.
Potential
Disciplinary Sanctions and Truancy Policy
Potential Disciplinary Sanctions
a)
Warning and discussion with student
b)
Parent contact
c)
Detention/Extended Detention
d)
In-school suspension
e)
Loss of privileges (certain field trips, driving pass,
Scholar Athlete breakfasts, Senior scholar lunches, Breakfast of Champions,
extracurricular activities)
f)
Home visits
g)
P.I.N.S petition
Appeal
Process/Challenging Absences
Parent(s)/guardian(s)
have the right to request a meeting to challenge the accuracy
of the information presented regarding their child’s
attendance. Requests must be made in
writing to the High School Assistant
Principal within one (1) week of the postmarked date of the notification
concerning the absence which the parent wishes to challenge. Failure to challenge the accuracy of an
absence in accordance with this policy will be considered a waiver of the right
to challenge. Days that are not
challenged within the prescribed timeline will not be considered for review at
a later date.
All challenges will be presented by
the parent(s)/guardian(s) to a panel which will include an administrator, the
guidance counselor, and the teacher of the class in which the attendance is an
issue. A final determination regarding
the status of the day(s) in question will be made at this time.
Middle School/Senior
High School
Parental Obligations
a)
If your child is sick, or otherwise absent from school,
please call the school on the first day of the absence to report it. The nurse’s number is 584-1026; if the nurse
is unable to answer the phone, please leave a message in the voice mail.
b)
After an absence, the parent/guardian shall submit a
written excuse within three school days following the student absence. Failure to comply will result in a
disciplinary referral for the student.
c)
Parent(s)/guardian(s) will acknowledge receipt of
District correspondence regarding their child’s attendance status.
Notice of Students
who are absent, tardy, or depart early without proper excuse
A designated staff member shall
attempt to notify by telephone the parent(s)/guardian(s) of a student who is
absent, tardy, or departs early without proper excuse. The staff member shall explain the District’s
Comprehensive Student Attendance Policy and intervention procedures.
If deemed necessary by appropriate
officials, or if requested by the parent(s)/guardian(s), a school conference
shall be scheduled between the parent(s)/guardian(s) and appropriate staff
members, in order to address the student’s attendance. The student may also be requested to attend
this conference in order to address appropriate intervention strategies that
best meet the needs of the student.
MEDICAL/LEGAL VERIFICATION TO RECEIVE LEGAL
EXCUSE
_______________________ _______________________ _________________
Name of student Date of Appointment
Appointment time
This verifies that the above
student was in this medical office for a medical reason on the above date.
-
Please place official stamp/signature along with your
title below:
-
Student may return to school on the following date:
_______________
- Other forms of doctor visit
verification (card/note from doctor’s office), legal appointments or court dates are acceptable if they include the date and time when the student
was at the appointment and if appropriate a date when the student should return
to school
This form
is to be turned in to the School Nurse as soon as the student returns to
school.
Elementary School –
Grades K through 5
If attendance problems develop
because of absence, tardiness or both, the teachers, nurse, and principal will
make every effort to contact parent(s)/guardian(s) so the problems can be
corrected. The following procedure will
come into effect:
a)
After 4 (four) days of unexplained absence, the nurse
will contact parents/guardians:
b)
If a student has 8 (eight) consecutive
absences/tardiness in a 10 (ten) week period, a letter will be sent to the
home;
c)
If a student has 10 (ten) nonconsecutive
absences/tardiness in a 10 (ten) week period, a conference will be scheduled
involving the student, parent(s)/guardian(s), teacher, nurse, and
principal. Parent(s)/guardian(s) may be
notified at this time if attendance problems are affecting student progress
this may, in turn, affect the student’s ability to pass to the next grade
level.
d)
If attendance problems persist after the conference,
the school may: file a PINS petition with the Department of Probation, report
the family to the Department of Social Services for educational neglect, and/or
request a Superintendent’s hearing.
For attendance purposes, a child
must be in attendance at school a minimum of
30 (thirty) minutes to receive credit on record for that
school day. The tardiness and/or early
dismissal must be excused for this rule to apply. These students will be required to make up
work during the absence.
If your
child is sick, or otherwise absent from school, please call the school on the
first day of the absence to report it.
The main office number is 584-3011; the nurse’s office number is
584-1060. Please be aware that the call
in itself does not serve as a legal excuse, and that a written excuse is still
necessary by law.
For every
absence, a signed and dated written note explaining the reason is required by
law to be on file in the health office.
It is important that the note be sent immediately upon the child’s
return to school. In the case of illness
it is also important to be reasonably specific (chicken pox, cold, flu, rather
than he/she was sick).
A student
will not be recorded as dismissed early from school if they are signed out at
2:15 p.m. or later for kindergarten students, or 3:20 p.m. or later for grades
1-5. The sign-out procedure for an early
dismissal is similar to that for tardy sign-ins. Please send a note informing the school of
the time and purpose of the early dismissal, if planned. We also need to know who will be picking up
the student, since the law states that the school cannot dismiss children to
anyone else without written parental consent.
The sign-out sheet in the office must be completed, and the secretary
notified so the student can be sent from his/her classroom to the main office. All early dismissals are from the office
only.
Tardy is
considered to be arrival at school any time after 9 a.m.. If your child is tardy, please take him/her
to the Elementary Office to be signed in, remembering to fill in the reason for
the tardiness. Excessive tardiness/early
departure will affect perfect attendance.
Attendance Incentives
In order to encourage student
attendance, the District will develop and implement grade-appropriate/building
level strategies and programs including, but not limited to:
a)
Verbal praise – via public address each marking period;
b)
$100 savings bond for graduating seniors having
achieved perfect attendance in grades 9-12;
c)
Students who have perfect attendance in a given year
will received a pass for free admission to home sporting events the following
school year;
d)
Students in grades K – 6 who achieve perfect attendance
will receive a perfect attendance t-shirt;
e)
Students in grades K – 12 who achieve perfect
attendance will be recognized in the District Newsletter; and
f)
Students in grades K – 5, for six consecutive years of
perfect attendance; a perfect attendance certificate, and a $50 savings bond
will be awarded in the assembly.
Annual Review by the
Board of Education
The Board of Education shall
annually review the building level student attendance records and if such
records show a decline in student attendance, the Board shall make any
revisions to the Policy and plan deemed necessary to improve student
attendance.
Distribution of
Policy
The Board of Education shall
promote necessary community awareness of the District’s Comprehensive Student
Attendance Policy by:
a)
Providing a plain language summary of the policy to
parents or persons in parental relation to students at the beginning of each
school year and promoting the understanding of such a policy to students and
their parents/persons in parental relations;
b)
Providing copies of the policy and any amendments to
staff with student responsibility; Providing copies of the policy to any
members of the community upon request
Student Attendance
Recordkeeping/Data Collection
The record of each student’s
presence, absence, tardiness and early departure shall be kept in the nurse’s
office in a manner consistent with Commissioner’s Regulations. An absence, tardiness or early departure will
be entered as “excused” or “unexcused” along with the District code for the
reason. The building level nurse will
record daily attendance. In the
middle/high school a designated secretary will be responsible for period-by-period
attendance records. The Assistant Principal,
as designated as the register of attendance, will be responsible for
parent/student notification of attendance status throughout the year.
Commencing
July 1, 2003, attendance shall be taken and recorded in accordance with the
following:
a)
For students in non-departmentalized kindergarten
through grade eight (i.e., self-contained classrooms and supervised group
movement to other scheduled school activities such as physical education in the
gym, assembly, etc.) and/or middle/high school self-contained, such student’s
presence or absence shall be recorded after the taking of attendance once per
school day.
b)
For students in grades seven through twelve, each
student’s presence or absence shall be recorded after the taking of attendance
in the beginning of each period.
Teachers will notify the school nurse of any student who is missing from
their class, and whose name does not appear on the daily attendance sheet,
during the student’s assigned class period.
Teachers will record student absences in the School Management System.
c)
Any absence from a school day or portion thereof shall
be recorded as excused or unexcused in accordance with the standards
articulated in this policy.
In the event that a student at any instructional level from
kindergarten through grade 12 arrives late for or departs early from scheduled
instruction,
d)
such tardiness or early departure shall be recorded as
excused or unexcused in accordance with the standards articulated in this
policy.
A record shall be kept of each
scheduled day of instruction during which the
School is closed for all or part of the day because of
extraordinary circumstances including adverse weather conditions, impairment of
heating facilities, insufficiency of water supply, shortage of fuel,
destruction of or damage to a school building or such other cause as may be
found satisfactory to the Commissioner of Education.
Attendance records shall also
indicate the date when a student withdraws from enrollment or is dropped from
enrollment in accordance with Education Law Section 3202(1-a).
At the
conclusion of each class period or school day, all attendance information shall
be compiled and provided to the designated school personnel who are responsible
for attendance. The nature of the
absence, tardiness or early departure shall be coded on a student’s record in
accordance with the established District/building procedures
Education Law Sections 3024, 3025,
3202, 3205, 3206, 3210, 3211 and 3213
8 New York Code of Rules and
Regulations (NYCRR) Sections 104.1, 109.2 and 175.6
Adopted by BOE 08/5/2019