Attendance Policy

Requirements: State law requires that a student must attend class 90% of the scheduled school days per semester to receive credit and to receive a TEA form required for driver's license.

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Loss of Credit and Appeals: Loss of credit for any class occurs when the number of absences violates the state requirement. This number varies by semester. Loss of credit may be appealed at the end of the semester, and each appeal will be judged individually based on circumstances, make-up time served, and documentation. All unexcused time for the semester must be made up before credit can be regained for any class. Continued attendance, with or without credit, will be required.

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Documentation: Notes from parents (containing dates, times, reasons for absences, and parent's daytime phone numbers) or medical notes (containing the office phone number and the date and time of treatment) are due the day a student returns to school, but may be accepted up to three days after an absence. Without a valid note within three days, an absence will remain unexcused. Notes are verified with parents or the respective medical offices.

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Checking In/Out: PARENT PERMISSION with either a note or a telephone call from parents is required in order to check out. Students check in/out with their respective subschools or, in case of illness, with the nurse's office. Failure to check out means the absence will be unexcused.

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Excused Absences: Absences due to acceptable reasons are considered excused. Acceptable reasons include personal illness, death or illness in the immediate family, entire school day medical/dental appointments, quarantine, weather or road conditions making travel dangerous or other causes approved one week in advance by the principal. All other absences are considered unexcused. After the seventh absence medical notes may be required for all subsequent absences.

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Medical/Dental Appointments that require a student to miss only part of a school day will not count as absences if students check out with parent permission and provide proper documentation from medical offices on their return.

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Unexcused Absences: Students receive a zero on all assignments and tests missed.

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Unexcused with Permission: Absences, which are not excused but are unavoidable, may be classified as unexcused with permission. While these count against loss of credit and senior exemption, 100% may be earned on makeup work. In order to make up and receive credit for work missed because of a planned unexcused absence, a student must submit a written notice from a parent to his/her subschool one-week in advance of the planned absence. When no prior notification is given, students will receive a zero for work or tests due to the absence.
College Visits: Students may have excused absences for college visits if they: 1) obtain permission from in advance, 2) have the form signed by a parent, themselves, and their principal before departing, 3) have the form signed by the college admissions office and 4) return the form to the subschool office.

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Religious Holidays: Religious holidays will not be considered absences.

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Make-up Time: Non-disciplinary make-up time will be assigned in Saturday School sessions and/or detentions. Failure to serve make-up time will have a negative impact on any appeal to have credit reinstated.

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Truancy Discipline: Skipping school will result in disciplinary consequences in addition to make-up time being assigned. Truancy warning letters may be issued for students with questionable attendance, and referrals to Truancy Court may result from subsequent unexcused absences.

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The attendance policy was distributed to all students through the Student Handbook.