Attendance

Attendance 

We commit to structuring every minute of the school day in a way that will benefit your child academically and socially. Any me a student misses a day of school, it has a significant impact on their educational experience. 

Attendance at school is the most basic requirement for learning. In order for scholars to reach their personal best, they must show up and make their strongest effort at school each and every day. We ask that families ensure that their child is in school. In order to meet the demands of our curriculum, we strongly encourage scholars to be in school as much as possible. While we understand that life happens, and there are circumstances that are beyond your control, we believe that scholars should aim to complete the school year with fewer than 4 absences. Please note the following important attendance policies: 

● Excessive absences at the beginning of the school year: If a scholar is absent for 10 consecutive days of school before October 1st and there has been no successful contact between the family and the school to explain these absences, their seat may be filled with another scholar from the waitlist. The school will comply with all state requirements pertaining to scholar absenteeism, including, but not limited to, family and guardian notification. 

● Daily and consistent follow up on all scholar absences: The school will track and follow up on all scholar absences. The school will take attendance daily and will maintain records of all scholar absences. We value strong and consistent partnerships with our families. This means your scholar's school will reach out to you every time your scholar misses a day of school. If your scholar's absences exceed 5 days, you should expect a meeting request to discuss and problem solve barriers with your scholar's school team until their attendance improves. 

● Chronic absenteeism does not differentiate between “excused” and “unexcused” absences: We know there will be rare circumstances when scholars will need to miss school due to a serious illness, a death in the family, an emergency beyond the family’s control, or a religious observance. Regardless of the reason, when a child misses school, the impact on their education is the same: a full day of instruction was missed. As a result, any day your child does not attend school will be marked an absence. However, we do take extenuating circumstances into account when considering next steps for excessive absences. 

● Never miss school for appointments or vacation: We strongly encourage families to schedule vacations when school is not in session. We ask that appointments, including doctor visits, be scheduled outside of school time. In the case that a scholar has a medical appointment at a time when school is in session, we strongly encourage them to start the day at school and return to school after the appointment, rather than missing the entire day of school. 

● Transportation and Attendance: Every scholar should have a back-up plan for going to school. Please call the school immediately if your scholar’s primary mode of transportation is delayed or unavailable so that the school knows the situation and can help problem-solve. 

● Attendance at after-school events: Scholars who are absent from school cannot attend school events, dances, or other school-sponsored activities on the day of the absence, unless the school has given advance permission. 

Tardies & Early Dismissals 

Getting to school on time and remaining in school for the entire school day are keys to each child’s success – at school and in life. At our schools, learning begins from the moment scholars walk in the door. 

Tardiness 

Scholars arriving aer the start of classes are considered tardy. In cases when a school bus arrives late, those scholars arriving on that bus will not be considered tardy. 

Early Dismissal 

Scholars are expected to stay in school until the end of the day. To maximize learning me and to avoid unnecessary disruptions, we ask that scholars remain in class unl dismissal, unless there are exceptional circumstances requiring an early dismissal. If an early dismissal is pre-planned, please notify the school as early as possible. 

Make-Up Work Aer Absence 

After returning from an absence, scholars are expected to complete any missed graded assignments or assessments. Any missed work must be completed in order to receive credit. In the event of a planned absence (one that you know about in advance), please notify teachers and the Main Office in advance so they can prepare a packet of work for scholars to complete during the absence.