Attendance, Tardy, and Early Dismissal Policies

Powdersville High School Attendance Policies (Español abajoVersión en español a continuación)

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Lawful and Unlawful Absences

In South Carolina, all students must attend school until their seventeenth birthday or until they graduate from high school. To maintain full-time status at Powdersville High School or the Career and Technology Center, students must be enrolled and attend school regularly. Students who are absent 10 consecutive days will be removed from active student status and dropped from the rolls. Absences fall into two categories: lawful and unlawful.

Lawful (Excused):

Illness - Must have a doctor's note that includes the student name, the appointment time, and doctor's signature *Up to five parent notes as a result of student illness will be considered lawful absences.
Illness or death in the immediate family - Must have a parent note that is accompanied by an obituary or funeral program
School Function or Activity
Religious Holidays of their Faith - The student must make arrangements with the principal prior to the absences. The principal may require evidence in addition to a statement from a parent/guardian.
Principal's Approval - the principal has the discretion of deciding if an absence is lawful or unlawful. If the principal feels the absence is due to an emergency situation which was beyond the student's control, then the principal may excuse the absence.
Suspension

Unlawful (Unexcused):

Examples include, but are not limited to:

Students who are willfully absent from school without knowledge of their parents.
Students who are absent from school without acceptable cause with the knowledge of their parents.
Absences for which a student fails to provide to the school a valid excuse. This could include absence(s) for medical reasons if not accompanied by a doctor's statement. It could also include absence(s) for religious holidays unless adequately documented as determined by the proper school official.

SCHOOL ATTENDANCE AND EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

Student attendance in the regular school program is of first importance. No student may be permitted to take part in athletics or other extra-curricular activities on a day when he/she has 11 been absent from school. It would be only in justifiable instances that the administration may grant an exception to this policy

Tardy Policy

Students are considered tardy unless they are inside the classroom before the bell rings. Any student arriving to school after their first class of the day's bell is considered tardy for school.

Any student entering the building after the start of their first class MUST report directly to the front office to sign in. Tardies are only excused when when the student has an appointment with a doctor or some other professional agency. A doctor's note must accompany the tardy student in order for the tardy to be excused. A parent note will not excuse a student's tardy.

Students late due to school bus transportation must report directly to the front office.

Students are expected to be at school on time; however, situations do arise that could cause unexpected tardies to school. For this reason, students are given 3 “freebies” each quarter. Beginning on the 4th tardy, students will receive the following consequences:

4th tardy - 30 minute detention

6th tardy - One hour detention

8th tardy - One day ISS

10th tardy - One days ISS; parking privileges revoked for 10 days

13 + tardies - Two days ISS; parking privileges revoked for the remainder of the semester or no less than one month for tardies to school

Early Dismissal Policy

Students are permitted to leave school before their regular dismissal at the written request of a parent or guardian or for other urgent reasons approved by the principal. Phone calls are not accepted for early dismissal. Once a student arrives on campus, he/she is required to sign out at the attendance office prior to leaving. Students may bring or email a written request to the school. The email is pvhsdismissal@apps.anderson1.org. Students bringing a written request for dismissal must take it to the attendance office when they arrive at school. Written requests must contain the following information:

a. name of student as it appears on permanent record

b. the date

c. the time to be dismissed

d. signature of parent or guardian

e. telephone number where parent/guardian can be contacted.

When the note is turned in, the student will be given a pass to be dismissed at the specified time. Students are required to keep up with the pass and present it to the teacher before dismissal. Students are officially dismissed only when they sign out at the attendance office. Students must report to the main office to sign in if returning to school on the same day.

Dismissals from school for reasons other than approved appointments (medical documentation must be submitted upon return to school) or verified illness by the school nurse will result in an unexcused absence for all classes that are missed. Parents and students are reminded that days absent from individual classes because of signing out are counted on the attendance record of the student. All early dismissals from school must be before 2:45. Dismissals after 2:45 will only be allowed for emergencies.

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