Attendance

Excused absences

Excused absences are those resulting from: temporary or extended illness, injury or physical, mental, or emotional disability; family emergencies; absences excused by the principal through prior requests of parents or guardians; absences approved by the superintendent or designee due to inclement weather; absences pursuant to school release permits under District policy JHD; absences which occur when a student is in the custody of a court or law enforcement authority; absences due to suspension or expulsion; and any other absence approved by the principal. If a student is in out-of-home placement as defined by C.R.S. 22-32-138(1)(e), absences due to court appearances and participation in court-ordered activities shall be excused. 

Unexcused absences

Unexcused absences are those with or without prior knowledge and approval of the parents but for reasons not acceptable to the principal. In accordance with law, the district may impose appropriate penalties that relate directly to classes missed while unexcused. Penalties may include a warning, school detention or in-school suspension. Academic penalties, out-of-school suspensions or expulsion shall not be imposed for any unexcused absence. The administration shall develop regulations to implement appropriate penalties. The administration shall consider the correlation between course failure, truancy and a student dropping out of school in developing these regulations and shall implement research-based strategies to re-engage students with a high number of unexcused absences.

Tardiness

In accordance with 1 Colo. Code Regs. 301-78 “tardies” may be defined by the local school district. Douglas County School District defines tardiness as a failure to appear on time and is considered a form of absence. Repeated tardiness shall be reported to the building attendance officer. For Department reporting purposes, a student who is present 50 percent or more of any Attendance Period during a scheduled school day shall be considered present for that entire recorded and reported period. Tardies shall not be included in the calculation of Habitually Truant students for Department reporting purposes.

For district guidelines regarding absences due to illness, please view the District Attendance Policy.