Attendance Policy

Absenteeism

Attendance is important. We cannot ensure your child’s academic success without their timely presence. Students must be in school a minimum of 160 days to be eligible for promotion to the next grade. We need every student at school every day to make every day count! How Can Parents Promote School Attendance? School attendance is the parent’s responsibility. It is critical to a child’s education. Below are some ideas for parents to consider. Take an interest in your child’s school work, grades, and activities. Begin early in your child’s life stressing the importance of education. Allow your child to miss school ONLY when it is absolutely necessary. Each time a child is absent, send a written statement from the parent, guardian, or doctor stating the reason for the absence. The statement must be given to the school within 5 days after the student returns to school. Frequent school absenteeism can limit a child’s potential. The more children miss school, the less they learn. The less they learn, the lower their grades. The lower their grades, the more likely they will be retained. Help your children by teaching them that school is important for them. If your child attends an appointment, please be sure to obtain a written excuse from that provider. These absences will be reviewed to be excused. Parent notes are accepted by the school, however, they are still considered unexcused per East Baton Rouge Parish Schools Parent/Student Handbook. These “hand-written”, parent notes will only allow your student to make up work that was missed during the absence. If the absence is due to a death in the family, a copy of the obituary or funeral program is needed to excuse the absence. In addition, if the student is suspended, they must attend the Discipline Center for the absence to be excused. All excuses must be submitted within five (5) school days or it must be approved by Child Welfare and Attendance! Students are expected to be in attendance every minute of every day! The East Baton Rouge Parish School System will only accept ten (10) parent notes per school year. Should your student meet five (5) unexcused absences, you will receive a notification letter from our school and or TASC to attend a parent meeting at Riveroaks Elementary School. These unexcused absences include absences where parent notes were sent, absences where no excuse was received and/or suspensions where the student did not attend the Discipline Center. If your student reaches five (5) or more unexcused absences, you will receive a letter to attend a Truancy Workshop held by Child Welfare and Attendance and/or the District Attorney. Parents who fail to attend the Truancy Workshop will result in referral to the Baton Rouge City Police, The East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Department and the District Attorney.

Truancy

According to the Louisiana Compulsory Attendance Law, LSA R.S. 17:221 and LSA R.S. 17:233, elementary students are truant when they have accumulated three (3) or more unexcused absences in a semester. If your child reaches three (3) or more unexcused absences, you will receive a notice from us to attend a parent meeting and you may be required to attend a Truancy Workshop. Non-attendance at these workshops can place you in a situation of fines, imprisonment or both. Please be sure to send an excuse when your student is absent. The excuse must show the date(s) of absence, the reason for absence, and must be signed by a parent/guardian. If possible, please put a telephone number on the excuse so you can be reached in case of any questions. Excuses must be submitted within five (5) school days or it must be approved by Child Welfare & Attendance. In addition, The East Baton Rouge Parish School System will only accept ten (10) parent notes per school year!