Student parents/guardians should call the school at 846-7250 before 7:20  am on the day that the student is absent.  Please be sure to state the full name of the student and the reason for their absence in the message. Please request to speak with the Attendance Clerk or select their extension from the automated message when you call the school. 

If a student is marked "Absence-Skipping" and a reason for the absence has not been reported to the school by 8:00 AM on the day of the absence, a robo-call/text will be sent to the primary parent/guardian listed on the student's contact information requesting further information.

Faculty are not required to provide students with opportunities to make-up work that is missed during a period of unexcused absence 

A student who has been absent five (5) or more consecutive days because of illness may be required to present a doctor's certificate upon return to school.

Vacations taken during school time are considered unexcused absences

Doctor/Dentist appointments, medical illness, court appointments, and college visits (official verification required for all) are considered excused absences.

A death in the family or a religious holiday may also constitute an excused absence

Excused absences are considered verified with proper documentation: observance of religious holiday; medical appointment; prolonged illness; surgery/hospitalization; death in the family/extenuating family emergency; college visits; court appointment; DMV driver's test; or school sponsored field trip. Absences warranted by unusual circumstances must be approved by the school administration. Student attendance can be reviewed on the PowerSchool Parent Portal at any time.  Students are responsible for obtaining any assignments missed during verified absences. 

Students who are deemed to be chronically absent (i.e. Absent more than 10% of the total school days "to date") will be referred to the Assistant Principal or Truant Officer. Home visits may occur as deemed appropriate by the school administration

Excessive school absences may result in one or more of the following correspondence: text message, voice phone call, email, certified letter

Continued school absences will be subject to Truancy Court referral

A student is considered tardy to school if they are not present in their first period class by 7:20 AM.

Any student reporting to school after 7:20 AM needs to sign in with attendance clerk in the Main Office to obtain a tardy slip.

In order to be considered eligible to participate in extracurricular activities/athletics for the school day, students must be present  for 80% of the school day. This means that students must be at school no later than 7:20 AM.

Tardies are only excused for the same reasons outlined in the "School Attendance" section above: observance of religious holiday; medical appointment; prolonged illness; surgery/hospitalization; death in the family/extenuating family emergency; college visits; court appointments; DMV driver's test; or school sponsored field trip. Absences warranted by unusual circumstances must be approved by the school administration. Student attendance can be reviewed on the PowerSchool Parent Portal at any time. Students are responsible for obtaining any assignments missed during verified absences.

Faculty are not required to provide students with opportunities to make-up work that is missed during a period of unexcused absence. Students are permitted up to three (3) unexcused tardies each quarter and will receive a disciplinary consequence on the fourth (4th) tardy. Each additional tardy will constitute further disciplinary action.  Every 5 unexcused tardies and/or dismissals equate to one full absence.

Disciplinary consequences relating to tardiness will be administered on an escalating scale for continued lateness. These consequences may include, but are not limited to: after-school detention, additional community service, loss of parking privileges, loss of leadership position in extracurricular events, loss of extracurricular participation privileges,  and/or truancy court referral, social probation including inability to attend athletic events and/or other extra-curricular activities.

Please refer to RI General Law regarding school attendance,

As much as possible, medical and dental appointments should be made for a time after school hours

If it is imperative that a student be dismissed from school, a written, dated request from a parent/guardian must be given to the Attendance Clerk. This request should include the student's full name (first and last), grade, dismissal time, and reason for dismissal

• The student should be given a dismissal slip to be shown to the classroom teacher at the assigned time

• The student must report to the Attendance office to sign out prior to leaving the building

Faculty are not required to provide students with opportunities to make-up work that is missed during a period of unexcused absence 

Parents should make every attempt to avoid coming to school without advanced notice to dismiss their child and/or calling last minute. To minimize disruption to the academic environment, office staff will not call classrooms to dismiss students during a scheduled class

• Please Note: Only authorized individuals (i.e. parent/guardian and/or those listed as "emergency contacts" for a student) are allowed to dismiss a student from school. Students will not be released to anyone who is not listed in the school's database as an authorized contact

A student must bring in a medical note (signed by the professional treating the student) within 24 hours of the dismissal. If a note is not presented, the absence will be listed as "Unexcused"

In order to be considered eligible to participate in extracurricular activities/athletics for the school day, students must be present  for 80% of the school day. This means that students being dismissed from school must remain in the building until at least 12:30pm

No student will be dismissed for work unless such approval has been granted by the Principal as part of a structured program

Students are not allowed to use school phones to call to be dismissed by parents, except in cases involving the nurse or where permission has been provided by school administration or the Attendance Clerk. 

Students dismissed from school prior to 12:30pm may not attend sports or extra-curricular activities, including MHS proms that day unless provided with written documentation of destination. Students are expected to return to school once appointment is complete. 

A parent conference may be called if there are frequent class/school dismissals. Excessive dismissals will result in disciplinary and/or court action

STUDENT ENTRANCE AND EXIT PROCEDURES:

• If tardy to school, all students (regardless of age) must sign in when entering MHS with the Attendance Clerk.  

• If a student needs to leave MHS early, all students (regardless of age) must sign out with the Attendance Clerk.

• Students who come into school tardy or need to leave school early must enter/exit through the Main Office doors per school safety reasons. Students who violate this will be referred to the MHS Administration.