If a student must leave at any time during the school day, a parent/guardian must call the attendance office at (818) 735-3311 prior to the time of release. Please call ahead and allow ample time for passes to be prepared. Students returning to campus the same day must check back in at the Attendance Office to be readmitted to class.

*To minimize classroom disruptions, Off-Campus Passes are NOT delivered to students, and classrooms will not be called. If your student is leaving early, they MUST pick up their pass in the Main Office before going to class. 

Anytime a student is late, they must check-in at the Attendance Office for a Late/Re-Admit Slip. The time of check-in will be logged at the Attendance Office and the student will be marked as tardy or absent on the teacher's official record. Parents will still be required to call the Attendance Office at (818) 735-3311 if an absence occurs. 

See list of excused absences per Education Code 48205 here: AR 5113 (a)  

In order to participate in an activity or athletic event, students must be present in all scheduled classes on the date of said event. A tardy of 15 minutes or more will be considered an absence. If the student must be absent for a portion of the day of activity, administrative approval is required in order for a student to participate. 

Please email Mr. Jason Meskis for Administrative approval 24 hours in advance if your student will be late or absent. Administrative approval is required in order to participate in an extracurricular activity or game if the student will be late or absent for any portion of the school day. Please also include the appropriate Coach and the OPHS Attendance clerk on the email. 

Note: This requirement pertains to all OPUSD students participating in OPHS activities.

Students who turn 18 during the school year may request a waiver form to call in their own absences and to sign themselves out of school. Waiver forms must be signed by a parent or guardian, in person, at Oak Park High School. This special privilege does not exempt the student from all the policies regarding attendance at OPHS. Since compulsory education is only required until the age of 18, students who have reached the age of 18 and have excessive absences may forfeit their right to attend our comprehensive high school.

Avoid Unexcused Absences

Because there have been changes in the way the state funds short-term independent study, we would like to discourage parents from taking students out of school for vacations or personal business. However, if your family business will occupy anywhere between 1-14 days, you may request prior permission for your student to be absent through the process of SHORT-TERM INDEPENDENT STUDY. This provision in state law allows the student to be absent without penalty as long as all classwork is completed as agreed by student and teachers. The form for approval of Independent Study must be requested from the Attendance Office at least 2 weeks in ADVANCE of the planned absence. The contract must be signed by all teachers, a parent, and a school administrator prior to the absence. In addition, a copy of the student's completed work must be filed with the contract in the Attendance Office no more than five days after a student’s return to all classes in order to be approved. 

For more information, or to request an Independent Study Contract, please contact Blanca Elazary at the Attendance office: belazary@opusd.org

Q: "My student is taking their driver's permit test. Is this excused?"

A: Requests to be excused for DMV, passport, or embassy appointments must be submitted in advance in writing to the attendance office, and appropriate documentation is required for the absence to be considered excused.

Q: "I called and left a message verifying my student's absence; why is it marked as Unexcused?" 

A: The reason for the absence is most likely not one of the Excused reasons per Ed. Code 48205.

Q: "I forgot to call three-weeks ago when my student was out sick. Can I still clear the absence?"

A: All absences must be verified within 72 hours. 

Q: "I called 30 minutes  ago for an Off Campus Pass but my student's teacher won't let them leave."

A: Student life here at OPHS is busy and bustling - especially during Nutrition and at Lunch. During nutrition and lunch periods we are actively serving students and/or parents at the office counter. Please allow ample time to let us know that your student needs to leave campus early. If students know they are leaving early they must pick up their Off-Campus pass before going to class as we will NOT call or interrupt classes to pull students out except only in emergency situations.

Q: "My student is texting me from the classroom saying they don't feel well. I'm here to pick them up but the teacher won't let them leave, and my student is waiting for the office to call the classroom to get out."  

A: Anytime your student does not feel well they should let their teacher know. Teachers will then issue a pass for them to visit the Health Office - this is not a pass to leave campus! Students must check out through the Health Office first. If students leave campus without checking out through the office, their absence will be considered Unexcused. 

Q: "My student was in class but the teacher marked them absent."

A: Teachers are human and occasionally they make mistakes too especially in busy classrooms. There could be a variety of possible reasons why a student may have been marked absent by mistake. Some possible scenarios include but are not limited to: 

• The student was not in their assigned seat at the time attendance was taken. 

• The student or the teacher did not hear the attendance roll call. 

• The student was 'outside' while attendance was being taken. 

If the student was marked absent by mistake, please have your student communicate with their teacher directly to make any necessary corrections. Teachers can make attendance updates within 72 hours. Once 72 hours have passed, teachers can contact the Attendance Office to verify the student's attendance and request an update. 

Q: "My student says they don't need to attend the activity, assembly or rally, and/or they have nothing to do in the class after the activity." 

A: Student safety is of the utmost priority at OPHS. Assemblies or activities are carefully planned and integrated into the school year. If you are requesting an Off-Campus Pass on an activity, assembly or rally day for a medical appointment, documentation for the medical appointment will be required.

Q: "My student didn't feel well and had my permission to leave campus to go home." 

A: We are a closed campus. Students are not to leave the campus without an off-campus permit from the attendance office. Students who do not follow this procedure will be considered truant, and appropriate disciplinary consequences will result.