From Aspen School District Administrative Policy: STUDENT ABSENCES AND EXCUSES Policy JH

One criteria of a student's success in school is regular and punctual attendance. Frequent absences may lead to poor academic work, lack of social development and possible academic failure. Regular attendance is of utmost importance for school interest, social adjustment and scholastic achievement. No single factor may interfere with a student's progress more quickly than frequent tardiness or absence. According to state law, it is the obligation of every parent/guardian to ensure that every child under their care and supervision receives adequate education and training and, if of compulsory attendance age, attends school... For at least these reasons, the Administration believes that a student must satisfy two basic requirements in order to earn full class credit: (1) satisfy all academic requirements and (2) exhibit good attendance habits as stated in this policy… Each unexcused absence shall be entered on the student's record. The parents/guardians of the student receiving an unexcused absence shall be notified orally or in writing by the district of the unexcused absence...Students are required to attend at least 85% of their scheduled classes.Any violation of this will result in no credit.

Attendance Policy & Procedure at AHS

• Students will receive a withdraw fail if they do not attend 85% of their scheduled classes.
• For a semester course, students may not have more than 7 days of absences; this includes unexcused, parent excused & pre-arranged absences due to travel. It does not include sports or school-sanctioned activities (Model UN, FBLA, etc.)
• Once a student has 3 excused absences in a single class without a doctor’s note, parents will be required to meet with administration.
• The maximum number of unexcused absences a student may incur before judicial proceedings are initiated to enforce compulsory attendance is 10 days during any calendar year or school year.

Tardy Policy & Procedure at AHS

• Students are required to arrive to class on time.
• After 3 tardies teachers will assign a student to lunch duty in the commons.
• Should a student miss the assigned lunch duty or have another tardy, the student will be referred to administration.

Entering or Leaving Classes in Session

Early Dismissal:

Students who need to leave classes early are required to bring a note to the front office from their parent or guardian. The note should state the reason for dismissal and the time the student needs to be dismissed. This note will be kept in the office as an official record and the student will be issued a school dismissal note to be given to the appropriate teacher. In lieu of a note, parents may call the attendance assistant with the information. However, students must still report to the office to pick up a dismissal note to give to the classroom teacher.

Late Arrival:

Students who will be entering a class after it has begun are required to bring a note to the front office from their parent or guardian. The note should state the reason for their being tardy. This note will be kept in the office as an official record and the student will be issued a school admittance note stating the reason, whether the admittance is excused or unexcused and the time the student checked in at the main office. In lieu of a note, parents may call the attendance assistant with the information. However, students must still report to the office to pick up a class admittance note.

Excused versus Unexcused Absences and Course Credit Issues

An unexcused absence (a class missed without being excused by a parent, teacher or school administrator) results in an after-school detention for a student of 90 minutes. Students who do not serve their assigned detention are subject to further school discipline up to and including suspension from school.

In the past, there has been some confusion about absences and loss of course credit.

Students are required to be present in each of their courses each semester for 85% of the time in order to receive credit for the course.

If a student misses more than7classes in a given course during the semester, he/she may lose credit for that course.

Even though a parent may excuse a student from a class, it still counts towards a loss of credit for the class.

TheONLYabsences which do not count towards loss of credit are:

1) an absence verified by anofficial note from a doctor

2) an absence for adeath in the familyverified by a parent/guardian

3) an absence for aschool-sponsored activity

4) apre-arranged absence(see the section on pre-arranged absences)

Pre-arranged Absences

The pre-arranged absence is designed to give students the opportunity to take advantage of unique extended educational/athletic experiences or deal with family crises/issues that cannot be handled outside of scheduled school days. It is not intended to be used for extended vacation time. All students must meet with the Assistant Principal to make arrangements and obtain any necessary forms.

Any work noted by teachers is required to be made up by the student within a timeframe equal to that of their absence. Students (NOT TEACHERS) are accountable for the made-up work. If work is not made up in the appropriate timeframe, teachers are not required to extend the time or give credit for the missing work.

*NOTE: Once obtained the pre-arranged form must be completely filled out and authorized and a copy returned to the main office to be valid. If it is not, the absences will count toward potential loss of credit.

School Sponsored Activities

Parents do not need to notify the attendance assistant of their child’s absence due to school-sponsored activities. The school’s athletic director or teacher leading the activity will provide the attendance office with a list of students who will be missing classes. These will be entered in the attendance system appropriately. Students do not need to get a pre-arranged absence form for these activities BUT are still responsible for class work and homework assigned during the activity absence.

Illness During the Day

If your child becomes ill during the school day they must report to the office and receive an official school slip to go to the nurses’ office. The nurses will assess the situation and if necessary will contact parents to have their student dismissed/picked up. The nurses will notify the main office if a student is dismissed. If a student is cleared to return to class, they need to stop back at the main office to receive al school admit slip to return to class.

Doctor’s Visits

We recognize that during the course of the school year students may become ill from time to time. We encourage students to practice good health habits (i.e. plenty of sleep, good nutrition, wash hands frequently, not share water bottles or utensils, etc.). However, if your child has an extended absence (more than 2 days) due to illness we encourage you to see a doctor and have the doctor provide you with a note documenting your child’s absence. When we receive a copy of this note all related absences are noted as “doctor verified” absences. These absences do not count toward potential loss of credit for your child. Again, students are responsible for making up missed work in a time frame equal to that of their absence.