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Attendance Policy and Procedures
Daily attendance and active participation in each class is a critical part of the learning process.  A significant role of today’s school is to help students learn to understand and recognize the value of punctuality, engagement, and regular attendance.  Research points to regular school attendance as a positive influence on the success of our students in school.  The philosophy behind the policy, supported by Board Policy 204, is to promote responsibility and to increase the potential for our students to be successful in school and in all future endeavors.

School attendance is the primary responsibility of the parent/guardian and the student.  In 1911, the Pennsylvania state legislature enacted a Compulsory Attendance Law that requires children between the ages of 8 and 17 to attend school.  An absence from school will only be excused if it is for one of the following reasons:

• Illness
• School sanctioned activities
• Absences related to the legal system
• Family emergency
• Bereavement/Funeral
• Religious observances
• Approved absences by the administration
• Doctor's appointments

All of these listed absences require written documentation, from the parent/guardian, to be submitted  to the attendance office within three days of the absence.

Morning Attendance
Students are required to be in class by 7:40 AM.  Any student arriving to school AFTER THIS TIME MUST report to the attendance office as late to school and obtain a pass in order to report to class. Any student who arrives to school after 9:30 AM is considered absent for one half of a day; any student who arrives after 11:00 AM will be considered absent for the day.

Unexcused/Illegal Absences
Any student under the age of 17 who has three (3) illegal absences will be referred to Northampton County Truancy Prevention Program and will appear before the district magistrate initially for an informal hearing. Any subsequent unexcused absences will result in the issuance of a truancy citation. A student whose absences are illegal or unexcused will not be permitted to make up work for the day or days missed.  All graded activities shall be treated as if the student had chosen not to participate in them. The disciplinary action may include after school detentions, in-school suspensions, or out-of-school suspensions.

Cumulative Absences
Any student who accumulates more than ten (10) absences within a school year will be required to supply a medical doctor’s note for any subsequent absences, stating why the child could not attend school and with the specific dates the student was to be absent listed on it.  A letter will be sent out to the parent/guardian informing them that a doctor’s note will be required for all future absences. Failure to do so will result in any additional absences being documented as unexcused.

Class Attendance
Students who are cutting class will be referred to the office for disciplinary action at the earliest convenience of the teacher. The student will receive zeroes for any class that was cut as well as an in-school suspension for each block that is cut. Block 5 is considered a class; failure to attend when required to do so by a teacher will result in the same penalties as a cut for any class.

Dismissal For Appointments
Students desiring to be excused from school before the end of the regular school day MUST come to the attendance office BEFORE Block 1 begins.  The student must bring a note signed by the parent/guardian to the attendance office; the note should state the date, time and reason why the student must be excused.  When returning from an appointment, the student must have written documentation of the visit. Students must sign out in the attendance office before they leave the building and upon their return. 

Homework and Make-up Request
It is the responsibility of the teacher and student to arrange for completion of make-up work if a student misses class.  It is the student's responsibility to contact the teacher in order to make these arrangements.  A parent/guardian may call their child’s school counselor and request that homework be sent home for the student.  Such requests MUST be made before 7:45 AM the day that the homework is to be taken home.  Teachers will be notified of the request by via e-mail or by placing a homework request form in their mailboxes.  Teachers will complete the form, attach any necessary papers, and place the form in the homework request mailbox on the counter in the office prior to 2:30 PM.  Parents, guardians, or fellow students may then pick up the homework from the box at the close of the school day between 2:30 PM and 3:30 PM.

Tardies To Class
Students are expected to be punctual in arriving at their classes. If a student is late to class, the teacher (Blocks 1, 2, 3, 4) will record the tardy on the appropriate form and the student will initial it. If the student refuses to initial it, the teacher will make note of such on the form. Any student who accrues three tardies will receive an after-school detention. An additional three tardies can result in after-school detention or any other consequence deemed appropriate by the administration.

Tardies To School
Being late to school must be verified by phone or in writing by the parent or guardian by the next day or it will be considered unexcused. Students who are late to school (after 7:40 AM) WILL report to the Attendance Office. Attendance Secretary will determine whether the tardy is excused or unexcused. No student who is late to school will be admitted to class without a pass from the Attendance Secretary. If the late to school is excused, the student will report to class with no penalty. If the late to school is unexcused, the student will be considered tardy to class and the appropriate penalties as specified below will apply. In addition, the student MUST make up any time missed with the teacher of that class during Block 5.

The only excuse that will be accepted for tardiness will be a doctor’s note or a valid reason, submitted in writing, by the parent/guardian. Any student continually late to block 1 or any other block will be required to attend mandatory block 5 in order to make up work that is missed.

An accumulation of minutes that equal half a day of school will result in one illegal absence day. Multiple tardy infractions will result in additional consequences as deemed appropriate by the Assistant Principal.

Truancy
ACT 29, CHAPTER 11 ‑ SEC. 11.3, REVISED 1994
The new truancy law raises the fine to parents for truancy to $300.00 and requires parents to pay court costs and/or be sentenced to complete a Parenting Education Program. Under the Act, both the truant child and the parents would have to appear at a hearing before a District Justice. If the parents are found guilty, and do not pay the fine and court costs, they will be sentenced to five (5) days in jail. If the parent is not convicted and the child continues to be truant, the child will be fined up to $300.00 and court costs or be assigned to an Adjudication Alternative Program. Other provisions of the Act allow a District Justice to suspend a sentence given to a parent or child if the child is no longer habitually truant.

The new law also grants to State, Municipal, Port Authority, and School Police Officers the same arrest powers as attendance officers and home/school visitors. In case any child of compulsory school age cannot be kept in school in compliance with the provisions of the Act, on account of incorrigibility, truancy, insubordination, or other inappropriate conduct, or if the presence of any child attending school is detrimental to the welfare of such school, the school may proceed against said child by petitioning for an adjudication of dependency. In addition, ACT 29 removes their operating driving privileges from truant juveniles, ninety (90) days for the first offense and six (6) months for a second offense. Juveniles who are unlicensed are prohibited from applying for a learner's permit for the same periods, beginning upon their 16th birthday.