Attendance Policies and Procedures

The purpose of this section on our school website is to outline the state mandates and our district policies as related to school attendance.

Palos Verdes Peninsula USD - BP 5113 Students /Absences And Excuses
The Board of Education believes that regular attendance plays an important role in student achievement. The Board shall work with parents/guardians and students to ensure their compliance with all state attendance laws, and may use appropriate legal means to correct problems of chronic absence or truancy.

Excused Absences
Absence from school shall be excused only for health reasons, family emergencies, and justifiable personal reasons, as permitted by law, Board policy, and administrative regulations. (Education Code 48205)

Parental Notifications (cf. 5145.6)
Students shall not be absent from school without their parents/guardians’ knowledge or consent except in cases of medical emergency or confidential medical appointment.
Student absence for religious instruction or participation in religious exercises away from school property may be considered excused subject to law and administrative regulations. (Education Code 46014)

 
Absences

STUDENTS THAT ARE ABSENT: Parents should report all student absences to the Office by calling the office (310) 377- 6691 x 278 or emailing [email protected] 

If the Attendance Office is not contacted, the student must provide the Attendance Office with a written note providing the reason for the absence. A parent or guardian must sign the note. The note must be provided on the day the student returns to school. Students who have been absent part of the day must report to the Attendance Office immediately upon returning to school.

IMPORTANT:

1. All absences must be cleared within 72 hours in written form for safety and audit purposes
2. Students will receive a truant if they leave campus without a Off-Campus Pass
3. Truancy is a unauthorized absences from school for any part of the school day missed
4. Parents planning to be out of town must notify the Attendance Office and the Health Office and provide temporary guardian information in written form - THIS MUST BE DONE PRIOR TO THE PARENTS’ DEPARTURE
5. Students who have had a communicable disease (i.e. pink eye, mononucleosis, chicken pox, etc.) must check with the school nurse before being readmitted to class.

We thank you for your support of these attendance procedures & policies.

Leaving Campus for Medical or Non-Medical Appointments

If you follow this procedure you will not have to come into the attendance office, just pick your child up at the pre-designated area you have arranged with your child.

STUDENTS THAT NEED TO LEAVE FOR A MEDICAL OR NON MEDICAL APPOINTMENT:
PLEASE DO NOT CALL THE ATTENDANCE LINE

1. Your child is to bring a NOTE from a parent providing student’s full name and grade level to the ATTENDANCE Office
2. Indicate that the appointment is for medical or non-­ medical and the time that you would like your child released from class.
3. Your child will bring that note to the ATTENDANCE Office, first thing in the morning. A pass will be given to your child to show the teacher and security that they have permission to leave the campus.
4. If your child is returning to school please get a re-admit form from the doctor’s office or the non-medical office and have your student bring that form into the ATTENDANCE Office with the permit to leave campus. If you forgot the re-admit parents may write a note – include the date and time of drop-off.

Leaving Campus Due To Illness

If a student feels ill during school hours, the student should check in with his/her teacher and ask to go to the Health Office. At that time the student will be able to call his/her parent or guardian to get permission to go home. If the student is too sick to be at school he/she should be waiting in the Health Office, not in the classroom. It is also not acceptable for a student to leave school when feeling ill and have a parent call after the fact. Every student must check out of school so that the school knows where that student is in case of an emergency.

Policy Reminders
Just a brief reminder on some of our attendance policies:
• Students have the opportunity to prearrange an absence (college visits, family trips, etc.), at the teacher's discretion. If a student does not complete the prearranged absence paperwork, these absences are marked “U” in Aeries, and it is the teacher's discretion to accept make-up assignments.
• Students on field trips should bring in the permission forms to the teacher at least 3 days in advance. Students are responsible for bringing the work or making up tests immediately upon return. (Students do not get the one day per day of absence to make up work.)

Tardy Policy
It is very important for students to arrive to class before the bell rings. For habitual tardiness, the student will be referred to the Student Attendance Review Board (SARB). Habitual tardiness becomes an attendance problem subject to disciplinary action. A student will be marked tardy if he/she arrives to class up to 30 minutes after the bell rings without appropriate permission from the office.

SARB (School Attendance Review Board)
For habitual tardies, cuts, unexcused absences, and excessive excused absences, a student may be referred to the School Attendance Review Board (SARB).
The goal of the SARB board is to keep students in school, increase graduation rate, and develop and implement strategies to improve student attendance, behavior and achievement. At SARB meetings the parent(s)/guardian(s) and student are advised of the California State compulsory education laws and potential consequences for the student and parent(s)/guardian(s) if they are not complying with the law. Obstacles preventing school attendance are addressed, the SARB board suggests solutions, and a SARB contract is signed. Although the goal of a SARB meeting is to keep students in school and provide them with a meaningful educational experience, SARB boards do have the power, when necessary, to refer students and their parent(s)/guardian(s) to the District Attorney’s Office.