Good Afternoon
With the first full week of school completed, I wanted to be sure to reach out to our parents/ guardians to make you are aware of the policy changes regarding attendance. As we reflected over our local school and district data we noticed that changes needed to be made. When parents, students, and staff meet for our policy review this past May we discussed several topics including attendance. In efforts to close the academic gap of our students and after lengthy discussion the following adjustments were proposed and then board approved. They new policy is as follow:
Absences, Excuses, and Truancy
CCSD students are allowed up to 4 parent notes per semester to excuse an absence.
After the 4th day of absence each semester, a doctor’s note is required for the absence to be excused.
Example: All absences below are in one semester:
Absence 1: Student absent 1 day sick. (Can be parent excused or doctor excused)
Absences 2 & 3: Student absent 2 days for an immediate family member’s funeral. (Can/must use Parent Note Excuse)
Absence 4: Student absent 1 day Doctor’s Appointment. (Should be a doctor’s note, but it could be a parent's note)
Absence 5: Student out for any reason. (Must be doctor’s note or it is unexcused)
Student reached their 4th day being absent on Absence 4. Parent notes can not be used after the 4th day of being absent to be excused there must be a doctor’s note or it will be unexcused.
These excuses are not automatically applied. The parent has to send a physical note or use the upload option at the schools that have them.
The following reasons are recognized as legitimate excuses for Parent Notes:
Illness
Death in the immediate family
Inclement weather which would be dangerous to the life and health of the student as determined by the principal or superintendent
Legal quarantine
Emergency
Prior permission of the principal with the consent of the parent or legal guardian
Excuse Notes MUST be turned in to the office within three days of the student returning to school. For your convenience, you may also use the HES Student Excuse Form found on our school website.
Unexcused absences require the below board policy to be followed:
Step 1 - The school Principal or designee will notify the parent or guardian by email or letter that the accumulation of two unexcused absence days in a semester has called for their attendance at an Early Warning Meeting held at the school hosted by the Principal or their designee, where a plan is developed to correct the behavior.
Step 2- Three days after the third unexcused absence day in a semester, the local school designee or principal will notify the District Truancy Deputy to contact a central office director. The student's parent or guardian will be contacted by letter by either the Director of Elementary Education or the School Improvement Specialist from the district level. The District Truancy Deputy will conduct a home visit to explain previous actions and next steps, which include filing a complaint or petition against the student (10 years or older) with Chambers County Juvenile Services if the issue is not corrected.
Step 3- Three days after the fourth unexcused absence day in a semester, the local school designee or principal will notify the District Truancy Deputy to contact the Assistant Superintendent. The student's parent or guardian will be contacted by letter, phone, or email from the district level notifying them of a meeting with the Assistant Superintendent to explain previous steps and next steps, which include filing a complaint or petition against the student (10 years or older) with Chambers County Juvenile Services. The parent or guardian will be notified that another unexcused absence that is not followed with an excuse within three school days will result in a warrant being filed against them for truancy at the Chambers County Courthouse. Additionally, a doctor’s note must be provided for every absence after the fourth one for each semester.
Step 4 - Three days after the fifth unexcused absence day in a semester, the school truancy officer will contact the Superintendent. The student’s parent or guardian will have a warrant filed against them for truancy by the Superintendent at the Chambers County Courthouse.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me during my office hours.
Thank you in advance for your support and cooperation.