Attendance

Reporting absences, pre-arranging absences, lost and found, homework requests, admit to class:

Attendance Office - English ext. 27609 - Spanish ext. 27602

ATTENDANCE PROCEDURE

According to state law, it is the obligation of parents to ensure that every child under their care and supervision receives adequate education and, of compulsory attendance age, attends school.

Good attendance is of paramount importance to academic performance and overall success of students. Absences, whether excused or unexcused, are detrimental to the learning process. Regular attendance develops habits that are essential for success. It is the joint responsibility of students, parents/guardians and schools to ensure regular attendance. Excessive student absences may be symptomatic of problems which necessitate joint efforts of the school, student, home and community agencies.

Students enrolled in the Aurora Public Schools are required to attend classes, unless excused for good reason, in accordance with the Colorado School Attendance Law (C.R.S. 22-33-101 and Article IX, Section 2 of the Colorado Constitution). Therefore, in cases of excessive absences, the district will utilize community agencies as well as Truancy court, in order to enforce regular attendance when student or parental/guardian responsibility has not been met

RESPONSIBILITIES

STUDENT

  1. Attend school for all days of the adopted calendar

  2. Be in class on time, prepared for academic work. Students who are late less than half of the class period will be marked as “tardy.” Discipline will be assigned to students who have a pattern of habitual tardiness.

  3. Contact teachers immediately upon returning from an absence to receive make-up assignments and deadlines for completing them

  4. Complete work as assigned by the teacher when a pre-arranged absence is required

  5. Follow the established school procedure when enrolling in or withdrawing from class

  6. Follow the established school procedure for arriving at school late or leaving early; specifically, you must sign-in at the attendance office when arriving late, and you must be excused through the attendance office or nurse and sign-out if leaving early

  7. Be conscious of your attendance records and follow-up on needed corrections

  8. Communicate with your parents so they call to excuse you according to the school's procedures

PARENT

  1. Ensure that the student is attending school. We recommend that parents access the Parent Portal on Infinite Campus to frequently check their student’s attendance and grades.

  2. Maintain communication with the student regarding attendance

  3. Understand that any absence, regardless of the cause, has a detrimental influence on student achievement

  4. Contact the school (using the appropriate procedure) regarding absences; specifically, call the attendance office no later than the end of business the day following the absence to excuse your student; only one parent error will be corrected each year.

  5. In the case of extended home confinement, request make-up assignments

  6. Monitor the make-up work of the student who has missed class

  7. Follow the established school procedure when enrolling or withdrawing a student from school

  8. Provide the school with the current and accurate telephone number or other means of contacting a parent/guardian during the school day

TEACHER

  1. Emphasize the value of regular and punctual attendance and support incentive programs

  2. Take attendance daily and maintain accurate records

  3. Report absences to the attendance office according to building procedures (i.e. Infinite Campus)

  4. Check Infinite Campus daily to note truant students; counsel or refer as appropriate

  5. Notify parents and appropriate school personnel of attendance concerns

  6. Initiate attendance corrections when errors occur

  7. Provide make-up assignments and reasonable deadlines for completion

COUNSELOR

  1. Provide counseling and support for students regarding attendance

  2. Make appropriate contacts with students and parents concerning attendance

  3. Ensure appropriate scheduling for students who are identified with special attendance needs

  4. Help students identify and make decisions regarding education alternatives

OFFICE STAFF

  1. Record parent calls to excuse student absences

  2. Initiate the automatic calling system to notify parents of a student's unexcused absence

  3. Correct staff errors and one student/parent error per school year

  4. Monitor the sign-in/sign-out sheet

ADMINISTRATORS

  1. Notify parents, students and staff of Colorado attendance law, district attendance policy, level regulation, and building procedures at the beginning of each year, or upon enrollment

  2. Meet with counselor, dean, parent/guardian and student to complete a Student Success Plan.

  3. Supervise and administer Colorado school attendance laws, district attendance policy, level regulations and building policies, including those pertaining to habitually truant students

  4. Assist the support staff with the implementation of attendance policy, level regulations, and building procedures

  5. Collaborate with outside agencies concerning attendance matters

  6. Work with district truancy specialist

NOTIFYING THE SCHOOL OF AN ABSENCE

Parents are to notify the attendance office on the day of the absence but no later than the end of business the day following the absence. There is an after-hours recorder (303-326-1676) to take calls 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Students leaving campus before their school day is over must be excused in advance from the attendance office and sign out before leaving school grounds. If students are ill, they must report to the nurse’s office before leaving. If the nurse determines the student is ill enough to go home, the nurse will call the parent, notify the attendance office, and excuse the student.

SCHOOL NOTIFICATION TO THE HOME

Rangeview High School will notify parents of a student's unverified absence via a computerized phone message. Parents will be notified on the same day as the absence. Due to program limitations, the message cannot identify the student by name or the period(s) the student was absent. Parents are encouraged to call the attendance office to verify the student's name and the period(s) of absence. Occasionally, the attendance office staff will contact the parent to verify a reported absence.

EXCUSED ABSENCES

The following absences will be considered excused:

  1. Illness/injury documented by the student’s parent/guardian.

  2. Appointments/serious circumstances which cannot be resolved before or after school hours. To the extent possible, the parent/guardian is encouraged to notify the school in advance.

  3. A student’s request to participate in extracurricular experiences outside of the school building may be approved for up to five days under certain circumstances and on a case-by-case basis.

  4. A student’s parent/guardian may request approval for an excused absence to attend to family business/family vacation (e.g. wedding, family trip). This excused absence is not to exceed three days per year and students must be in good academic standing (passing all classes), no unexcused absences, and have four or fewer excused absences in a semester.

  5. A student’s parent/guardian may request approval for an absence to be excused to attend a funeral. This absence shall not exceed three days. Approval shall be left to the discretion of the building administration.

  6. After three days of consecutive excused absences or in the case of excessive absences, a medical note may be required.

Absences due to suspension are considered to be excused for the purposes of truancy.

NO EXCUSED ABSENCES WHILE ON CAMPUS

Once students have arrived on campus, they are expected to be at their scheduled class. If students are absent from class and are on campus, they will be considered truant. Only a school administrator, counselor, or the nurse can excuse the absence.

This procedure ensures school officials and the parents know of the student's whereabouts. This also makes for good communication with staff and parents and ensures the safety of the student.

HABITUAL TRUANCY

According to Colorado attendance law, students who are truant the equivalent of four school days in any one month or ten school days during any school year are defined as "habitually truant."

UNEXCUSED ABSENCES

  1. Students will be considered truant or unexcused if they are absent from class without the prior knowledge and approval of their parent or guardian.

  2. Students will also be considered truant if they leave school grounds without signing out and without the attendance office being notified by a parent BEFORE the student leaves.

  3. Students who leave class without the teacher's permission will be considered truant.

  4. Absences not excused by a parent or guardian before end of business the day following the absence will be considered unexcused. Only one call per parent each year will be accepted beyond this deadline.

A court petition may be filed when the student has been deemed to be habitually truant and when interventions have been unsuccessful at changing the student’s behavior. A judicial officer will take action as he/she deems appropriate.

TARDY POLICY

Students are expected to be in class on time, prepared to begin work when the bell rings. Students who arrive late will be marked tardy in the teacher grade book and in Infinite Campus. Students who arrive during the first half of the period will be marked tardy. Students who miss more than half of the period will be marked absent. A parent must contact the attendance office to excuse a tardy.

The following interventions have been designed to prohibit habitual tardiness:

  1. Many teachers have their own tardy policies and will give consequences of their own to students. If a student does not serve the consequences which the teacher assigned them, the student should be referred to a Dean and will then be assigned a consequence.

  2. If a student has five tardies in one class, a member of the student’s ABS (Academic/Behavior Support) team will meet with them to identify appropriate interventions.

  3. If tardies continue, the student may be referred to a Dean and then assigned a consequence which may include In-School Solutions (ISS) and a parent conference.

  4. If the student does not attend the assigned consequence, the student may be assigned a consequence which may include In-School Solutions (ISS) until a parent conference is held.

  5. Students who accumulate 30 tardies in one quarter will meet with their ABS Team to develop a plan for on time class attendance and may be put on the No Pass List as well as the No Privileges List.

PRINCIPAL’S PASSES

Aurora Public Schools has developed an earned privilege off-campus program that began in the fall of the 2007-08 school year. With this program, all freshmen remain on campus during the entire school day. Sophomores, juniors and seniors may earn a Principal’s Pass to leave campus using the following criteria:

  1. 2.75 grade point average during the previous quarter

  2. 90% attendance rate during the previous quarter. Three tardies will equal one absence.

  3. No discipline referral during the previous quarter

Students (10th, 11th and 12th grades) will have the opportunity to earn a Principal’s Pass quarterly. Fourth quarter from the prior school year will determine eligibility for a Principal’s Pass for the first quarter the following school year. Once students earn a Principal’s Pass, they will receive a color-coded photo ID which must be with the student at all times. The color coding will change quarterly. Local law enforcement will be aware of the off-campus program.

Parents/guardians may choose to withhold the privilege of a Principal’s Pass by submitting their written request to the principal. The Principal’s Pass privilege may be revoked at any time at the discretion of the principal.

Freshmen and students who have not earned a Principal’s Pass may bring their lunch or may purchase lunch from the school lunch program. Parking lots will be considered off limits and students may not go to their vehicles during the day.

Students who do not have a Principal’s Pass and leave campus will receive a referral to the Deans’ office and discipline will be administered. This discipline may include work detail after school, restricted lunch, and possible tickets for trespassing. Repeat offenders will face suspension.

REQUESTS FOR HOMEWORK

Students requiring homework assignments due to extended excused absences (three days or more) should initially contact the attendance office. The attendance office will notify teachers and collect assignments from individual teachers. Assignments should be ready for pick up 24 hours after a request has been made. Please call the attendance office to check homework status.

MAKE-UP WORK DURING ABSENCES

Any time a student misses a class for any reason, the student will be expected to complete make-up work in order to achieve the learning objective presented to students who were present. This includes field trips, extracurricular activities, in-house and off-campus suspensions, etc. Students who have been absent from class must request make-up work from the teacher no later than the next class meeting. Teachers will determine a reasonable amount of time for make-up work when students are absent, using a two days for every one day absent guideline.

Teachers may provide an "alternative" learning experience for make-up work to any student who requests it upon returning to class.

Teachers will score and provide feedback for all make-up work that complies with the above guidelines. Teachers have the choice whether or not to assign and record marks to the make-up work from an unexcused absence.

ABSENCES DUE TO SCHOOL ACTIVITIES

The absences for school activities will be recorded as a school activity. Absences due to a school activity will not be counted against the student applying for a Principal’s Pass. If participation at school-sponsored activities appears to interfere with the student’s performance in the classroom, the teacher and coach/sponsor will confer with the student.

When students are to be excused for school sponsored events, in or out of the building, it is the coach/sponsor’s responsibility to follow the procedures for field trips and submit to the attendance office in advance a list of participants for these functions.

EXCESSIVE ABSENCES

Teachers have a responsibility to notify parents and appropriate school personnel of any student's excessive absences. In order to simplify the policy, remember an ABSENCE IS AN ABSENCE. Students who miss class and are excused or unexcused, for field trips, in-house suspensions, out of school suspensions, counselor visits, nurse visits or trips to the office are considered absent. ALL ABSENCES ARE APPLICABLE TO THE RULES OF MAKE-UP WORK.

EARNED ELIGIBILITY

Students with less than 90% attendance will be ineligible to attend extracurricular activities. This includes athletic events, plays, concerts and dances.