La Cañada 7/8 High School

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Attendance Information » Absences

Absences

Excused Absences and Tardies

 

There are only nine types of excused absences as defined by California Ed Code Section 48205.

  1.  Illness
  2.  Quarantine under the direction of a county or city health officer
  3.  Medical, dental, optometric or chiropractic services
  4.  Funeral service of the student’s immediate family
  5.  Jury duty
  6.  Illness or medical appointment during school hours of a child of whom the student is the custodial parent.
  7.  When requested in writing by a parent AND approved by an administrator, personal reasons such as appearance in court, funeral service, holiday or ceremony of student’s religion or attendance at an employment conference can be considered.
  8.  Serving as a member of a precinct board pursuant to Section 12303 of the Elections Code.
  9.  Spending time with a member of the pupil’s immediate family who is an active duty member of the uniformed services—duration up to the discretion of the district superintendent.
Absence Limits and Consequences

All school absences have a negative impact on learning. Early identification of poor attendance by parents and school staff leads to greater student success. This attendance plan is in place to promote positive attendance. There are serious consequences for ANY student who accumulates nine or more absences in any one class period for any reason within one semester.

Parents will be notified by the auto dialer or by email of each student absence. Please verify all absences with the Attendance Office within 24 hours.
 
  • A student who is absent three days without a valid excuse for more than 30 minutes in one school year is considered truant and shall be reported to the attendance administrator according to California law. (Education Code § 48205 and 48260[a]). An administrator will notify the parent as an early intervention to correct the behavior.
  • Upon the fourth absence of any kind in one semester, an administrator will notify the parent or guardian by email, telephone or letter.
  • Upon the fifth or sixth absence or sooner at teacher discretion, the teacher is encouraged to contact parents. 
  • Upon the sixth to eighth absence from the same class period in one semester, in addition to parent notification, the administrator and/or counselor may contact or meet with the student and parent to discuss the circumstances of the absences. Together, they will diagnose issues and determine appropriate ways attendance can be improved. Saturday School, Detention and other consequences may be reviewed and assigned.
  • If the problem continues and a student accumulates nine absences in one class period within one semester, in addition to the actions listed in #5, the student’s name may be added to the activity “No Go” list where privileges will be lost. The student may not be permitted to participate in school activities, dances, field trips, graduation ceremonies, etc. In addition, if the student has a parking permit or Off-Campus Lunch Permit, the permits may be revoked.
  • More than nine absences More than nine absences in one class period within one semester is considered excessive. Students accumulated more than nine absences may be referred to a Student Study Team (SST) or Student Attendance Review Team (SART) meeting. An Attendance Contract may be initiated and other consequences may be issued.
 
Nine or more full day absences for ANY reason within one semester is considered a “chronic absentee.” Students who accumulate nine or more full day absences may be referred to a School Attendance Review Board (SARB). Through SARB, the student, parent, assistant principal, community resource officer, a probation officer and a deputy district attorney will determine an appropriate action to remediate the student's attendance. The student may be placed on a SARB contract. Other consequences described above may also be imposed.
 
Consequences for Poor Attendance or Punctuality
 
The following consequences may be used to improve attendance.
  • Detention
  • Saturday School
  • Parent Conference
  • Community Service
  • Loss of the privilege of a Parking Permit
  • Loss of the privilege of an Off-Campus Lunch Permit
  • Student Study Team (SST)/Student Attendance Review Team (SART)/Student Attendance Review Board (SARB)

Consequences available for "U" Grades in Citizenship per Quarter/Semester, and Citizenship GPA of 2.5 or Lower

  • Loss of field trip and student activity privileges
  • Loss of  Parking Permit privilege
  • Loss of eligibility to APPLY for a Parking Permit in the 2018-2019 school year. (June 2018 citizenship grades will be used to determine eligibility in the 2018-2019 school year.)
  • Loss of athletic eligibility per California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) regulations and Board Policy  
    • Probation = lower than 2.5 citizenship GPA with no more than 1 U
    • Ineligible = two ‘U’s or a probationary student still below 2.5 for second consecutive marking period (Quarter grades)
  • On probation or ineligible for participation in extracurricular and co-curricular activities such as performances and activities.