October 24, 2024
Dear Parents and Guardians,
As we approach the second marking period (October 25, 2024), I wanted to remind families about the importance of punctuality and attendance at school. Regular attendance is essential for your child’s academic success, and arriving on time plays a crucial role in this. Starting with the second marking period, we will be taking a more active approach to enforcing student attendance, particularly regarding tardiness and unexcused absences. While this may cause concern for some families and students, it’s important to understand that these expectations are not new.
The attendance and tardiness policies have always been clearly outlined in our student handbook, which all parents were provided with at the start of the school year. The only change now is that we will be doing a better job of enforcing these policies to ensure accountability and promote academic success for all students. As a reminder, families have 3 days to turn in an excuse for absences and tardies. Failure to do so will result in the student being marked unexcused.
Unexcused tardiness and absences will continue to carry consequences, as outlined in the handbook. For every three tardies, a student will receive a lunch detention. Five tardies will result in an after-school detention, and ten tardies will be equivalent to a full day unexcused absence, in addition to Saturday detention for middle school and high school students and an after-school detention for elementary students. Every five tardies after that will result in another unexcused absence and Saturday detention for middle school and high school students and an after-school detention for elementary students. Any unexcused tardy after 9:30 a.m. will be treated as a half-day unexcused absence. Additionally, students involved in extracurricular activities will not be allowed to participate on days when they arrive after 9:30 without excuse.
Students with repeated unexcused absences or tardiness will face further consequences, such as referrals to the Student Assistance Program (SAP), Children and Youth Services (CYS), Youth Advocate Program (YAP), or even legal action under compulsory school attendance laws. We recognize that certain situations can affect a student’s ability to arrive on time, but it is important to communicate with the school and provide timely documentation for excused absences to avoid unnecessary penalties.
We understand that this renewed enforcement may be frustrating for some, but it is essential for supporting student success and maintaining a structured learning environment. If there are any barriers to your child’s punctuality that we can assist with, please reach out. We are here to work with you to ensure your child’s attendance improves.
Thank you for your continued support and commitment to your child’s education.
Sincerely,
Mr. Michael J. Vuckovich
Superintendent