Attendance Information
To report an absence, please call the attendance line at:
(563) 332-0216
Early Dismissal / Student Pick-up Policy
All students must be signed in and out in the office. Students will only be released to adults, and only those indicated on emergency cards or by personal letter.
Attendance Philosophy
School attendance is the responsibility of the student, his/her parent or guardian, and the school. The Pleasant Valley Community School District expects students to be in school every day. Under the Federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), each school is expected to maintain, at a minimum, a 95% average 8 daily attendance throughout the year. Achieving this goal requires planning ahead and keeping school attendance a high priority. With this goal in mind:
- Doctor and dentist appointments should be made outside the school day whenever possible.
- Family vacation trips taken during school days are discouraged.
Attendance Policy
- Six days absent during a school year will result in a personal contact with parent/guardian to discuss solutions for improving attendance and or sending a letter of concern.
- Nine days absent during a school year will result in a follow-up letter and/or a personal contact todevelop a plan for improved attendance.
- Fifteen days absent during the school year will result in a parent conference to review the previous interventions to improve attendance. Included in this meeting will be a discussion of possible legal procedures if attendance does not improve. A letter for documentation will also be included in this step.
Note: For truancy purposes, three late to school tardies will equate to one day of absence.
Extended Trips/Pre-Arranged Excused Absences
It is our policy to discourage family vacation trips except during school vacations, as students almost invariably show a decline in content knowledge and grades when an absence lasts beyond three days. Students will be given a pre-arranged excused form, which they will promptly show each teacher during non-instructional time. ALL WORK IS TO BE MADE UP BEFORE THE TRIP, UNLESS THE STUDENT AND TEACHER MUTUALLY AGREE ON A LATER DUE DATE. Where it is determined that such a trip is in the best interest of the student by the family, the school requests that a written request to be absent, signed by a parent or guardian, be presented to the principal/dean of students or secretary no fewer than five (5) school days prior to leaving. This allows students and teachers to prepare as much advance make-up as possible.
Approved Absences
Personal illness, death in the family, religious holiday, or extreme emergency are acceptable reasons for absence. A valid excuse, written by a parent or guardian and presented to the principal/dean of students or secretary upon the return to school, or a phone call from a parent or guardian on the day of absence, documenting the reason for absence entitles the student to make up all work missed. For a definition of a 'valid' excuse, see the following section of Excused and Unexcused Absences.
Example of Excused Absences: (Notification must be given within 48 hours of occurrence)
- personal illness
- death in the family/funeral
- religious holiday
- educational trips accompanied by parents
- emergency work necessary to the family welfare
- emergency in the family
- medical appointments as long as a Dr.’s note is provided.
Examples of Unexcused Absences:
- "Got in late, needed to sleep..."
- "Had to finish my homework..."
- "Car wouldn't start..."
- “Car had a flat tire...”
- "I missed the bus."
- Leaving building/campus without first receiving permission from a school official.
Ultimately, excused and unexcused absences will be determined by the building administrators.
Truancy
Any student absent from school and/or any class without the knowledge and consent of the parent and approval of the school administration will be considered truant. To be reinstated, a conference may be required during regular school hours, among the parents and the school administration. Students must make up work missed as a result of an absence or receive no credit for assignments. For truancy purposes, three late to school tardies will equate to one day of absence.
Leaving School
You must have written permission from your parents or guardian to leave school at any time. No one may leave the school grounds during the school day without permission from the principal or dean of students. You must sign out in the office and indicate the departure time and destination. When returning to school, you must sign in at the office. If you want to ride home on someone else’s bus, a parent or guardian must write a permission note. This note must be initialed in the office before the end of first period.
Tardiness
It is your responsibility to get to school and to each class on time. Failure to follow through with this responsibility will result in disciplinary procedures (separate form to be filled out) being initiated in accordance with the school’s discipline policy. Remember, when you are tardy you affect not only your education, but also the education of your classmates.