Please make an effort to clear absences within one school day. Unexplained absences become truants and will have consequences after that time. If a student becomes ill during the day, he/she must report to the attendance office. In order for a student to leave campus for any reason, the student must contact parents/guardian or a designated emergency contact before he/she can leave campus. ATTENDANCE CLERKS MUST HAVE A PARENT NOTE OR SPEAK WITH A PARENT/GUARDIAN OR EMERGENCY CONTACT
Student attendance is directly related to success in school. San Clemente High School administration and staff expect students to be in class as assigned. |
| Before Students May Leave Campus |
| STUDENTS ARE NOT TO USE THE PAY PHONES ON CAMPUS WHEN CHECKING OUT, THEY MUST COME TO THE ATTENDANCE OFFICE TO CHECK OUT. Students not following this check-out procedure will receive a truant(s) that can only be cleared by a school administrator, and they will receive detention or extended detention for leaving campus without permission. Forging, falsifying, or altering school forms, or falsifying notes or phone calls to clear absences will result in placement in the Center for Special Instruction (CSI), Saturday School, or out of school suspension. Students who oversleep or miss the bus will receive an unexcused personal provided they have a note from their parents explaining the reason for the absence or tardy. Excessive period absences/tardies may have a negative effect on credit or grades earned in a class. Students with irregular attendance will not be permitted to take zero period. All students are required by law to have an emergency card on file. The card must list emergency contact names and provides other information useful in case of emergency/illness. |
| Attendance |
| All absences from school must be explained by a phone call or note from the parent/guardian. It is the parents’ responsibility to know when their student is not in school and to provide the reason for all absences within 48 hours of the absence. Failure to do so will result in a student receiving a truant for the class, possible loss of the opportunity to make up work or tests, and/or being dropped from class. |
| Automatic Dialer |
We attempt to call home and notify you of all un-cleared absences. Our automatic dialer is programmed to call the home of every student who has an un-cleared absence between 5:00 pm and 9:00 pm. Calls are made every day but often parents cannot be reached and messages must be left on answering machine. Parents are responsible if students pick up messages and fail to pass them on in a timely fashion. A daily log is kept of all calls made and the results of the calls. Because the system is not foolproof, it is vital that the parent/guardian follow the procedure below.
If you feel the absence was in error, have your student contact the teacher directly or go to the attendance office for a print out of their absence. The student takes the print out to the appropriate teacher for a signature to clear the absence. The student returns the signed print out to attendance. |
| Leaving Campus |
If a student leaves campus during the day for an appointment, the parent/guardian must notify the attendance office in person, by telephone, or by note. This must be done before the student leaves campus.
If a student leaves campus without appropriately checking out, they will receive one warning for the year. The next time the student leaves campus without permission, they will be truant. |
| Tardies |
| Students who arrive late to class create a disruption to the classroom teacher regardless of the reason the student is late. As a result, parents are unable to clear tardies. Parents are encouraged to communicate with the classroom teacher when their son/daughter is repeatedly late. Since the attendance office cannot write tardy excuses, students are encouraged to go directly to class when arriving late. |
| Homework |
| Our office will request homework from the teachers on behalf of a student who is ill for three or more consecutive days only when requested to do so by a parent. We need 24 hours to collect it and it must be picked up during office hours, 7:30 am to 4:00 pm. Students who are suspended for more than one day will have their homework automatically requested. Parents are advised to make arrangements to collect the homework as soon as possible. |
| Medication |
| Any student needing to have medication throughout the school day must have the district approved medical release form completed by a doctor and parent or guardian. Medications are locked up and dispensed according to doctor’s orders. This includes prescription and over the counter medications. Students are responsible for coming to the office at the correct time to take their medicine. If your child has special medical needs, please contact the Health Technician to discuss the details of your child’s particular situation. |
| Independent Study Contract |
| These contracts are for students planning on missing regular instruction time for 5 days or longer due to an extended absence. Our office will need at least one week advance notice in order to collect the assignments and necessary signatures. Before leaving for the trip, students must come into the attendance office to pick up contracts. The contracts must be signed by a parent and student in the office before leaving. State attendance auditors closely audit Independent study contracts, and all steps must be followed completely. |
| Health Office |
| Each school site is provided with a Heath Technician who divides his/her time between five schools. On average, a Health Technician is present every day. Therefore, our office staff assumes the responsibilities of caring for ill and injured students. We are here for emergency care only. Should a student fall sick during the day, he/she must go home to recuperate, as our facilities are not adequate to provide proper care for long periods at a time. Any student injured during the school day is brought to our office, evaluated and provided with first aid measures. If the student is unable to return to school activities, it may be necessary to contact a parent to decide if the child should be seen by the family physician or be taken home to rest. When a student comes to the office, it is the student’s responsibility to inform an audit in the office that he/she if present. |
| Phone Use |
| The office phones are for school use only. Students who must leave school early for any reason may use the phone in order to obtain permission to leave from a parent. A staff member must speak with the parent in order to secure permission. |
| Delivering Messages or Personal Items |
| Since it is our desire to maintain a learning environment that is uninterrupted, the attendance office does not deliver items or messages to students in non-emergency situations. Students are responsible for bringing everything with them at the start of the day. This includes homework, study materials, uniforms, and lunches. We appreciate your understanding that instructional time should not be interrupted. |
