Sault Area Middle School

ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS

In accordance with the Michigan Compulsory Attendance Law (380.1561), "Every parent/guardian or other person in this state having control and charge of a child from the age of 6 to the child's sixteenth birthday, shall send that child to school during the entire school year. The child's attendance shall be continuous and consecutive for the school year fixed by the school district in which the child is enrolled."

ATTENDANCE POLICY

The total number of allowable parentally excused absences in each class is six.  This does not include school related/imposed absences or absences due to extenuating circumstances. School related/imposed absences do not count toward the six-absence limit. Examples of these types of absences include:

School related:  Field trips, athletic events, service club activities, and events off-campus.

School imposed:  Suspensions, off-campus instruction.

Extenuating circumstances may also be taken into consideration. These types of absences include:

·        Serious illness, hospitalization, or professional appointments that cannot be scheduled after school (e.g. dentist, physician, court appointments). These absences must be verified by a professional excuse. The excuse must be submitted to the office within 48 hours of the student’s return to school. The school district reserves the right to require corroborative evidence when deemed necessary.

·        Attendance at a funeral or death of an immediate family member, verified by a written parental excuse and/or phone call.

·        Observance of religious holidays that have been pre-arranged with the student’s teachers and building administration before the student’s departure.

·        Those situations and pre-planned absences which are beyond the control of the student, as determined by building administration, including those that cause reasonable concern to the parent for the safety and health of the student.

The following absences and/or excessive tardiness may be considered unexcused if no extenuating circumstances exist.

·        A student absent from school without valid cause for a school day or a portion of a day. This includes students skipping class/es or a parent’s failure to contact the school to verify their student’s absence. In order for the absence to be excuses, notification of the absence must be received within 48 hours of the student’s return to school.

·        Tardiness is defined as an act of being late to school or classes. Excessive tardies can be seen as being truant. Student tardiness will count as an absence if the student arrives more than 5 (five) minutes late to a class without a pass from the office. The absence will count only towards the particular class for which the student is tardy (HS and MS). The tardy will be considered unexcused if no extenuating circumstances exist.   NOTE:A student missing the bus or oversleeping will not be considered excused

·        Excessive tardiness and the Chippewa County Truancy Protocol.  Any student receiving a 3^rd unexcused tardy recorded in a given semester, will have an absence recorded in the student attendance record which will be counted toward the six (6) day limit.  For subsequent tardies, absences would only be recorded after each time 3 additional unexcused tardies have accumulated and so on.    

REGULATIONS GOVERNING STUDENT ATTENDANCE

The responsibility of regular attendance in school rests with the student and most assuredly with the parents.  The parents or guardian are an integral part of the school's educational team and will be regularly informed of any attendance problems.  Sault Area Middle School accepts the responsibility of keeping accurate records ofattendance.