Attendance

An excused absence is one for which the student will be given makeup privileges and credit. Absences from school shall be excused only for health reasons, family emergencies and justifiable personal reasons, as permitted by law or Board policy.  A student’s absence shall be excused for the following reasons:

1. Personal illness 
2. Medical, dental, optometric, or chiropractic appointments
3. Attendance at funeral services for a member of the immediate family:
4. Excused absence in this instance shall be limited to one day if the service is conducted in California or three days if the service is conducted out of state.
5. “Immediate family” shall be defined as mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, spouse, son/son-in-law, daughter/daughter-in-law, brother, sister or any relative living in the student’s immediate household.
6. Jury duty in the manner provided by law;
7. Justifiable personal reasons, when accompanied by a written request by the parent or guardian and approved by the Head of School or his/her designee, including, but not limited to:
8. Appearance in court
9. Attendance at a funeral service
10. Observance of a holiday or ceremony of his/her religion
11. Attendance at religious retreats
12. Attendance at an educational conference on the legislative or judicial process offered by a nonprofit organization.
13. Serving as a member of a precinct board for an election pursuant to Elections Code 12302.
14. Spending time with a member of the pupil’s immediate family, who is an active duty of the uniformed services and has been called to duty for, is on leave from, or has immediately returned from, deployment to a combat zone or combat support position.  Absences granted pursuant to this section shall be granted for a period of time to be determined at the discretion of the Head of School or his/her designee.
15. If a student is the custodial parent of a child, his/her absence shall be excused when the child is ill or has a medical appointment during school ho

When a student is absent, parents are required to call the School Office in order to validate the reason for their child’s absence. This process is called Absence Verification.

Your child’s attendance record will be marked with an “excused” or “unexcused” absence according to Ed Code and school policy.

State law is very specific about these types of absences. A student who is absent from school without a valid excuse will be marked “unexcused” for the day. These types of absences are also called “truancies.”

Truancies are a serious violation of California Education Code. Habitual truancies may lead to intervention by law enforcement officials. Prior to legal intervention, schools are compelled to develop a policy to encourage school attendance.

Pursuant to Ed Code 48200, every child from the age of 6 to 18 is required to attend school regularly in order to make a successful transition to the next grade level and to graduate with a high school diploma. All enrolled students, regardless of age, will be held to the same school attendance rules. The Governing Board recognizes that a vigilant supervision of attendance to improve attendance rates and graduation rates and to reduce truancy and dropout rates is vital to the learning and achievement of children on the margins of the educational system. Improving student attendance and reducing the dropout rate is a school priority.

EC Section 48260 (a) A pupil subject to compulsory full-time education or to compulsory continuation education who is absent from school without a valid excuse three full days in one school year or tardy or absent for more than a 30-minute period during the school day without a valid excuse on three occasions in one school year, or any combination thereof, shall be classified as a truant and shall be reported to the attendance supervisor or to the superintendent of the school district.

(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), it is the intent of the Legislature that school districts shall not change the method of attendance accounting provided for in existing law and shall not be required to employ period-by-period attendance accounting.

All students are expected to attend all classes except for reasons that legally excuse school attendance.  Failure to attend school will require school officials to determine if the absence is excused, unexcused, or truant. This determination process will require the cooperation of parents and/or guardians.

Truancies will be issued to those students who make no effort to attend class or who are absent for any other reason than those listed (example: skipping a class period).  Truancy accrual will be maintained for each period of the day regardless of whether there is a schedule change.

In accordance with the Education Code of the State of California [EC Section 4826-48273], any pupil who is absent from school for 3 days or more without a valid excuse, or tardy in excess of 30 minutes or more is “truant.” For example, if a student has unexcused absences in 1st period on 3 separate days or student has unexcused absences one period for 2 days and an unexcused absence, this is considered a “truancy.”

Tardies are only excused with a parent/guardian note for illness, doctor/dental note for appointments, note for religious services/activities.

Per California Ed Code Section 48260 school districts are required to classify as “truant” any pupil who is absent from school without a valid excuse for three full days in one school year or tardy or absent for more than a 30-minute period during the school day without a valid excuse on three occasion, or any such combination. They also must report to the attendance supervisor or to the district superintendent any pupil who is classified as “truant.”

Board review with law enforcement and Saturday School.

According to state law [EC Section 48260-48273] a student that has an unexcused absence from school in excess of 30 minutes during a school day is also considered “truant.” Compulsory Education Law therefore, requires a student attend a full day every day.

Per TPS policy, beginning the second week of the school year, all Upper School students (grades 7 – 12) may be required to participate in campus beautification during their first period class if they are tardy.

Regular attendance is vital to a student’s success in school. The student who is frequently absent misses social interaction and direct instruction from his/her teachers even though written work can be made up. Any day or hour absent is a missed learning opportunity.

Attendance is a key predictor of dropout students who create economic loss and jeopardize the future workforce since only 31% of dropouts keep a job for more than one year. In addition, the school loses funding for each absence, regardless of the reason; including illness or excused absences.

Schools do NOT receive funding even if the absence is excused. This law went into effect in 1998.

If you know that your child will be absent from school for a planned absence for 3 or more school days (up to two weeks), for a planned absence, you may contact the school office for an Independent Study Program contract or use the link below: