Attendance
POLICIES AND REGULATIONS ATTENDANCE
Mrs. Rebecca Bell, Attendance Officer
(540) 422-7338 or krhsattendance@fcps1.org
Absences: 1. Students who expect to be successful in school need to attend school regularly.
2. If your child is absent from school, please email Mrs. Bell in the Attendance Office to let her know before 9 a.m. the day of absence. Please include the name of your student, your name and relationship to the student, telephone number to be reached at, and reason for absence. If the school does not hear from a parent/guardian, the student will remain Unexcused.
3. Students are expected to be in class every day. Anyone missing over ten (10) days in a course may automatically fail the class. Absences in excess of 10 for a class, the grade may be changed to an F(59) unless the cumulative grade is already below a 59. Students must be in class for one-half of the allotted time to be counted present. A student will be counted absent from a class if the student does not stay in the class for over one-half of the class time. a. Course credit in high school is based on a minimum of 140 clock hours of instruction, under 8 VAC 20, 131-110, standards of accrediting public schools in Virginia. b. The administration team will assign after-school detention and/or Saturday school to make up any seat time deficit, ensuring the student remains in compliance with state and federal regulations.
4. Upon returning to school from an absence, a student must turn in a parent/guardian note to the attendance office for the absence to be excused. If a parent/guardian has previously notified the attendance office about the absence, then no note is required.
The note should include the following:
The full legal name of the student
The reason for the absence
The parent/guardian’s phone number at which he/she can be reached
The signature of the parent or guardian.
This note will serve the purpose of informing the school that a student’s parent/guardian is aware of the student’s absence. If the note is from a medical provider or a court, please have the full name of the student provided, including the dates that are to be excused by the doctor/court. Medical notes are encouraged and must be turned into the attendance office when a student has been under the care of a physician.
5. Arrangements for make-up work must be made with the teacher within two days of the absence. 6. Students who miss class due to involvement in field trips or athletic contests are responsible for obtaining their homework and/or assignments before attending the field trip or athletic contest. All assignments are due as scheduled by the teacher. If absences are considered excessive, written notification will be sent to a parent/guardian. A conference with the parent/guardian will be required, and an action plan for attendance improvement will be implemented. In reviewing a student’s absences, the student’s Principal will check with the school counselor, the classroom teacher, the attendance office and review the student’s attendance file to determine the reasons for the excessive absences.
Tardy:
1. A student arriving after the 7:30 am tardy bell is considered late and must report to the attendance office for a tardy pass to class. A student is allowed up to five parent excused tardies per semester. Any tardiness with third-party documentation will be considered exempt and not included in a student's total. All tardies to school are considered unexcused, with the following exceptions: a. Documentation from a medical provider or a court matter. Official documentation must be provided when returning to school. b. A parent/guardian notifies the attendance office via phone, email, or note that they are excusing a tardy. A student is allowed up to five parent excused tardies per semester.
2. Please see the disciplinary schedule below for all unexcused tardies. The following schedule will discipline tardies to school: Late# Consequences 3 written warnings to students and the parent/guardian 4 1 day after school detention (ASD) 5 2 after-school detention or 1 Saturday school 6-9 2 Saturday schools, loss of driving privileges 10+ Parent Conference, 2 Saturday Schools, loss of driving privileges *Tardy count will reset each semester.
3. By School Board policy, students are required to be in school for a full day unless they are in a co-op program. Only the superintendent of Fauquier County Public Schools may grant an exception to this policy. Students are not allowed to use daily early dismissals or tardiness to school to “drop” a class.
4. Tardies and class absences are kept by each teacher. Students who are not in their classroom when the tardy bell begins ringing are tardy to class. Parents will be notified of class absences on the report cards. Excessive tardiness will be applied to the discipline schedule for all tardies.
5. Administrators will assign consequences to students who are tardy to school as well as tardy to class. Any student who does not fulfill the discipline assignment will be referred for further disciplinary action.
Early Dismissal:
1. If a student driver needs to leave school early, the parent must email or the student must present a written note requesting the early dismissal to the attendance office before first block. The request must include reason(s) for leaving, time of requested dismissal, and parent/guardian signature, along with a phone number they can reach for verification. If a student is 18 years of age or older, they are still required to have a parent/guardian provide written permission.
2. All early dismissal requests for student drivers need to be sent at least one hour before dismissal and are done on a first-come, first-served basis. The earlier the request, the more timely it will be processed.
3. The office will only grant an early dismissal by phone if there is an emergency. Emergency Contacts are only used in the event of an emergency when a parent cannot be reached. Contacts may not pick up a student for early dismissal in a non-emergency situation. Please contact the attendance office for more information regarding early dismissals for non-student drivers.
4. Before exiting the building, a parent/guardian must sign their student out in the main office with ID verification.
5. On exam days, no early dismissals will be issued during the exam period.
6. If a student leaves school without signing out in the attendance office, or leaves school property without permission, the student will be processed for a class cut. Further disciplinary action may be taken.
Discipline:
1. Once a student arrives on school property, the student may not leave school grounds without permission. If a student leaves school grounds, the student will receive disciplinary action for a class cut.
2. A student who is absent from an after-school detention or a Saturday school will be rescheduled once per term without consequence. Any additional misses may result in out-of-school suspension (OSS).
3. If a student parks on school property during a parking suspension, or if any car is parked in the student’s assigned spot, he/she may lose an additional 10 days' worth of parking privileges. Additional offense may result in loss of parking privileges for the remainder of the school year.
Academic Incentive:
1. Fauquier County high school students are allowed to be exempt from attending the specific class(s) on the final two days of each term, provided they meet the following criteria: a. Pass the SOL / EOC assessment (if required) during the term in which they are taking the class b. Earn an A or B in the course Academic incentive forms will be provided and require each teacher's signature before the final two days of each term.
College Visit Request:
1. SENIORS: are allowed 3 college visits per term with prior approval as documented by the college. A College Visit Request Form is located on our website under the attendance tab. College visits for seniors will not count towards the exam exception and will count as Field Trip Status as long as all documentation is received within two school days of the College Visit.
2. JUNIORS: are allowed two college visits in the Spring Term of their Junior year. The same process applies as noted above.