Policies & Procedures: Attendance Policy
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ATTENDANCE POLICY
September 1, 2006
Punctuality and attendance are of vital importance to the learning process at Agia Sophia Academy. By state law, Agia Sophia Academy is responsible for recording attendance and keeping it in the student's permanent record.
The parent is the primary person responsible to ensure that students arrive promptly every day. In the case of some older students who will arrive by public transportation, it is important to communicate any tardiness or absence with the parents to avoid possible truancy.
Naturally, there will be times when a student arrives tardy due to unforeseen circumstances, or is absent due to an illness or family emergency. In those cases, the following apply:
Tardiness: Tardiness is defined as arriving at school after the school day begins, at 8:30. Prompt arrival is important as students go directly to Third Hour in the church. Prayer marks the beginning of our school day and is considered a vital part of the academic day. Attendance will be taken promptly at 8:30 and students who have not arrived by then will be marked absent.
Excused/Unexcused Tardy: If a student arrives after 8:30, the absent designation will be changed to tardy. An excused tardy is accompanied by a note of explanation from the parent. If no excuse is given, the teacher will consider the tardy unexcused. Whether excused or not, continued tardiness is disruptive to the learning process and is unacceptable.
Consequences for Tardiness:
- Tardies are recorded on the student's permanent record.
- After the 2nd tardy in a month, the Headmaster will contact the parent.
- Continued tardiness will be handled according to the Agia Sophia Academy Non Compliance Policy.
Absence: A student is considered absent if they miss more than half of the school day.
Excused Absence: If a student will not be attending classes on a particular day, we encourage parents to notify the school office, who will then notify the child's teacher. Parents can notify in advance of the absence or simply send a note upon the student's return excusing or explaining the absence.
Some examples of excused absences:
- illness
- emergency
- death of family member
- pre-arranged travel
- religious-related observances.
Unexcused Absence: If a child is not present and no explanation is given, it will be considered unexcused.
Pre-Arranged Absence: The ASA school calendar provides plenty of vacation time for families to take advantage of. However, occasionally it will be necessary for a student to miss school due to a pre-arranged circumstance. In these cases, the family must complete a "Pre-Arranged Absence Approval Form" (available in the office). This form requires the signatures of all teachers whose classes the student will be missing as well as the signature of the Headmaster. Knowing about an absence in advance allows the teachers to prepare a packet for the student to complete so they are not as behind upon their return to school.
Truancy: An absence is considered truant if the following conditions apply:
- The student is responsible for getting themselves to school (e.g. by foot, bike, or public transit)
- The absence or tardy is unexcused.
In the first instance of truancy, the student's parent will be notified by the Headmaster. Subsequent offenses will be treated in accordance to the Agia Sophia Academy Discipline Policy.
Consequences for Absences:
- Absences are recorded on the student's permanent record.
- After the 2nd consecutive unexcused absence in a month, the Headmaster will conference with the parent.
- Continued unexcused absences will be handled according to the Agia Sophia Academy Non Compliance Policy.
- By state law, a school may remove a child from their rosters after ten consecutive days of unexcused absences. In this case, tuition may not be refunded.
General Guidelines for Absent Work:
When a student is absent for even one day, their "catch-up" time can be difficult because upon their return, they now have 2 days worth of work to complete. As a parent, please make sure you stay aware of your child's absent work and adhere to the following guidelines.
- When a student is absent, a homework packet (which may include class notes and explanations) can be available in the office at the request of the parent.
- It is the responsibility of the parent to check in with the teacher about what material the child missed on that day. Therefore, the student is accountable for information that was taught, regardless of whether or not they were present. Parents need to go over material with students so that they do not fall behind.
- Make-up work must be returned no later than 1 day late per day of absence. For example, if Sam was absent on Monday, his make up work as well as Tuesday's homework is due Wednesday.
- Teachers reserve the right to reduce points on assignments returned later than the above guidelines.
- Tests or quizzes missed during an absence must be made up upon the student's return.
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