FILE: JB
ATTENDANCE
The principal shall be responsible for maintaining an accurate attendance for each pupil. All pupils of school age (seven to sixteen) are required by law to enter school on the opening date and to be in regular attendance for the entire school term.
An accurate record of attendance shall be maintained by the homeroom teacher or designated person. This record will be used by the principal and other appropriate personnel to enforce the Compulsory Attendance Law. Attendance for special education students should be kept in an attendance register and in individual teacher roll books.
Regular attendance is essential for good schoolwork. When returning to school following an absence, a student must present a statement from parent/guardian explaining the absence to the appropriate school official. This should be done on the date the student returns and must be done by the third day to make up the work missed. (Failure to bring a note by the third day will result in a zero for the work missed unless extenuating circumstances prevent this.) Suspension, expulsion, and truancy will be considered an unexcused absence, and the student will receive a zero for all work missed.
Attendance requirements for promotion and graduation are outlined in the Pupil Progression Plan and Statement of Responsibilities for School Personnel, Parents and Students.
In order to qualify for and maintain an Alabama driver’s license or learner’s permit a student between the ages of 16 to 19 must be either enrolled in a public school, enrolled in a GED program, enrolled in a job training program approved by the State Superintendent of Education or exempted for circumstances beyond the control of the student as defined by State Department of Education guidelines.
The Board will verify the enrollment status of a student upon signed written request. The Board will notify the Department of Public Safety when a student has more than ten (10) consecutive or fifteen (15) cumulative days of unexcused absences during a single semester.
A student may appeal the Board’s determination of his/her enrollment status by providing written notification to the appropriate school principal of the intent to appeal. The notice must state the reasons for the appeal and be filed within fifteen (15) days of Board’s issuance of enrollment status. Except as stated herein, the Board will treat the appeal procedurally the same as the process for long-term suspension or expulsion of a student.
ADOPTED: August 13, 2002
LEGAL REF: Code of Alabama 16-28-3; 16-28-40