Attendance Policies and Procedures

Michigan law requires that whoever has custody or control of any child between ages 6 and 18 (unless the child has already completed high school graduation requirements) shall assure that the child attends public school during the entire school year. Michigan law requires that the student’s attendance be continuous and consecutive for the school year fixed by the school district. The purpose of the attendance policy is to help students develop regular and punctual attendance and to maintain academic standards for earning credit.

This attendance policy is effective for each 18 week semester. A new semester offers a new start for each class and every student. Attendance is recorded per class, not per day.

Students are required to attend all of their scheduled classes.
Students must sign in at the school office if they arrive late to school or are returning to school during the school day or sign out if leaving school early. Charlevoix Middle/High School is a closed campus. If, at any time after a student arrives at school until the conclusion of the school day, a student finds it is necessary to leave the building, the student must obtain permission from office personnel and a parent/guardian and enter his/her name and destination on the sign-out sheet. Leaving school property without authorization is considered truancy and is a disciplinary issue in which the student may be given an unexcused absence and discipline points for violating the closed campus policy. Students will not be released from school to take or transport other students to or from school without office and parental permission.
Excused Absences: A parent or legal guardian must call the middle/high school attendance line at 547-8215 by 9:00 a.m. or deliver written correspondence within 24 hours to excuse an absence. The following absences are considered to be excused for the purposes of this attendance policy:
- Personal illness or hospitalization or serious illness/emergency in the immediate family as verified by a written parental excuse. The school district reserves the right to require corroborative evidence when deemed necessary. Attendance at a funeral or death in the family as verified by a written parental excuse.
- Religious instruction and/or obligations (arranged in advance) and verified by parental excuse. Professional appointments which cannot be made after school (e.g. dentist, doctor, court appointments), verified by a written parental excuse.
Make up Work for Excused Absences: A student is expected to ask his/her teachers for the work missed during an excused absence. Suspension is an excused absence. The student will be given an amount of time to complete make up work (usually 1 day for each day absent) by the teacher. Work assigned when the student was present in class, is expected to be submitted upon the student’s return (unless other arrangements have been made with the teacher). Make up work is the responsibility of the student.
Unexcused absences will be considered as truancy. A student not in their scheduled class, but in the building or on school grounds “somewhere” without a pass is considered truant (skipping). The school will contact the Truant Officer for those students who are not 16 years old and whose attendance is below the expectation.
Prearranged absence forms are available in the office for students who will be absent from school for an extended period. Students are required to complete the forms and file them with the attendance secretary prior to the absence. Arrangements ahead of time and make up work are the responsibility of the student.
Students should ask their teachers about their attendance status if they are concerned. The teacher’s attendance log will be used as the official record.
Students will be allowed fourteen (14) absences in each class period during each semester. Parents will be notified by letter on the student’s fourth (4th), sixth (6th), and tenth (10th) absence. On a student’s fifteenth (15th) absence, the student will be required to achieve at least a C+ on the final exam to have his/her grade calculated for the semester. If the student does not obtain a C+ grade on the exam, the student will receive no credit for the course. These types of absences do not count as either excused or unexcused absences in determining whether a student will lose credit in a class for excessive absenteeism. *
- Suspensions imposed by a school administrator
- School related absences: Students who miss school due to school sanctioned activities will not have the absences counted in the total allowable absences for each trimester. Students will be marked “absent – school activity” in the attendance records. Students will be responsible for meeting with their teacher PRIOR to the absence to receive work that they will be missing and for turning in their work on time.
- Absences due to a death in the immediate family
- Any extenuating circumstances require individual consideration. Extenuating circumstances of a medical nature (such as a serious or extended illness or injury) must be brought to the attention of the building administrator immediately. Documentation must be provided to the administration by the doctor treating the student and must include a diagnosis of the illness and the specific dates that the student could/cannot attend school. Upon receipt on the documentation, an individualized attendance plan will be developed with the student and the administration.
Students who accumulate more than a total of eighteen (18) absences (maximum of excused and/or unexcused) in a class will lose credit for that class. Students will not be withdrawn from the class unless there are resultant behavior problems. If a student wishes to regain credit for the class, he or she will be required to follow the requirements of the “testing out” process for that class within three weeks of the end of the semester.
Students who are less than ten (10) minutes late for class will be considered tardy. Students arriving later than 10 minutes will be given an absence.
Two (2) unexcused tardies = One (1) unexcused absence