A high correlation exists between regular attendance and success in school. The State of Kansas delegates to the Board of Education the responsibility of determining excusable reasons for absence. The Blue Valley Board of Education and Blue Valley High School have identified the following reasons for excused absence:
1. Illness
2. Major illness or death in the family (mother, father, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, death of a friend.)
3. Physician and dental appointments which can be verified.
4. Emergencies requiring a student's service or presence at home that can be verified.
5. Obligatory religious observances of the student's own faith.
6. Family vacation, family business, and college visits arranged in advance with the administration (with class assignments arranged in advance and due upon return or a date agreed upon by the teacher, whichever is later).
7. Participation in a school approved student activity.
8. Personal matters.
Parents may ask that a student be allowed to leave school at any time; the administration determines if the absence is excused or unexcused.
1. All absences must be verified with the Attendance Office (239-4801) by parental phone call, written note, or email ([email protected]). Full day absences may also be reported on ParentVue.
2. Unexcused absences are those absences which do not meet the criteria for excused absences as listed above. Consequences may include detentions, lunch detentions, in-school or out-of-school detentions, and/or a truancy filing.
Truancy: According to the Johnson County Juvenile Court, a student will be reported truant if he or she is unexcused three consecutive days or five days in one semester or seven days in a school year. Automatic referral to the Court is required. Classroom credit may not be given for unexcused absences. Upon return to school, students without verification will be unexcused until absence verification occurs. It is the responsibility of the student and his/her parents to see that such verification is made through the Attendance Office within 48 hours.
Students who need to leave school for an excusable reason must have ADVANCE parental verification. Phone contact should be made early in the day to the Attendance Office. A pass to the Attendance Office will be delivered to the student. The student will show the pass to the teacher at the beginning of class. The student will report to the Attendance Office and sign out before leaving the building. If the student returns to school on the same day, he/she must sign in with the Attendance Office. A parental request in advance through the attendance office is required for any student who leaves the building.
If a student is too ill to be in school, the nurse will contact a parent and issue a permit to leave school. Students leaving without checking out through the nurse or an administrator will be unexcused and disciplined appropriately.
Students are expected to be in their classrooms ready to begin classroom activities when the final bell rings. The teacher will determine the acceptability of excuses offered by the student when late to class.
1. First and second tardy per hour = Tardy Tracker Pass
2. Third tardy per hour = Tardy Tracker Pass and an administrator is informed
3. Fourth + tardy per hour = Two days of lunch
(If lunch detentions are not served, student will be assigned additional consequences.)
*NOTE: Tardy count starts over at the beginning of 2nd semester
