BEING ABSENT, ARRIVING LATE
AND LEAVING EARLY
Attendance
Regular attendance in school is essential to the success of our
students. As parents and guardians, you play the most important
role in your child’s education. Making sure your child arrives at
school every day rested, well fed and ready to learn is a great
contribution to your child’s education.
Children who are well should be at school every day that school
is in session. Students who are ill should not be in school. Refer
to page 12 for “Is my child well enough to go to school.”
Generally, children don't miss more than six days of school a
year from illness. If there are chronic health concerns keeping
your child out of school, please consult your school's nurse.
Compulsory education law
Under the compulsory education law, students between the ages
of seven and 17 are required to receive instruction each year.
Children under age seven who are enrolled in kindergarten or a
higher grade are also subject to the law.
Minnesota statutes, section 120A.22 – Compulsory instruction
Subdivision 1. Parental responsibility. The parent of a child is
primarily responsible for assuring that the child acquires knowl-
edge and skills that are essential for effective citizenship.
Subdivision 5. Ages and terms. (a) Every child between seven
and 17 years of age must receive instruction unless the child
has graduated. Every child under the age of seven w ho is en-
rolled in a half-day kindergarten, or a full-day kindergarten pro-
gram on alternate days, or other kindergarten programs shall
receive instruction. Except as provided in subdivision 6, a parent
may withdraw a child under the age of seven from enrollment at
any time.
Subdivision 6. Children under seven. (a) Once a pupil under the
age of seven is enrolled in kindergarten or a higher grade in a
public school, the pupil is subject to the compulsory attendance
provisions of this chapter and section 120A.34, unless the board
of the district in which the pupil is enrolled has a policy that
exempts children under seven from this subdivision.
(b) In a district in which children under seven are subject to
compulsory attendance under this subdivision, paragraphs
(c) to (e) apply.
(c) A parent or guardian may withdraw the pupil from enroll-
ment in the school for good cause by notifying the district.
Good cause includes, but is not limited to, enrollment of the
pupil in another school, as defined in subdivision 4, or the
immaturity of the child.
(d) When the pupil enrolls, the enrolling official must provide
the parent or guardian who enrolls the pupil with a written
explanation of the provisions of this subdivision.
(e) A pupil under the age of seven who is withdrawn from enroll-
ment in the public school under paragraph (c) is no longer
subject to the compulsory attendance provisions of this
chapter.
6
(f)
In a district that had adopted a policy to exempt children
under seven from this subdivision, the district's chief atten-
dance officer must keep the truancy enforcement authori-
ties supplied with a copy of the board's current policy
certified by the clerk of the board.
Absent or late to school
If your child will be absent, arrive late or leave early, please call
the school attendance line. You can call 24 hours a day and
leave a message. If a child is not at school, and the school has
not received notice of an absence, the school will call a parent or
guardian. If we don’t hear from you, your child’s absence will be
recorded as unexcused. Absence due to weather concerns will
be excused only if reported by a parent or guardian.
Students kindergarten through fifth grade who arrive at school
more than sixty minutes after the beginning of the school day,
and the late arrival is unexcused by a principal, will be marked
as truant.
Students grade six through twelve who arrive at school more than
fifteen minutes after the beginning of the school day, and the late
arrival is unexcused by a principal, will be marked as truant.
Absence guidelines:
• A student is considered tardy if he or she arrives 60
minutes late (K-5)/15 minutes late (6-12) after the start of
the school day.
• A student is considered absent for half a day if he or she
misses more than 60 minutes (K-5)/15 minutes (6-12)
at the start or end of the school day.
• A student is considered absent for a full day if he or she
misses four or more hours of the school day.
• A student is also considered absent for a full day is he or
she arrives to school, but is picked up within 90 minutes.
Early dismissal
Early dismissals are discouraged. Students leaving a few min-
utes early often miss important last minute instructions and/or
reminders. Interrupting classes to call students to the office also
distracts other students and interrupts end of the day classroom
routines. Early dismissals should occur only in rare circumstances
and requests must go through the school office. Please make
every effort to schedule appointments outside of school hours.
• Students leaving early will be marked as early out. This is
considered the same as a tardy.
Unexcused absences and tardies
Regular attendance is a crucial part of success in school. There are
consequences when students are continually absent from school
without a valid excuse. If an elementary student is absent three
days within a single school year; or a secondary student is absent
from three or more class periods on three days within a school year
without excuse that student is considered a “continuing truant,” ac-
cording to state law (section 260A.02). The school is required by law
to notify a parent when a child is a continuing truant and if the child
continues to be truant there may be juvenile court proceedings.
Once a child is considered a continuing truant, parents and
guardians are given an opportunity to explain their child’s absences.
2017-18 School Handbook