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Attendance Policy

Middle College is committed to supporting all students’ success in our program; and believe that regular attendance and timeliness is essential to this. Student attendance at Middle College will be used to determine eligibility for extracurricular activities and school-sponsored activities at both Middle College and student home sites. This includes, but is not limited to activities such as sports, dances, theater, and competitive teams such as Robotics, Model UN, etc. School sites rely on Middle College to monitor attendance and communicate when students become ineligible. This policy is intended to outline what is considered an excused vs. unexcused absence, how many you are allowed before becoming ineligible, as well as outline the number of tardies allowed. Additionally, we outline the steps Middle College will take to support students in fully accessing their educational opportunities and remain eligible.

Absences

Please see SMUHSD Board Policy 5113 for what qualifies as an Excused Absences. Only these types of absences will be excused. When a student is absent, and it has not been called in, you will get an automated call informing you of the absence late afternoon/early evening.

 

  • All absences must be cleared within 48 hours of the student's return to school.
  • Absences not cleared within 48 hours become permanent truancies.

Tardies

  • A student is considered tardy if they arrive less than 30 minutes late to class.
  • A student is considered absent if they arrive more than 30 minutes late to class. If this absence is not cleared within 48 hours; it will become a truancy.

While Middle College staff will monitor students’ attendance, it is also a student’s responsibility to track their own
attendance as well. If a student/family believes there was an error made, please communicate with our office as soon as possible to ensure the correction is made within the 48 hour time period.

The following outlines interventions that will be put in place to support students who may struggle meeting attendance expectations every 6-week marking period.

Student has 3 unexcused absences and/or 5 tardies: 

Students’ advisor will meet with the student to review expectations, identify any challenges, and co-plan strategies for improvement. 

Student has 5 unexcused absences and/or 7 tardies

Students’ advisor and the MC Multi-Tiered System of Supports Team (MTSS) will meet with the student to discuss the ongoing concern and identify additional supports, strategies, and/or consequences as part of the student success plan. The family wi l receive a copy of the plan.

Student has 7 unexcused absences and/or 10 tardies:

The principal will meet with the student (and family as needed) to discuss the ongoing concern and identify additional supports, strategies needed to help the student meet their success plan. The principal will also clarify potential loss of access to extracurriculars if a student cannot meet expectations set.

It is the goal of the Middle College staff to keep all students engaged in all classes and participating in all the activities that support an enriching high school experience. That being said, we also believe those activities are a privilege and those privileges may have to be temporarily suspended if a student cannot meet attendance and timeliness expectations consistently within any 6 week period. If a student surpasses the 7 unexcused absences and/or 10 tardies, we retain the right, in collaboration with the students’ comprehensive site to suspend participation in such activities.