Woodland High School

POLICY AND PROCEDURES

State law mandates that all children under the age of 18 attend school and makes their parents responsible for their attendance. Woodland High School’s attendance office is open from 7:30 AM to 3:30 PM. If you know that your child is going to be absent for one or more days please phone the attendance office the day before the absence or the same day as the absence. The number is: (530) 662-4678 ext. 243.

The Attendance Office also accepts notes upon the student’s return to school. The note should be signed by the parent/guardian and include the date and reason for the absence, along with a daytime telephone number. Absences must be cleared within 48 hours. We reserve the right to ask for absence verification for excessive absences (i.e. doctor’s note, appointment verification, etc.). After 10 absences in the same class period or 70 period absences overall, per California Ed Code, a doctor’s note will be required for each subsequent absence. A student will be considered absent from a class period when they have missed 30 or more minutes of class time.

If the student has an appointment during the day and needs to leave campus, the student must bring a note to the office prior to the start of the school day. The permit will either be issued immediately or the student will pick it up after first period, depending upon the time of the appointment. Parents may also call and advise office of the appointment, but please note pulling a child out of class can cause a disruption to the learning environment. Although it may happen occasionally, it is discouraged. Instead please notify the office in writing, prior to the appointment. Students not checking out through the office will be marked truant.

If a student becomes ill during the day, the student may go directly to the attendance office to call home under the supervision of the attendance clerk and obtain permission to go home or the student may go to the nurse so she can assess the situation and make appropriate notifications and send the student home. The nurse will then check the student out for the day. Students always need to check out of school when becoming ill during the day. If a student becomes ill during the lunch hour and goes home, the parent needs to call the school immediately to report the student’s absence for the periods following lunch. If a phone call is not received, the student will be marked truant for the periods missed. Please note that leaving during the school-day may affect athletic and/or extracurricular participation on that day.

Students are under the jurisdiction of the school while on their way to and from school, during school hours and when participating in school activities. All students are expected to abide by school rules during these times. Any inappropriate behavior engaged in during these times will result in disciplinary action taken by the school.

UNEXCUSED ABSENCES

Students will be considered unexcused in a class if their absence is not cleared through the attendance office by a phone call or a note. Verification of an absence must be received in the attendance office within three days from the date of the absence. If a student is marked absent in one or more of his/her classes and the absence remains unverified throughout the day, a phone call home will occur automatically. If a phone call occurs, parents can automatically give the reason for the absence by following the recorded instructions. If parents have questions about an absence, they should contact the school to determine which classes are in question.

First truancy letters can be generated after a student has accumulated three days or is tardy in excess of 30 minutes on each of more than three days (three class periods over a three-day period). A second and third letter may be generated after incurring an additional two or more consecutive day or period absences. After the second truancy letter, a referral will be made to our Attendance Liaison and a contract will be signed to ensure improved attendance. Should student continue to be truant, attendance liaison will initiate SARB process.