Glens Falls School is committed to the philosophy that every student should attend every class every day. Regular attendance and promptness are expected in all classes and are essential for student success in school. This philosophy is based on the following beliefs: regular attendance is an important aspect of a student’s education program; the education process requires continuity of instructional and active classroom participation; the maximization of student interaction with his or her teachers and peers occurs through regular attendance, and regular attendance is a major component of academic success.
An absence, tardy, or early departure is considered “excused” if due to illness or death in the family, religious observance, quarantine, court requirements, medical appointments, approved work-study, approved college visits, military obligations, and impassable roads due to inclement weather.
An absence, tardiness, or early departure is considered “unexcused” if the reason for the lack of attendance does not fall into the above categories (e.g. family vacation, hunting, babysitting, hair cut, obtaining learner’s permit, road test, oversleeping etc.).
Students who are absent for 10% or more of the school year (18+ days) are considered chronically absent. This includes both excused and unexcused absences.
Staff will monitor student attendance patterns and intervene when necessary to collaborate with families to prevent chronic absenteeism. This includes: parent phone calls, home visits, parent/student conferences or referrals to outside agencies, including Warren County Social Services or Warren County Probation.
Any athlete absent for all or part of a school day due to illness is not eligible to practice or play in a scheduled contest that day. Legal excuses, such as doctor and dental appointments are acceptable. However, the excuses will be checked for validity.
School Attendance Procedures
Please notify the school attendance office when your student is absent, stating the reason for the absence. Methods of notification include: phone call or email to attendance clerk, response to Parent Square notification or a handwritten note delivered to attendance clerk and signed by parent or guardian (student signatures are not accepted).
Students may be asked to provide additional documentation following an excused absence (ex. Note from doctor or provider).
Parents/Guardians will be notified by telephone when a student is absent, or departs early without a proper excuse.
It is the responsibility of the parent/guardian to monitor their student’s attendance
A student is responsible for making up all work due to an absence.
Arrival to School
Homeroom/Advocacy begins promptly at 8:30 am. There will be bells at 8:25 am and 8:27 am warning students to report to homeroom/Advocacy. All students must report to their assigned room by 8:30 am every day for attendance purposes. Students who arrive at school anytime during the school day after the start of school (8:30 am) must sign in immediately at the attendance office
Students who are in school but fail to report to their first period class or fail to sign in when tardy are considered truant and subject to disciplinary consequences.
A student must report to the attendance office to: submit an excuse in order to receive a pass for early dismissal (This should be accomplished prior to the first period). Students without a note requesting early dismissal must report to the attendance office in order that a parent may be contacted.
Lateness to School
Parents are responsible by law to see that their children are in school “regularly all day, every day” (Compulsory Education Law). Students who have a medical appointment and enter with a written note signed by a parent or guardian will not be assigned any consequences.
1. All students must be in their homeroom/Advocacy by 8:30 am.
2. Students arriving after 8:30 must sign in at the attendance office upon arrival.
3. Subsequent lates will result in the assignment of detention(s) and/or loss of privileges. These privileges include driving to school, RSP, and extracurricular activities.
**In case of unique or extenuating circumstances, administrators may use discretion in determining appropriate consequences for students who are late to school.**
Course Attendance Policy
Students who are absent from class due to a school sponsored activity are to arrange with their teachers to make up work missed in a timely manner as determined by the student’s teacher.
Upon returning to school following an “excused” absence, tardiness, or early departure, it shall be the responsibility of the student to consult with his/her teacher(s) regarding arrangements to make up missed work, assignments, and/or test in accordance with the time schedule specified by the teacher.
School Truancy (Full or Partial Day)
Staff will monitor student attendance patterns for truancy (unexcused absences). In addition to offering support, students will be held accountable for truancy through disciplinary procedures, which may include school based consequences, PINS or referrals to outside agencies.
It is the responsibility of the parent/guardian to monitor their student’s attendance. Educational neglect is when a child’s “physical, mental or emotional condition has been impaired or is in imminent danger of becoming impaired” due to the parent’s failure to exercise a minimum degree of care in providing the child with an adequate education (Family Ct Act §1012[f][i][A]).
As mandated reporters, school staff are obligated to report to the New York Statewide Central Register for Child Abuse and Maltreatment (SCR) instances of Educational Neglect.
**School truancies that are determined to be an “organized skip day” will result in the assigning of the appropriate consequence from above and loss of privileges such as RSP and school sponsored events.**
Class Tardiness
A student who is tardy to class loses valuable information and disrupts classroom procedure. A student who is late to class three (3) times within a marking period, without a pass is liable to detention as outlined below.
- First offense: Verbal reminder from teacher
- Second offense:Documented warning and phone call home from teacher
- Third offense: (and each thereafter): One period of teacher-assigned lunch detention
Class Truancy
The Glens Falls School District has adopted the following policy regarding students who are “truant from class, study hall or structured programs (assemblies, etc.)”
First Offense
- Detention(s) and parents notifiedSecond Offense and beyond
- Multiple offenses will result in additional assignments to detention, lunch detention, or ALA and parents will be notified
Leaving School Grounds
If the student must be excused for part of the school day, the student must present a written request to the attendance clerk upon arrival to school. The request should specify name, date, time to be excused, destination, and reason for leaving, means of travel from school, and phone number by which the above information may be confirmed (by parent, doctor, dentist, etc.). Parents should make appointments for their child (if possible) on school holidays or after school hours.
All requests for leaving school grounds must be submitted to the Attendance Office. Before leaving, the student must sign out in the “sign out” book in the Attendance Office. The student must also sign in upon returning. A student who must leave school because of illness must report to the nurse. Leaving school grounds without permission is truancy. Violation of this will require an appropriate disciplinary action.
BOCES Attendance
Students enrolled in Occupational Education classes must attend those classes regularly.
1. For all intents and purposes, BOCES classes are considered an extension of Glens Falls High School Therefore, all rules and regulations applying to Glens Falls students while registered, enrolled or attending will be uniformly applicable to all students attending BOCES classes at BOCES.
2. If a student who attends BOCES classes is not attending for a specific day (not to be confused with a full-day absence from school), the following procedure must be followed:
a.Notify the main office in writing one-day in advance, stating the reason. Permission to stay at Glens Falls School District can only be granted by the building principal.
b. Teachers at BOCES have no authority to tell students when or why not to attend Occupational Education classes. The only person who has that authority is the G.F.H.S. building principal. Students must attend all regularly scheduled classes at BOCES unless the G.F.H.S. building principal grants permission to the contrary.
An Occupational Education (Occ.Ed.) student, who attends the half-day homeschool session but misses the Occ.Ed. class, must bring a note from home stating the reason for the absence and registering it with the main office the day after the absence. A student who attends the AM half-day homeschool session, who does not attend the assigned PM Occ.Ed. class, must be excused according to “Early Dismissal” procedure. An Occ.Ed. student, who wishes to be excused from the Occ.Ed. class in order to participate in a home school activity, such as an assembly, must have written permission from the Occ.Ed. instructor in advance and present such in the main office before 8:00 a.m. on the day of the absence.
Excessive absence from Occ.Ed. classes will result in being dropped from the program (20 days).
1.If a student misses more than ten (10) days of classes at the BOCES Center, a parent conference may be requested to determine:
a. The reasons for the absences
b. The student’s intentions regarding the program
c. Appropriateness of probationary status in the Occ.Ed. program
d. Conditional terms for the student’s continuation in the program.
Truancy from Occupational Education classes will be dealt with in the same manner as truancy from home school classes.
Student driving to and from BOCES: Glens Falls School District provides transportation to and from BOCES. All students must use the transportation provided by the school. If, due to some extenuating circumstances, a student needs to drive his/her car to and from BOCES, the following procedure must be followed:
1.Permission must be granted by the BOCES administration before permission will be granted by Glens Falls High School for any student to drive to the BOCES campus. The vehicle must be registered with Glens Falls High School and BOCES.
2. The driving student cannot transport any passengers.
**Violation of these procedures will be met with disciplinary action.**
Physical Education Attendance
All students are required by New York State Education Law to take Physical Education every semester each year they are in school unless medically excused. Medically excused students are required to coordinate with their teacher in Physical Education in order to earn credit.
Short-Term Medical Excuses
Occasionally it may be necessary to be excused from Physical Education due to illness or injury. A written statement from a parent or guardian is acceptable for one or two days. Students will make up classes during that semester after school on Tuesdays, Thursdays or at other times at the convenience of the teacher. These classes must be made up within a reasonable amount of time following the absence and should preferably be made up during the same activity unit.
Long-Term Medical Excuses
For an extended excuse of more than one or two days, a written excuse from a physician is required by State regulations. A form must be secured from the school nurse, and the physician must complete and sign for return to the school nurse. Likewise, when a student has fully recovered from the impaired condition, a statement (in writing) from the physician releasing the student and allowing participation in regular Physical Education classes must be submitted to the school nurse for filing. This same regulation applies to all students participating in athletics. Students with long- term medical excuses (more than one week) will still be required to fulfill the Physical Education requirements. This will be accomplished by the assignment of academic projects related to current topics in Physical Education and sports.