HOW DO I INFORM THE SCHOOL OF MY STUDENT’S ABSENCE?In the event of a student absence, parents/guardians must email the MC Attendance Office (
attendance@marincatholic.org)
before 9:00 AM. It is helpful to indicate the reason for the absence. Students are NO longer required to bring an attendance note to the office when they return to school.
HOW MANY ABSENCES ARE ALLOTTED PER SEMESTER?
A maximum of 7 absences are allotted per class, per semester. Parent excused absences DO count toward the 7 allowed days. These absences are not to be used as vacation days. This maximum number is set as a guide to limit the number of absences in an extreme case.
WHAT IF I AM TARDY (LATE FOR CLASS)?
Procedures for Tardies:
1. When students arrive after the bell rings for any class, they are tardy and must register in the Main Office before going to class. Tardies cannot be excused by a parent.
2. When students are tardy by more than 15 minutes, it will be recorded as an unexcused absence. In this case, students will need a parent/guardian to send an email to the Attendance Secretary (
attendance@marincatholic.org) with the reason for the tardy, in order to get it excused.
Reminder: an unexcused absence constitutes a truancy and will result in a period of Disciplinary Disqualification and a Saturday detention.
Tardies:
• 3 tardies in a quarter will result in 1 detention.
• 6 tardies in a quarter will result in an additional detention and a call home with concern for excessive tardies and alert to the 9 tardy consequences.
• 9 tardies in a quarter will result in a period of Disciplinary Disqualification and a Saturday detention
WHAT IF MY CHILD HAS AN APPOINTMENT, OR WANTS TO LEAVE SCHOOL EARLY, BUT WILL BE ATTENDING SOME CLASSES DURING THE DAY?
Procedure for Early Dismissal (unrelated to athletics):
• An Early Dismissal slip will be issued to the student in class by the Attendance Office.
• The student will present the Early Dismissal slip to their classroom teacher and proceed to the Attendance Office to sign out.
• The student will sign out after receiving a confirmation from the Attendance Secretary that they are permitted to leave campus.
• Parents/Guardians should NOT call/text the student during school hours.
WHAT IS AN EXCUSED STUDENT ABSENCE?
Excused absences include those for illness, medical and dental appointments, quarantine, attendance at funeral services and those due to accidents.
Absence for other reasons than those listed above is discouraged. Parents/guardians wishing to take their student out of school for several days for personal reasons should have their students pick up a Planned Absence Request from the Dean of Studies office at least one week prior to their leaving. The final decision on such matters rests with the parents/guardians, but the Dean of Studies and the Principal have the authority to determine the conditions governing the absence. The school is under no obligation to provide assistance for make-up work.
WHAT IS AN UNEXCUSED STUDENT ABSENCE?
Unexcused absences other than those specifically requested by parents/guardians will be treated as truancies. Students will be notified of an unexcused absence recorded for any given period(s) or part of a period. Failure to clear the absence will result in the issue of a “Truancy Notification” and a period of Disciplinary Disqualification and a Saturday detention.
Unexcused absences:
A student who misses 15 or more minutes of any class will receive an unexcused absence for the class.
A student who leaves school without the knowledge of the MC Attendance Office will receive an unexcused absence. Even with a release slip, students must sign out in the main office before leaving campus.
Being absent without a legitimate reason constitutes a truancy. Parents should be advised that the school will treat an unsanctioned “cut day” as a truancy. Cutting any part of the school day or being out of class without permission will be considered a serious offense and will result in a period of Disciplinary Disqualification and a Saturday detention.
