Attendance Information
ATTENDANCE POLICY
Prompt arrival to class is essential for academic success. Missing class for any reason interferes with student progress, since each class contains instructional information or activities that are essential to the student. Every day a student misses school, they get more than two days behind their peers, and they must make up missed learning and catch up with new learning at the same time. Every day a student is in school, they benefit from direct instruction and raise their chances to score well on fundamental testing while learning a valuable lesson in the life skill of responsibility.
Absences, excused or not, also take away valuable funding from our school. Attendance is compulsory by law and is the responsibility of all students and parents/guardians.
REPORTING AND CLEARING ABSENCES:
EVERY day a student is absent from school, a parent/guardian must verify the absence within 48 hours of the date of the absence by calling the Attendance voicemail at (510) 537-5910, Ext. 1, and following the prompt.
You may call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You may also verify absences by texting through the ParentSquare parent/guardian notification or sending a note or email to the House Office Technician.
Please include the following information in your voice message or written note:
- Name of Person calling, including relationship to student (parent, guardian, etc.)
- Please state and spell student’s name, ID#, if known
- Student’s grade
- Date of absence
- Period(s) absent, or the times of the absence, be specific
- Reason for absence-must state specific reason for absence
- Daytime telephone number
Failure to verify the absence within 48 hours will result in the student receiving unexcused absences, which are converted to cuts with the student receiving possible truancy interventions.
ATTENDANCE CORRECTIONS
Absences posted in error must be resolved by THE STUDENT contacting THE TEACHER who marked the student absent. OFFICE STAFF will not contact the teacher as a result of parent or student requests.
AERIES Portal
Teachers use AERIES to take attendance during the first 15 minutes of each period. If you would like to know if your student was absent or tardy to any of their classes, please visit Castro Valley Unified - Aeries: Portals. This link can also be found under the For Families tab on our website.
PARENTSQUARE
ParentSquare is our Automated absence parent/guardian notification system. Please be aware that you will receive notification via TEXT message, PHONE CALL or EMAIL for student absences that have not been cleared for the day. For More Information, Click Here. Please see the district communication page to find out more about setting up Parent Square Notifications.
ABSENCES DEFINED
Types of Excused Absences: Verified absences are excused when reported within 48 hours of the absence and as defined by California Education Code 48205. Examples of absences that are considered excused are:
- Medical/Dental Appointments
- Medical Appointments for the purposes of mental or behavioral health
- Personal Illness
- Bereavement for an immediate family member (up to 5 days per incident)
- Participation in school sponsored activities
For the purpose of the absences described above, immediate family means the student's parent/guardian, brother or sister, grandparent, or any other relative living in the student's household. (Education Code 48205)
Types of Non-Excused Absences: Non-excused absences can usually be avoided and include some of the following examples:
- Absence unverified by parent/guardian
- Absence verified after the 48 hour time limit
- Vacation
- Parent requiring student to perform childcare
- Student's birthday
- Family changing residence within school district
- Visiting relatives
- DMV appointment
- Car trouble
- Shopping
- Oversleeping
Pre-Approved Absences: For pre-planned absences of one to two days, to ensure that the student’s absence or excuse is not counted toward truancy, advance written request by the parent/guardian and approval of the principal or designee is requested for the following justifiable personal reasons, including, but not limited to (Ed. Code 48205, AR 5113):
- Attendance at religious retreat (not to exceed one full day per semester)
- Observance of cultural or religious holiday, ceremony or event
- Participation in religious instruction or exercises
- Pupil’s naturalization ceremony to become a United States citizen
- Employment interview or conference
- College visit
- Court appearance
- Participation in a civic or political event
- Visiting active duty immediate family members of the uniformed services
- Other pre-approved justifiable (non-vacation) reasons. Subject to administrative approval.
Please use this Pre-Approval Absence Form
MEDICAL/DENTAL APPOINTMENTS
All medical and dental appointments should be scheduled during non-school hours. When this is not possible, a doctor’s note or medical visit verification slip is required to verify the appointment for the absence to be excused. Failure to do so will result in the student receiving a cut and disciplinary action.
LATE ARRIVAL
Students should proceed directly to their classrooms if they can make it to class within the first 10 minutes of their first period on campus. Students arriving to school after the first 10 minutes of their scheduled class time must check in at their designated House Office for a Pass to class.
Late Arrival Excused Tardy
If the student has an excused reason for arriving late, please notify the House Office Technician and provide an appointment verification slip or other supporting documentation to excuse the tardy or partial day absence.
EARLY RELEASE
Any student who must leave campus early for a medical appointment or other reason should obtain an OFF CAMPUS PASS from their House Office in the morning of the day of early release. This also applies to students who leave during lunch if they are not returning by the end of the lunch period. Please call or email the House Office Technician at least 2 hours in advance to request early release. The message must include:
- Your name and relationship to the student
- Student’s first & last name (include spelling)
- Student ID number (if available)
- Phone number to reach you in the event that we must contact you regarding the message
- Reason for the need to be released-be specific
- The exact date and time the student must be released from school
We cannot call students out of class during break or lunch.
ILLNESS / INJURY AT SCHOOL
Students should report to the Health Office for release due to illness or injury. The Health Office Technician, and district nurse if necessary, will be available to provide first aid. The Health Office Technician and student will notify parents/guardians. Students who leave from the Health Office will have their attendance excused for that day. If the absence is for additional days/periods, a parent/guardian will need to report the absence within 48 hours of the absence to verify. Students who leave at lunch and do not return due to illness must have a parent/guardian call within 48 hours of the absence to excuse.
(Please see Health and Wellness below for additional information.)
PARENTS/GUARDIANS OUT OF TOWN
During periods of time when both parents are out of town, please ensure any persons responsible for the student and their contact information are listed in the Contacts tab in Aeries. Contact the House Office Technician to add or update information. A written note should be sent to the school designating a person authorized to clear student absences for the time period when the parent(s) will be unavailable.
MAKE-UP ASSIGNMENTS FOR ABSENCES
Check the Student/Parent Portal, Google Classroom, or teacher website for classwork and homework. For most teachers, email is the recommended way to communicate and request assignments that are not posted on the teacher’s website or in Google Classroom. It is the student’s responsibility to contact teachers upon their return to school and arrange for make-up work.
NOTE: The teacher will decide how and when missed coursework and/or tests may be made up. For details, please consult the class syllabi.
ATTENDANCE INTERVENTIONS
Independent Study: A short term Independent Study contract is a voluntary alternative to a regular classroom program of instruction when a student is absent from school for not less than three (3), not more than ten (10) consecutive, and not more than fifteen (15) cumulative days school days.
A request for Independent Study should be submitted TEN school days prior to the absence, and the Principal has the right to deny a short-term Independent Study agreement. If approved, the work must be completed and turned in on the assigned due date or when the student returns to school, whichever is first.
More information can be found on the District’s Independent Study Information page. The District’s website includes a link to the downloadable Independent Study Contract.
AFTER SCHOOL RELEASE
At the end of the student’s scheduled day, students are expected to leave hallways promptly. Students who are waiting for rides or not attending classes remain subject to all school rules.
Contact the Attendance Office or House Office Technician if you have any questions regarding student attendance. To access: Call (510) 537-5910 For Attendance: Press 1
Forms for Absence
District Independent Study Information
District Independent Study Contract
SART Meetings