Attendance Policy

Your child’s regular attendance in school is of great importance to their educational success.  Please understand that New York State law requires that any student absence must be accounted for by a written excuse from home.  We ask all parents to contact the school by 9:30 a.m. to report an absence.  Parents will automatically be notified by mail when their child’s absences reach/exceed 10, 15, and 20 days (excused and unexcused).  Students with high absence rates may be referred to our Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) Team, the school social worker, and/or the school SRO (school resource officer) for assistance in solving any underlying issues.

The doors are closed and locked at 9:00 a.m. each morning.  If your child is late for school, they must be escorted by you into the main office.  You may bring a written excuse for the tardy, or you will be asked to complete one in the office.

If a child is to be excused earlier than the regular dismissal time, a note must be sent to the teacher in the morning.  The parent, upon arriving at school, should report to the main office.  Parents will NOT go to the classroom.  Children will not be dismissed to anyone other than the custodial parent(s)/ legal guardian unless the school has been notified in advance.  The District will not release students to a non-custodial parent without the custodial parent’s consent.  It is the parent’s responsibility to inform the District if and when the child may be released to individuals other than the custodial parent in a form acceptable to the District.  The main office will call the classroom, and your child will be sent promptly.  Parents may wait for their child in the main office.

Please remember:
When your child returns to school, a written excuse indicating the reason for the absence is required. Illness, religious observances, and funerals are considered excused absences. Vacations, personal business, or family matters are unexcused absences. If a written excuse is not received, it will be marked as an illegal absence. All excuses are kept on file at school.

Again, please call the school by 9:30 a.m. if your child will be absent.            

Pick Up Tag:
If you are going to pick up your child on a regular basis at dismissal, we ask that you request a pick up tag for your car.

If you do not have a tag, please let the office know ahead of time that you will be picking up your child at dismissal by sending in a note with your child.  Be sure to indicate who will be picking up your child and make sure that person has photo identification.  

Thank you very much for your cooperation with our dismissal procedures.  This is often the most hectic time of the day for us as we work to make certain that all children get dismissed properly.  There is a limited time frame to ensure that all buses are correctly loaded and all children are where they are supposed to be.  Any last minute alterations to the plans increase the risk of error.