Attendance Policies

  1. In accordance with Illinois compulsory attendance requirements, it is the policy of CCUSD 301 that students shall attend school on a regular basis. We believe that daily attendance, timeliness to class, and preparedness and participation in class will increase the student’s probability for successful performance and fosters the development of self-discipline and responsibility. It is the intention of the instructor of each course to not only teach the subject matter, but also to encourage the positive attribute of regular attendance, punctuality, and participation.
  2. Students are expected to attend every class, whether remote or in person. The following structures for instruction will be used:
    • Combined In-person and Remote (A/B Schedule)
    • Full-time Remote

The school has an obligation to inform both students and parents/guardians of the student’s progress and attendance in all classes. Parents/guardians are to follow proper procedures to inform the school when their child is absent, both for in-person and remote learning days, and to provide a reason for the absences.

It is important to note that while students are Remote Learning, they should follow teacher procedures to log into the class for instruction.  Students are expected to attend all Remote Learning sessions provided by the teacher, and if they are not in attendance, they will be marked absent

Steps to Follow When Absent From School

It is the parent/guardian’s responsibility to call the main office and give the reason for an absence. The parent/guardian is requested to call prior to 7:50 a.m. the day of the absence at (847)464-6000 for Central Middle School and (847)717-8100 for Prairie Knolls Middle School. In the event that school personnel do not hear from parent(s)/guardians(s) about tardiness or absence before 9:00 a.m., the school may call parents or other emergency contacts provided by a parent to determine the reason for the student’s absence.

Parents who cannot call must write a note explaining the reason for the absence.  The note should be written by the parent in its entirety and signed. If this occurs on a remote learning day, the note can be scanned and emailed to the attendance secretary or turned in at the main office on the next in-person instruction day.

CMS and PKMS will recognize an excused absence as:

  1. A student’s personal illness,
  2. A death in the immediate family,
  3. A family emergency,
  4. Observance of a religious holiday,
  5. Medical appointment,
  6. Vacations up to 5 school days
  7. Other circumstances that cause reasonable concern to the parent/guardian for the student’s safety or health,
  8. Other situations beyond the control of the student such as court appearances
  9. Other reasons approved by the Superintendent or designee

Unexcused Absence: Absences for any other reason may be considered unexcused. An unexcused absence is defined as an absence from school for a reason other than those listed above as an Excused Absence and/or an absence not authorized by the student’s parent/guardian or the Superintendent or designee.

A physician’s note may be required to excuse a student and/or for returning to school after the third consecutive day of being reported ill. If medical documentation is not provided, the absence may be marked “unexcused.”

Students who have 9 or more absences due to being sick may be required to provide a doctor’s note to excuse the absences.

Examples of unexcused absences include:

  • Working
  • Missing the bus
  • Car not starting
  • Cutting class (in-person or remote)
  • Vacations/going out of town
  • Needed at home
  • Other avoidable absences

Schoolwork missed because of unexcused absences must be made up in accordance with the Make Up Work section below.

Truant Absences: Truancy is defined as absence without valid cause for one or more periods of the student’s school day. A truant absence is an unexcused absence. After the 9th school day (5% of regular attendance days) on which a student is absent without valid cause, he/she is deemed to be truant under Illinois law. Interventions to address truancy may include attendance letters, parent/guardian conferences, and/or involvement of the Kane County Truancy officers and/or local law enforcement. No punitive action, including out-of-school suspensions, expulsions, or court action will be taken against a chronically truant student unless available support services and other school resources have been provided to the student, or offered to the student and refused. Any person who has custody or control of a child subject to compulsory attendance who knowingly or willfully permits the child to persist in truancy, if convicted, is guilty of a Class C Misdemeanor and may be subject to up to 30 days imprisonment and/or fine up to $1,500.

Vacation Absences: The District strongly encourages families to plan vacations to coincide with the school calendar so as to avoid taking valuable educational time away from their students. Students may ask their teachers to provide advance assignments. However, it is up to the individual teacher to determine whether he/she can honor the request. School work missed because of family vacation must be made up in accordance with the “Makeup Work” Section below.

Class Cut: A class cut is defined as an absence from part of (15 minutes or more) or an entire class period/block, without permission from the student’s parent/guardian or approval of school officials. A class cut is an unexcused absence and may result in disciplinary action.

Tardiness: Students are expected to be in class on time so they may maximize their learning opportunities. Teachers and the Administration will monitor students’ tardies. Students may be considered tardy if they arrive after the bell has rung. On the fifth tardy to school per semester, students  may receive disciplinary consequences. The same may occur for excessive tardies to class based on team policies.

A student must be in school for three clock hours in order to participate in any co-curricular activity including, but not limited to, interscholastic sports, school dances, club meetings, etc.

When a student has a pattern of frequent absences because of illness/injury or has been out of school for a contagious condition, an administrator may request a doctor’s excuse.

Anticipated Absence

An anticipated absence is defined as a situation in which student and parent know in advance that the student will be absent on a school day. Schoolwork missed during this absence must be made up on the student’s return.

A student must submit a written explanation (note, email, fax, etc.) to the school office from a parent/guardian.

Make Up Work During Absences

Students who are absent from school (in-person or remote) will be allowed to make up work for equivalent academic credit. The time allowed to makeup work will generally be one school day for every one school day missed, starting with the first day the student returns to school (in-person or remote).  In extenuating circumstances a student may ask his/her teacher, school counselor, or the principal for additional time to make up work.  It is the responsibility of the student (and his/her parent/guardian), not the teachers, to get the assignments, complete them, and turn them in, and to arrange a time with the teacher to make up any missed quizzes or tests. Incomplete work or failure to do the work may result in a lowering of grades.

The make up rule application for students who are receiving Home or Hospital Instruction is set forth in the Student Services section of the Handbook under the heading Home and Hospital Instruction.

Late Arrivals to School

When a student arrives late to school, he/she must report to the office. The office will issue a tardy pass to admit him/her to class. Work missed may be made up if the teacher permits it.  The date of the tardy will be recorded by the office. Students will be allowed only four (4) tardies each semester for any reason, such as appointments, car problems, oversleeping, etc. The only exceptions shall be unavoidable medical or dental appointments which cannot be scheduled during non-school hours. These must be accompanied by parent verification in a written note or in a phone call.

Leaving School Early

Students who need to leave school early for medical purposes (doctor or dental appointments) must bring a note to the Attendance Office before leaving school. The note must be written by the parent in its entirety. The note should include: (1) the requested dismissal time, (2) the reason the student needs to leave early, and (3) a parent signature.

If a student is ill during the day, the student must check out in the Nurse’s Office before leaving the building. Students should not arrange for parents/guardians to pick them up, without first having been seen by the Nurse. When the Nurse is not in the health office, a student who is ill should report to the Main Office.