Daily student attendance is fundamental to student academic progress. Additionally, increased Average Daily Attendance [ADA] in all schools positively impacts the quality of education. 

To report a student absence, late arrival, or early release, please (1) call 224-484-4520 or (2) email attendance.dms@d300.org.

Information for Calling in an Absence

Parents are responsible for reporting a student’s absence to the Attendance Office by 9:00 a.m. the date of the absence. A student will be considered truant if a phone call explaining the absence is not made to the attendance office.

When calling in an absence, please provide your student’s name, grade, ID number, and reason for the absence.

Recorded messages may be left on the Attendance Office Voice mail between 4 p.m. and 7 a.m. preceding the absence.

Excused Absence Information

Valid Causes for Excused Absences include:

• Student illness
• Family emergency
• Death in the immediate family
• Attendance at religious instruction or observance of a religious holiday
• Documented attendance in court
• Documented medical and dental appointments
• Authorized college visits, maximum 6 across junior and senior years (e.g., 4 junior yr., 2 senior yr.)
• Circumstances which cause reasonable concern to the parent for the safety or health of the student
• Administrative placement out-of-school or administrative authorization

A medical excuse may be required if the student’s illness exceeds three consecutive days or if the student’s absences due to illness occur for 5% or more of the previous 180 regular attendance days.

Unexcused Absence Information

Unexcused Absences = Absent without Valid Cause

The following will apply for a student’s absence to be reported as unexcused:

1. The parent/guardian fails to provide a valid cause for the student’s absence; or
2. The parent/guardian fails to contact the school prior to the student’s absence or within the first two hours on the day of the absence.

If special circumstances prevented parents/guardians from being able to contact the school, the building administrator will determine the outcome of the absence.

Unexcused Absences = Truancy Violations

Students subject to compulsory school attendance who are absent without valid cause (unexcused) for 5% or more of the previous 180 regular attendance days – which may include prior school year semesters of attendance – are considered “chronic or habitual truants.”

Tardiness

Students who arrive to school after the instructional day has begun and/or students who arrive to their assigned classroom after the class period has begun are considered “tardy.” Excused tardiness to school must meet the same general criteria as an excused absence. The status of tardiness due to circumstances beyond students’ and/or parent/guardians’ control, such as a late bus or poor road conditions, will be determined by school administration.

Circumstances defining excused vs. unexcused tardiness:

Students in grades 6 through 12:

• Will be issued a tardy if they arrive within the first 20 minutes after the start of the school day.
• Arriving after the first 20 minutes before the end of first period and with valid cause, will result in an Excused Absence (EA) for first period.
• Arriving after the first 20 minutes before the end of first period and without valid cause, will result in an Unexcused Absence (UA) for first period.
• Throughout the remainder of the school day, a student with proper authorization who arrives to class after the class period has begun will be considered excused.
• Throughout the remainder of the school day, tardiness without proper authorization will be considered unexcused.

Planned Early Release and/or Late Arrival

Parent/Guardian permission is required for a student to leave school before the end of the instructional day and/or for a student who will be arriving at a later point during the instructional day. 

• Students who have obtained an approved early release/late arrival must sign in/out in the appropriate office before they leave school or when they arrive at school.
• Students requiring transportation who have early release permission will be dismissed from school only to those individuals identified in the District 300 Student Information System as the parent/guardian or the parent/guardian designee as identified in Administrative Procedure 7:340-AP2-E2, Permission for Non-Parent/Non-Legal Guardian.
• In ALL situations, school of office staff may require valid, acceptable identification before releasing the student from his or her assigned classroom.

Prearranged, Extended Absences, and Special Circumstances

A prearranged absence is when parents/guardians are aware in advance that the student will be absent from school.

An extended absence is one lasting four or more consecutive days. Whenever possible, parents/guardians must communicate with school office staff in advance of a prearranged and/or extended absence.

• Students with prearranged and/or extended absences may be required to complete/provide additional documentation in order for the absence to be excused (e.g., prearranged absence form).
• Any type of prearranged and/or extended absence without valid cause can be considered an unexcused absence and may result in a truancy violation.
• If special circumstances prevent parents/guardians from being able to avoid a prearranged or extended absence without valid cause, the building administrator will determine if the absence is considered excused or unexcused.
• All student participants must be in attendance for at least half of the academic school day in order to participate in same-day contests, competitions, or events. Exceptions may be determined by school administration.

Student of Active-Duty Military Personnel

According to the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunities for Military Children, a student whose parent or legal guardian has been called to duty for, is on leave from, or immediately returned from deployment to a combat zone or combat support posting, may be granted excused absences at the discretion of building administration.

Making up Academic Work

The following guidelines apply for students who miss school for any reason:

• In order to earn credit for classwork, quizzes, tests, and/or projects, all work must be completed within the time frame provided by instructional staff.
• Students will be given up to two days to complete makeup work for each day the student is absent.
• For excused absences, students will earn full credit for makeup work completed within the allotted time frame.
• For unexcused absences, students will earn half credit for makeup work completed within the allotted time frame.
• Instructors will not be expected to create additional activities or provide extra credit to compensate for the time the student is away from school.