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Attendance Policy

Wilmington Middle School STEAM Magnet Attendance Policy and California Education Codes

Wilmington Middle School STEAM Magnet requires all students be in regular attendance by being at  school on time, every day and for the entire school day.  Regular school attendance is the Law, Wilmington Middle School STEAM Magnet Policy, and Los Angeles Unified School District policy.

The Wilmington Middle School STEAM Magnet Attendance policy is strictly enforced. Students with five or more unverified/unexcused absences, regardless of full day absences or partial absences in the current school year, will need to have all absences thereafter legally excused. Parent notes will no longer be acceptable and future absences in which legal documentation is not provided will be cleared as truant. Legally excused means a doctor’s note, court or legal document is provided. If legal documentation is not provided, the absences will be cleared as truancies. Students and parents who fail to comply with the attendance policy may be subject to legal actions. Pursuant to the Education Code 48263.5, California Education Code 48293 and/or Penal Code Section 270.1 Failure to comply with that Compulsory Education laws, may result in criminal prosecution.

It is important for parents to know that Wilmington Middle School STEAM Magnet does not approve extended vacation permits for students. To avoid disruptions in your child’s education and ensure that her/she has the best opportunity to be academically successful, we ask that you schedule vacations during the student’s scheduled school breaks. The school calendars are online here or in the attendance office.

Regular and punctual attendance is mandatory for all students.  Student academic achievement is reliant upon regular school attendance.  Whether excused, unexcused or legally verified,  if a student is absent from school they are missing critical classroom instruction, academic engagement time and children who are excessively absent may suffer losses in educational achievement.

Attendance procedures:

  • When returning from an absence, all notes whether parent, guardian, or doctor’s notes need to be turned into the attendance office.
  • All absences not cleared within 10 school days will be marked truant.  If the student brings a note at a later date (before the close of the current school year), the absence code will be changed accordingly.
  • Automated phone calls are sent 2 times daily to notify parents of absences and tardies.  Parents are expected to contact the attendance office when they are notified that their child is absent without their permission
  • Parents are required by California Education Code, section 49408 to update their address and telephone number whenever there is a change.
  • Acceptance of absence notes from parents is a courtesy.  More than 5 absences regardless of full day or partial days or combination of, within a school year is considered to be excessive.
  • A student with excessive absences may be required provide a doctor’s note or have approval from the School Nurse or designated school official to excuse subsequent absences.
  • Under Education Code section 48261, a pupil who has once been reported as a truant and who is again absent from school without valid excuse one or more days or tardy on one or more days, shall again be reported to the attendance supervisor or the superintendent of the district.
  • Parents/Guardian notes may be used to excuse absences provided the courtesy has be allowed by the school attendance policy/district attendance policy.  Pursuant California Education Code 46011:  Absences due to illness or quarantine shall be verified by the district or the county superintendent of schools
  • In short, children  between the ages of 6 and 18 are mandated to attend school every day and it is a PARENT’S responsibility to ensure that his or her child gets to school. If your child has more than three (3) days of UNEXCUSED absences or is tardy for more than 30 minutes on three (3) occasions without a valid excuse in a school year, he/she is considered NON-COMPLIANT/TRUANT (Education Code 48260-48262). Pupil may be referred to the Pupil Services and Attendance Counselor for further intervention which may include a referral to the CIty Attorney Office or District Attorney, school site Student Attendance Review Team (SART), the School Attendance Review Board (SARB) and/or Juvenile Court (Education Code 48263 and 48291).

Parents are encouraged to contact school staff regularly to inquire about their child’s attendance and request assistance as needed.

Compulsory Attendance Law: California Compulsory Education Code:

Education Code Section 48200 states that it is the responsibility of the parent, legal guardian, or adult custodian, having control or charge of a pupil between the ages of 6 and 18 to ensure that the pupil attends school every day, on time and for the full length of the school day.  

California Education Code 48260.  (a) A pupil subject to compulsory full-time education or to compulsory continuation education who is absent from school without a valid excuse three full days in one school year or tardy or absent for more than a 30-minute period during the school day without a valid excuse on three occasions in one school year, or any combination thereof, shall be classified as a truant and shall be reported to the attendance supervisor or to the superintendent of the school district.

Truancy:

California Education Code 48260.5 Upon a pupil‘s initial classification as a truant, the school district shall utilize the Notification of Truancy Letter to notify the pupil‘s parent/guardian , by mail or other reasonable means of the following:

  • The pupil is truant.
  • That the parent or guardian is obligated to compel the attendance of the pupil at school.
  • That parents or guardians who fail to meet this obligation may be guilty of an infraction and subject to prosecution.
  • That alternative educational programs are available in the district.

That the parent or guardian has the right to meet with appropriate school personnel to discuss solutions to the pupil‘s truancy. That the pupil may be subject to prosecution.

Education Code 48291 – Referral to School Attendance Review Board (SARB):

If it appears upon investigation that any parent, guardian or other person having control or charge of any child has violated any of the provisions of the California School Attendance Laws, the secretary of the board of education, or the clerk of the board of trustees, shall refer such person to a school attendance review board.  In the event that any such parent, guardian, or other person continually and willfully fails to respond to directives of the school attendance review board or services provided, the school attendance review board shall direct the school district to make and file in the proper court a criminal complaint against the parent, guardian, or other person, charging the violation, and shall see that the charge is prosecuted by the proper authority.

Penal Code 272 - Contributing to Delinquency of a Minor:

Every person who commits any act or omits the performance of any duty, which act or omission causes or tends to cause or encourage any person under the age of 18 years to come within the provisions of Sections 300, 601, or 602 of the Welfare and Institutions code or which act or omission contributes thereto, or any person who, by any act or omission, or by threats, commands, or persuasion, induces or endeavors to induce any person under the age of 18 years or any ward or dependent child of the juvenile court to fail or refuse to conform to a lawful order of the juvenile court, or to do or to perform any act or to follow any course of conduct or to so live as would cause or manifestly tend to cause any such person to become or to remain a person within the provisions of Sections 300, 601, or 602 of the Welfare and Institutions code, is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine not exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500), or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one year, or by both such fine and imprisonment in a county jail, or may be released on probation for a period not exceeding five years.

What is a legally verified absence?

California Education Code 48205 (a-e) provides that a pupil shall be excused from school when the absence is due to:

  • Illness absence with a doctor’s note or authorization by school nurse or other authorized school official.
  • Exclusion from school supported by written documentation by nurse or other authorized school official.
  • Medical appointments; verified by a written note from a doctor.
  • Quarantine of the home; verified by the health department.
  • Funeral due to the death of a member of the student’s immediate family (1 day, within the state; 3 days, outside the state).
  • Absences for justifiable personal reasons, with prior written request and written approval from the principal or authorized school official, such as an appearance in court, attendance at a funeral service.
  • Observance of a religious holiday or ceremony of his or her religion (NOT TO EXCEED 4 HOURS PER SEMESTER), attendance at a religious retreat, or attendance at an employment conference (Education Code  Section 46014 and 48205 (c))
  • Written proof of attendance regarding justifiable personal reasons is needed for verification
  • Any other absence with prior written approval from the principal will be considered to for verification.
  • Regardless of whether an absence is verified, unverified, excused, or unexcused, parents or guardians must always notify the school of a student’s absence.

Students at Wilmington Middle School STEAM Magnet are expected to be in school attendance 100% of the time. They are expected to be present on time and in attendance of each and every class. Students with five or more unverified/unexcused absences, regardless of full day absences or partial absences in the current school year, will need to have all absences, thereafter legally excused. Parent notes will no longer be acceptable and future absences in which legal documentation is not provided will be cleared as truant. Legally excused means a doctor’s note, court or legal document is provided. If legal documentation is not provided, the absences will be cleared as truancies and student may be referred to the Truancy Prevention Program.

Parents if your child is seriously ill you can take them to the doctor and bring us the doctors note. If the illness is not severe and/or you do not plan to take them to the doctor or you do not have a medical provider for your child, you can bring them to see the school nurse or school officials (Principal, Assistant Principal or Pupil Services Attendance Counselor)

Missing Assignments for pupil’s absences which have been excused/legally verified:

California Education Code 48205(b). A pupil absent from school under this section shall be allowed to complete all assignments and tests missed during the absence that can be reasonably provided and, upon satisfactory completion within a reasonable period of time, shall be given full credit therefor. The teacher of the class from which a pupil is absent shall determine which tests and assignments shall be reasonably equivalent to, but not necessarily identical to, the tests and assignments that the pupil missed during the absence.

What’s an unexcused/unverified absence?

California Education Code 48200 best describes these types of absences as parent permitted truancies which are UNACCEPTABLE, and your child will be considered NON-COMPLIANT/TRUANT from school. Examples of these absences are as follows but not limited too:

  • Mother, Father, Guardian or any other relative is ill/giving birth
  • Personal business or personal reasons
  • Vacation, including going out of state or country (i.e. long weekends, leaving the week before your child’s school  goes on vacation or returning late from vacation)
  • There was no one to bring or pick up child from school
  • Appointments for other family members
  • Rainy Days (Bad inclement weather)
  • Walkouts
  • Car problems
  • Oversleeping  
  • Babysitting
  • No clean clothes

DID YOU KNOW?

Positive attendance habits are a learned behavior.  Students who miss 7 or fewer days per school year are far more likely to stay on track academically and graduate from high school on-time.