The Hallsville ISD Board of Trustees has approved the following policies addressing student attendance:

Admissions and Attendance:

Compulsory Attendance - Policy FDC; Legal & Local

Absences and Excuses - Policy FDD; Legal & Local

Attendance Enforcement - Policy FDE,

Legal Sections of these policies are stated in this booklet on the following pages. For a full text of the documents, please refer to the actual policies, as listed above.

Attendance Philosophy

The entire process of education requires a regular continuity of instruction, classroom participation, learning experiences, and study in order to reach the goal of maximum educational benefits for each individual child. The regular contact of pupils with one another under the tutelage of competent teachers is vital to this purpose. All students are expected to attend school regularly and to be on time to classes in order to derive maximum benefit from the instructional program and to develop habits of punctuality and responsibility.

Hallsville ISD school officials aggressively enforce the state compulsory attendance laws. Every day that a student is out of school in violation of compulsory attendance laws is a separate offense. Parents may be assessed a fine for each offense and may also be ordered to participate in a class designee to help make sure your child attends school as required. Truancy charges will be filed if a student accumulates three (3) unexcused absences in a 4 week period or ten (10) unexcused absences in a 6 month period.

There are times that children are sick or have other legitimate reasons for being absent from school. (Regardless of the age of your child, if she or he is sick and will not be at school that day, parents/guardians are required to call the school attendance office and inform the school of the absence. Failure to call the school will result in an unexcused absence.) Then, following the absence, the student must provide the school with a written note from the parent and/or doctor informing the school of the exact reason for the absence. All notes must be brought to school within two days after returning to school or the absence will be ruled unexcused. The principal or someone acting for the principal will make the final decision whether an absence is classified as excused or unexcused.

State financial aid is based on an average daily attendance of the student enrollment. It is imperative, therefore, that the student attendance average at the end of the year reflects a high daily attendance so that Hallsville I.S.D. can receive its full share of state financial aid. This is the only way that local tax payers can control the amount of money the district receives from the state.

Compulsory Attendance Laws Policy FDC(Legal)

Students who are at least six years of age, or who have been previously enrolled in the first grade, and who have not yet reached their eighteenth birthday shall attend school for the entire period the school program is offered, unless exempted by the district as stated in the section of this code titled “Extenuating Circumstances”. Students enrolled in pre-kindergarten or kindergarten shall attend school

Parent Liability for Truancy

If any parent of a person standing in parental relation to a child who is required to attend school fails to require the child to attend school, the attendance officer shall warn the parent in writing that attendance is immediately required [Policy FDE (Legal)]

If, after this warning, a parent or person standing in parental relation with criminal negligence fails to comply and if the child has unexcused voluntary absences for the amount of time specified under Family Code 51.03(b)(2), the attendance officer shall file a complaint against him or her in an appropriate court, as permitted under Education Code 25.093.ED

Students must attend required accelerated and compensatory programs, if they have been identified as likely not to be promoted. (EC 29.084) (EHBC)IT

Loss of Credit

Students in grades 7-12 who are in attendance fewer than 90 percent of the days the class is offered during the semester or students in grades 1-6 who are in attendance fewer than 90 percent of the days the class is offered during the year will receive no credit, unless the attendance committee finds that the absences are the result of extenuating circumstances (Section 25.092.TEC).

Extenuating Circumstances

The District accepts the following as extenuating circumstances for the purpose of granting credit for a class:

1. An absence based on death in the family, quarantine, weather or road conditions making travel dangerous, any other unusual cause acceptable to the superintendent, principal or attendance committee.
2. Days of suspension
3. Juvenile court proceeding documented by a probation officer
4. Absence required by state or local welfare authorities
5. A migrant student's late enrollment or early withdrawal
6. Completion of a competency-based program for at-risk students
7. Late enrollment or early withdrawal of a student under Texas Youth Commission
8. Family hardship or other situations beyond the control of the student or family as determined by the school attendance committee
9. Participation in a substance abuse rehabilitation program
10. Religious Holy Day(s)
11. Board-approved extracurricular activity or public performance
12. Required screening, diagnosis, and treatment for Medicaid-eligible students
13. Documented health care appointment, if the student begins classes or returns to school on the same day as the appointment
14. Approved college visitation

Remittance Following an Absence

When returning to school after an absence, a student must bring a note WITHIN 2 DAYS signed by the parent or guardian, medical personnel or court official that describes the reason for the absence. In case of an extended illness of 3 days or more, a note from the doctor is required for the absence to be excused. All notes should include the student’s complete name, ID number (if required), and parent/guardian signature. Notes signed by the student, even with the parent's permission, will be considered a forgery and the student will be disciplined. Re-admittance procedures that are not followed correctly, will cause the students absence to be ruled unexcused.

Alternative Methods for Regaining Credit

Students who lose credit as a result of excessive absences may regain credit through participation in one or more of the following alternative ways, as approved and deemed appropriate by the campus administration:

1. Tutorials: In grades 7 and 8 attendance at one regularly scheduled tutorial session(s) shall be equivalent to one clock hour of alternative time (i.e. 60 minutes of tutorials).
2. Summer School, Grades 9-12: In order to regain credit loss, some students may choose to attend summer school. A student who has accumulated more absences than could physically be made up in the remainder of a school year could face this possibility. A student assigned this option for re gaining credit must do so at his/her own expense. Transportation to and from summer school will also be the responsibility of the student or his/her parent. Students may take only one course per semester.
3. Saturday School: Saturday classes for students in grades 7-12 meet from 7:30 a.m. until 11:30 a.m.
4. Credit by Exam: High School students may regain credit by paying for and taking a test acquired from Texas Tech University and administered by the district.

Petition for Extenuating Circumstances

Following notification of loss of credit due to excessive absences, the student or parent may file in the principal's office and/or the attendance office on each campus, a written petition explaining the extenuating circumstances. Students whose petitions for credits are denied may appeal the attendance committee's decision to the campus principal.