Attendance

Arizona law charges the parent or guardian with the responsibility for the student’s consistent school attendance.  The school will enforce the laws regarding attendance, with considerations for the variables that affect children and families.  The school will place emphasis on the prevention and correction of the causes of absenteeism.  Excessive absenteeism may negatively affect a student’s academic progress and increase the risk that the student will be retained in the current grade. Consistent attendance in school is essential to academic success.  Students must be in attendance each day school is in session, except for excused absences as described below.  If a student is absent and the school has not been notified of an appropriate excuse for the student’s absence, the school will make a reasonable effort to promptly notify the parent or guardian of the student’s unexcused absence. If a student is not in attendance on a particular day, that student will not be allowed to participate in school activities held during or outside normal school hours that day (exceptions may be made at the sole discretion of school administration).  Students need to arrive at school on time and not leave during the school day for unnecessary reasons.  The responsibility to ensure regular attendance rests on the student and the parent/guardian. Students are allowed to be at school 30 minutes before school starts, and 20 minutes after school ends. Students remaining on campus are subject to the school’s Late Pickup Policy.

Late Pickup Policy

All students attending All Aboard Charter School are required to be picked up by a parent or authorized guardian immediately after school.  There is a 20 minute grace period after the student is dismissed, unless the student has siblings, then their grace period is 20 minutes after the oldest student is dismissed.  The first violation will result in a warning phone call to the parent of the student. The second violation will result in placing the student in At Teach & Play, there will be fees as stated below. These fees are payable upon picking up the student.  Parents are required to complete the At Teach & Play after school enrollment program packet at the time of registration.

 **Late Fees per Child

  • $14.00 per day
  • Over 6 hours: Additional $7.00 per day

Absences

Under Arizona law, student absences are either excused or unexcused. An Excused Absence is an absence for which the school has received acceptable information, either in advance or at the time of the absence, from a parent or legal guardian certifying one of the following:

  1. Absence due to the student’s illness
  2. Absence due to a medical or dental appointment for the student (the school encourages parents to schedule routine appointments outside of regular school hours whenever possible)
  3. Absence due to the death of someone in the student’s family (i.e. bereavement)
  4. Absence due to a family emergency
  5. Absence due to the student being given out-of-school suspension (not to exceed 10% of the instructional days scheduled for the school year)
  6. Absence for religious purposes only if the parent/guardian has provided the school with advanced written consent for the religious absence, the school has approved the requested absence, and any religious instruction or exercises take place at a suitable place away from school property.

The school is required by law to document and maintain verifiable records of the date, reason, and person reporting the absence; therefore, the school may require documentation for each Excused Absence, such as a doctor’s note. An Unexcused Absence is an absence due to any reason not considered an Excused Absence. In accordance with Arizona law, if the student has 10 consecutive Unexcused Absences, the school will withdraw the student from the school effective either the last day the student attended the school or the last day of a reported Excused Absence, whichever is later.

Reporting an Absence

The student’s parent or guardian must report an absence to the school by 9:30 a.m. The school reserves the right to make the final determination about whether an absence is an Excused Absence or an Unexcused Absence.

Student Illness and Related Absences

The school is committed to ensuring a safe learning environment for all students and staff; therefore, parents and guardians are required to comply with the following:

  • Students with contagious illness should be kept home.
  • Students prescribed antibiotics must be on them for 24 hours before returning to school.
  • Students with a fever, vomiting, diarrhea, or signs and symptoms of contagious illness will be sent home.
  • Students should be free from fever without the use of fever reducing medicines, vomiting, or diarrhea for at least 24 hours before returning to school.

The school reserves the right to take any and all action it deems appropriate to respond to public health crises and widespread illness. If your child has a chronic health problem, as defined in A.R.S. § 15-346, please review the school’s Chronic Illness Policy below.

Absence Intervention

Student attendance is imperative to student success; therefore the school will take appropriate steps to combat excessive absenteeism, whether Excused or Unexcused.

 Step 1:  After a student is absent 5 days, the school will call the parent/guardian and send a letter home to be read, signed and returned to the front office.

 Step 2:  After a student is absent for 8 days a conference is scheduled with the teacher. Together the teacher and parents will make a corrective action plan. Note: if a student has 10 consecutive Unexcused Absences, he/she will be withdrawn from all classes in accordance with Arizona law, as explained above.

Step 3:  After a student is absent for 15 days, a conference is scheduled with the parent, teacher and principal.  Together all parties will discuss the student’s absenteeism and set up a revised corrective action plan.

Step 4:  After a student is absent for more than 10% of the required school days, the parent will be contacted and all appropriate disciplinary consequences will be considered, including referral of the matter to a truancy officer; provided, however, that the school will always strive to find in-school solutions to addressing excessive absenteeism.

Early Release and Signing Students In and Out of School

Unless the school has provided its prior approval, the early release of a student from the school is only permitted for the following reasons: the student’s illness, a family emergency, the death of a person in the student’s family, or a medical or dental appointment for the student. The school will not permit students to leave campus before the end of the school day unless a parent, guardian, or other authorized adult appears in the office, provides identification satisfactory to the school, and signs the student out.  The school reserves the right to not allow a student under the age of 18 to leave without obtaining permission from the student’s parent or guardian.