Scott  High  School

ATTENDANCE POLICY 

All Scott High students are required to maintain a minimum attendance rate of 93% in each of their scheduled classes during the 90-day semester term. In order to meet that requirement, students will be allowed to make up class work, regardless of the reason for their absences, up to a maximum of six (6) absences per class in the 90-day semester term. However, students who exceed six (6) absences (regardless of reason) in any class will receive no credit for that class at the end of the semester UNLESS the student has completed a credit recovery plan administered through after-school sessions and/or Saturday school. No make-up work will be assigned or accepted by teachers in whose class the student has missed more than six (6) days, unless the make-up work is completed during the after-school sessions and/or Saturday school sessions. One class period can be made up in each after-school session and two class periods per each Saturday/double session. All class work and attendance make up must be completed prior to the end of the 90-day period; however, students should begin credit recovery sessions immediately after they have missed more than six (6) days in any of their classes.

All absences and all late arrivals must be verified by a written note signed by the parent/guardian or from the appropriate service provider, such as a dentist or physician. The note must indicate the reason for the absence and the date and/or time missed. The student must then present the note to the attendance monitor upon his/her return to school. This verification note will be documented in our computer records as either an excused or unexcused absence, and an admit slip will then be issued to the student so that he/she may return to class. Such things as personal illness, doctor/dentist visits, death in the immediate family, recognized religious holidays, family crises, and subpoenaed court appearances will be recognized as excused absences so that no referral is made to the Attendance Supervisor for truancy violations.

However, it is important to remember that even if the absence is recognized as being excused, the student must still attend after-school and/or Saturday school if they have been absent from any of their classes more than six (6) times.

Excessive absences that are not in compliance with the above noted reasons will be considered unexcused absences and will be routinely referred to the Attendance Supervisor, who will seek appropriate legal action through the Scott County Juvenile Court.

A student’s failure to comply with the attendance policy due to unforeseen circumstances beyond his/her control may be resolved through a decision by the school administration. Any Scott High School administrative decision regarding attendance may be appealed by the parent and student, initially, to the director of schools and, ultimately, to the Scott County Board of Education, as provided in TCA 49-6- 3002.

TARDY POLICY 

Tardies that occur as a result of a student’s late arrival to school will be calculated in the computer as part of the daily attendance record. Therefore, when the tardies total 90 minutes, the student’s attendance record will be shown as having accrued one absence in the affected class. Consequently, it is important that students avoid habitually arriving late to school. 

School Start Times - Scott County has an area of 533 square miles, ranking it number 32 in size out of Tennessee’s 95 counties. Because we are such a large county, and transport as many students over so large an area, each school has a different start time, determined by the principal, considering bus arrival times and the needs of the students. The principal will inform students and parents of the start time of each school. *See “Bell Schedule” section for official report times.

Late Arrival to School - Late arrival to school is a form of tardiness that is especially harmful to a student’s success in school. Not only does it harm the student who is late, it disrupts the learning of the class to which he belongs. Because being late has such bad educational consequences, the following policy applies: 

 A student who is late for school three (3) times UNEXCUSED will be assessed one (1) unexcused absence. The Attendance Monitor at each school will keep a paper record of these absences and they will count toward the number of unexcused absences for a court citation. The actual minutes absent will continue to accumulate on the child’s computer record as well.

This policy is not to punish people who are occasionally late to school. We recognized that there are legitimate reasons that a student may be late on occasion, but the goal is to reduce the number of students who are habitually late.

Tardy for Class - It is the responsibility of the student to arrive at each of his/her classes on time. Students who arrive late will be counted tardy for that class. They shall not be admitted to class until they have secured an admit slip from the office indicating whether the tardy is excused or unexcused. The classroom teacher shall document all tardies in his/her roll book and shall exercise the option of assigning extra work to the student on each occasion that the student is issued and unexcused tardy slip from the office.

For the purpose of Credit Recovery, regardless of class period, tardies over 10 minutes may be required to be made up if the student is already over his/her allotted days. Students will only be required to make up the exact time missed in tardy situations. (ex. Tardy at 8:30 - student owes 30 minutes)

Under Scott County School Board Policy number 6.2000, excessive and or habitual tardiness can be considered as truancy and may result in court referral of the student and their parents. Unexcused tardiness can also result in failing grades or referral to the office for further disciplinary action.

CREDIT RECOVERY 

In order to provide students the opportunity to meet attendance requirements for each course that they are enrolled, Credit Recovery sessions will be held each semester after school from 3:15 - 4:45 PM. A schedule of Credit Recovery days for each semester will be available in the office, posted throughout the school, and announced every morning. 

Credit Recovery attendance is required of any student whose absences exceed six (6) per class per semester. Students who have been allowed to make class changes during the semester with the requirement that Credit Recovery was a condition of the class must complete this commitment. 

It is important to remember that Credit Recovery attendance ALONE will not guarantee a passing grade in any class. Students must also complete all make-up work to the satisfaction of the teacher as well as earn an end-of-term grade of not less than 70. 

Attendance may be "banked" by students prior to their actual absence at the rate of one make-up session per block per term, unless otherwise approved by the Principal. 

All students attending a Credit Recovery session must comply with the following procedures:

•  The student must report to the extended contract teacher by 3:15 p.m. Tardiness to Credit Recovery sessions will not be tolerated.
•   The student must present a Credit Recovery contract signed by the teacher for whom work/time is being made up. This contract must be given to the Credit Recovery instructor before the student will be allowed to sign-in for the session. The contract will then be signed by the Credit Recovery instructor and returned to the appropriate teacher to verify attendance/work assignment for that particular session.
•  The student must have something to work on before entering the Credit Recovery session. Students will not be allowed to simply sit or sleep through the session. Students who do not comply will be dismissed from the session and no attendance credit given.
•  The student must complete the sign-in form at the beginning of the Credit Recovery session. The data entries should be written in a neat, legible form so that proper credit can be given for attending the session.
•  Students should begin completing Credit Recovery immediately following their 7th (or more) absence and all time must by the end of the term. Any exception to this will be approved by the principal and will be reserved for students who have shown due diligence in making up time.
•  Make-up tests will be administered by the Credit Recovery instructor only. No student will be allowed to bring a test to the session or leave the session with a test. Prior arrangements for testing must be made by the classroom teacher with the Credit Recovery instructor.
•  Verification of student attendance will be given to all faculty members on the day following the Credit Recovery session.
•  Credit Recovery sessions are simply an extension of the school day; thus, all policies regarding acceptable student behavior will continue to be in effect, and disciplinary action will be taken on any reported infraction.

NOTE: ANY UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES WHICH PREVENT A STUDENT'S COMPLIANCE WITH THIS POLICY WILL BE RESOLVED BY ADMINISTRATIVE DECISION.