August 2026

Welcome to a brand-new school year! We are so excited to have your child-and all of our students-back in the classroom, learning, growing, and achieving great things together. We know that good attendance plays an important role in your child's success, and we look forward to partnering with you to make every day count.

To support you and your family, we've put together this special edition newsletter with clear information about attendance policies, helpful answers to frequently asked questions, and resources to make attendance easier.

If your family ever faces challenges that make it hard to attend school regularly, please don't hesitate to reach out. We're here to help. Together, we can make this an amazing year of learning and growth!

Please remember that anytime your student will NOT attend school, it is important to call our office to let us know. We start answering the phones at 7 a.m. on school days, but messages can be left 24 hours a day on the attendance line by calling 316-722-0441 and pressing 1. You may also send us an email. If you do not let us know your student is absent, the district will send an automated call to the number listed in Skyward starting at 9 a.m.

Attendance Office: 316-722-0441 (Press Option 1) Our attendance secretaries are available from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on school days to help you!

• Christine Lawson

316-722-0441

• Sydnee Smith

sysmith@usd266.com or

316-722-0441

Students are recorded tardy to Maize High School after 7:35 a.m. If your child arrives to school after 7:35 a.m. , they must sign in through the Attendance Office. We will document their tardy: and write them a pass to class. If you know you child will be tardy' please call us and let us know.

1. A parent/guardian may call in to excuse three tardies per school year. You may only do this for first block tardies.
2. After 7:55am your child will be marked absent in their first block.
3. Three or more tardies will be referred to your child's administrator. Click here to meet our school's leadership team
4. All tardies will reset at the beginning of each nine week term.

Students may have five absences per class; per nine week grading period. If a student reaches six absences; without professional documentation, they risk losing credit in that class-regardless of a passing grade. All absences without documentation (not including school-related absences) will count toward the allowed five absences per class. (You can click to find this information in the Maize USD 266 District Student Handbook.)

You can click to explore resources that offer helpful information regarding Maize USD 266 attendance policies:

• Click for the attendance web page on the district website.
• Click for the Maize USD 266 District Student Handbook. This includes the full definition of excused absences.

Parents may excuse up to seven absences a year for their student without professional documentation. After seven absences, professional documentation is required for an absence to be excused. Below are some helpful tips for navigating the Attendance Policy:

If your child has a standing appointment, your provider can send one note to cover the entire series. For example, if your child has physical therapy every Thursday for 12 weeks, one medical note stating the timeframe can excuse all those absences.

• You can submit a medical note for illness or appointments at any time during the school year. There is no need to wait until your child has reached seven absences. Bringing a note from the provider when you're already there will ensure that absence doesn't count toward the seven allowed without a note.
• After a student has used seven excused absences (reported by parent call), any additional absences require a medical note. If one isn't provided, the absence is marked unexcused.
• Parents will receive an automated email notification after five of the seven excused absences have been used. These are intended as helpful reminders. If you receive one, you may still be able to submit a medical note for previously excused days. Just contact us at Maize High School.
• If you notice any errors in your child's attendance record or have questions about exemptions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us. We're happy to work with you to ensure accuracy.

If your child has an appointment during the school day, please let us know that day or in advance.

1. Call the Attendance Office to let us know what day and what time your child needs to leave.
2. We will write a pass for your child to leave class at the appropriate time.
3. We will have the pass delivered or call your child to the Attendance Office to pick the pass up.
4. Your child will show their pass to their teacher at the time the pass says to leave. Students will show their pass to the front office secretaries when exciting the school. Please park in the horse-shoe drive at the main Maize High School entrance. It is not necessary for you to come inside to pick up your child.
5. If your child is returning to school that same day, they will sign back into the school through the Attendance Office. Please make sure they bring documentation of their appointment.

Going on vacation? Out of town on a Friday? Club/Elite sports event? All of these can be excused absences and not count against the absence limit as long as this from is signed by all of your child's teachers, a parent/guardian, the student, and your child's administrator. These forms are not online. Your child can pick up a form in the Attendance Office. The form must be turned into the Attendance Office and fully completed at least three days before the absence dates.

• We do not have an open lunch policy. Any student called out during third block will be marked absent for the entire block unless returning with professional documentation. Parents/guardians wanting to take their child to lunch without an absence may do so by coming into the school's front office, signing out your child, and returning your child within their 30-minute lunch period.
• We do not accept food deliveries or outside food to be delivered to a student. Outside food may not be taken into the Commons area during lunch-time.

Per Compulsory Attendance Law (K.S.A. 72-3120). school districts are required to report truancy for any student who accumulates three unexcused absences in a row, five unexcused absences in a semester, or seven unexcused absences in a school year to the truancy officer. Skyward will send updates regarding your child's absences regularly. Please check those, and if you have a question about attendance related to truancy, please call our office.

Visit our school website at www.usd266.com/mhs.

Connect with Dr. Botts at cbotts@usd266.com or 316-722-0441.

Maize High School is located at 11600 W. 45th St. North in Maize.