Attendance Policy Updates

The new policy says there are two types of absences: “excused” and “unexcused.” Excused absences include:

• Failure of bus to run
• Judicial obligations
• Military obligations
• Death in the family
• Medical/dental appointments (with a doctor's note)
• Chronic medical condition (school meeting required)
• Personal illness/injury of student or family member (Limit 10 per school year)

In the past, families have used Educational Leave ("Leave of Educational Value") for things like trips or 4-H activities. That is no longer allowed under the new law.

If your child misses 10% or more of the school year, they are considered “chronically absent.” In a regular school year of 180 days, that would mean missing 18 or more days. When a student misses this many days, the school will reach out to see how we can help.

If your child has too many unexcused absences, the school may take further steps, such as a home visit or other actions. But we want to work together with you to fix attendance problems before it gets to that point. Remember, "strive to miss less than five" days of school!

BCS wants to help families with attendance! If your child is close to being “chronically absent,” our attendance team will contact you. They may set up a meeting to talk about any challenges your family is facing and help you find ways to improve attendance.

• Encourage your child to go to school every day.
• Let us know if there is a reason your child is struggling to attend school.

We know that sometimes things happen that make it hard for your child to come to school. We want to work with you to make sure your child has what they need to succeed in school. Being in school regularly is a big part of their success!

If you have any questions or need more information, please contact your school.

We’re here to help you and your child. Thank you for helping your child succeed in school!