Attendances/Tardies
Please Note: *Refer to Teenage & Adult Responsibility Law in link below regarding loss of driving privileges and chronic absenteeism. http://www.gahighwaysafety.org/docs/newtadra.pdf
Tardy to School/Class
1st–3rd Offense: Warning
4th Offense: 1 day of Restricted Lunch
5th Offense: 2 days of Restricted Lunch
6th Offense: 3 days of Restricted Lunch
7th Offense: 1 day After School Detention (2hours on Mon, Tue, Wed, &/or Thur)
8th Offense: 2 days After School Detention (2hours on Mon, Tue, Wed, &/or Thur)
9th Offense: 3 days After School Detention (2hours on Mon, Tue, Wed, &/or Thur)
10th – 12th Offense: In School Suspension
➢ After the 12th offense the consequence issued to a student will be at the discretion of administrator; suspension of parking privilege for the remainder of the school year may occur.
AWOL (from class)
1st AWOL - 3 days Restricted Lunch
2nd AWOL - 5 days Restricted Lunch
3rd AWOL - 1 day ISS
4th AWOL - 2 days ISS
5th AWOL - 1 day OSS & Parking pass revoked
6th AWOL - 2 days of OSS
7 or more AWOLS - 3 days of OSS per offense
AWOL (from school)
1st AWOL - 2 days ISS
2nd AWOL - 3 days ISS
3rd AWOL - 2 days OSS
4 or more 3 days OSS per offense & Parking pass revoked
- Student Absences from and Tardies to School and Class
- Being present and on-time is a key expectation of any occupation or school system at any level, including college. Entering school and class late is disruptive to students who are already actively involved in learning and diverts the teachers’ attention from teaching and learning during a critical time in the lesson when teachers need to settle students into their seats, capture student attention, direct student energy to the requirements of the lesson, take attendance, and provide assistance to students who have been absent, among other duties and responsibilities. Simply put, students who are tardy to school or class, disrupt the education of other students and therefore, this violation of the school rules is taken very seriously.
- Just like other offenses that receive disciplinary action, including cheating, forgery, dress code violations, and being AWOL from school or class, the “warning” is the written school rule to be present and on time to school and class.
- Absence Policy - State law requires attendance at school from age 7 to 16. It also authorizes strict penalties for non- attendance. Excused absences are defined by state law and include only the following area
- Personal illness: individuals whose attendance in school would endanger their health or the health of others,
- Death or serious illness of an immediate family member,
- Recognized religious holidays,
- Student under orders from a government agency,
- Service as a page in the Georgia General Assembly,
- Conditions rendering school attendance impossible or hazardous to students’ safety or health,
- Registering to vote or are voting, for a period not to exceed one day.
- Military leave of a parent and/or guardian
- Discovery High School will allow senior students to have up to 3 days to be used as college visitation days. This visit is considered a pre-arranged absence.
- Chronic absenteeism can seriously jeopardize a student’s success in school. Please note that after 10 consecutive absences a student will be withdrawn if the school has not been contacted by the parent/guardian.
- If 10 or more minutes of a class are missed, the student is considered absent for that class.
- A student must be present for 3 periods in order to be counted present for the day
- In any of the above situations, parents or guardians must provide the school with a written explanation of the reason for the student’s absence and the written explanation must be signed by the student’s parent(s) or legal guardian(s). Students are to take their written excuse to the Attendance Clerk upon returning to school. The Attendance Clerk will collect the absence notes from the students and give the students a pass to class, if necessary.
- More than ten unexcused absences will result in a student being ineligible to receive an attendance certificate required for driver’s license applications.
- A student must bring a signed note from the parent or formal documentation within 48 hours upon return to school, or checking into school late. Notes are to be turned into the Attendance Office before school, during a class change, during lunch, or after school.
- If students are absent from school for an unexcused reason or students do not provide a parent-signed absence note explaining an excusable reason for the absence, students will/may receive appropriate disciplinary action, including, but not limited to detention to suspension. If the student continues this behavior, additional consequences will be applied.
- No student may be checked out after 1:45 pm.
Please Note: *Refer to Teenage & Adult Responsibility Law in link below regarding loss of driving privileges and chronic absenteeism. http://www.gahighwaysafety.org/docs/newtadra.pdf
- Certificate of Enrollment
- Students may request a certificate of enrollment from the attendance office. There is a two (2) day turn around for this information. The cost for the certificate of attendance is $5.00. There is no charge for the ADAP verification.
- Students with excused absences MUST be allowed to make up work without penalty.
- Making up tests, class work, and other assignments after absences is the responsibility of the student.
- See class syllabi for your teachers’ make-up work policies and timelines.
- Students’ grades are negatively affected when missing work is not made up.
- Making up tests, class work, and other assignments after absences is the responsibility of the student.
- Prearranged Absences
- If parents find it necessary for their student to miss school due to an out-of-town trip, or other reason not considered to be excused, a Prearranged Absence form must be completed and returned for approval in advance. If the absence is approved, it will be classified as unexcused, but students will be allowed to make up missed work (Pre-arranged Absence forms may be picked up in the Attendance Office before/after school, and during lunch).
- Check-In/Check-Out
- Any student who needs to leave campus during the day for any reason must check out in the Attendance Office. For your convenience, if you know you will be checking out during the school day, drop off a note at the Attendance Office prior to 7:25 a.m. with a parent contact number to verify the note. If check out is not prearranged, the student must be checked out before 1:45 p.m. Contact with a parent or guardian will be required. A student information card and clinic card complete with parent contact information and persons designated by parent to pick up student must be on file before a student is allowed to check out. Anyone checking a student out should be prepared to provide picture identification at the Front Lobby desk at the time of check out.
- All student late-arrivals and early-departures from school will be recorded in the Attendance Office.
- Students may not check out without parent/guardian permission and permission from the Attendance Office—this includes students who are 18 and older.
- Once a student has checked out, they are expected to leave campus immediately.
- If students return to school during the same day, they must check in with the Attendance Office.
- Students leaving school due to illness must report to the nurse’s office—parents/ guardians meet the student in the nurse’s office and then sign out at the Attendance Office.
- Student Tardies to School/Class
- Tardy to school: All students are expected to be in school on time. This means in the classroom before the tardy bell rings. Students are considered tardy at the ringing of the 7:10 a.m. Please be aware that the state of Georgia nor GCPS does not excuse heavy traffic and/or poor weather conditions as a reason for being tardy to school.
- Students who arrive at school after 7:10 a.m. should report directly to Attendance Office to obtain a tardy pass and report directly to their 1st or 5th period class.
- Teachers will close their door and direct students to Attendance Office for a tardy pass
Tardy to School/Class
1st–3rd Offense: Warning
4th Offense: 1 day of Restricted Lunch
5th Offense: 2 days of Restricted Lunch
6th Offense: 3 days of Restricted Lunch
7th Offense: 1 day After School Detention (2hours on Mon, Tue, Wed, &/or Thur)
8th Offense: 2 days After School Detention (2hours on Mon, Tue, Wed, &/or Thur)
9th Offense: 3 days After School Detention (2hours on Mon, Tue, Wed, &/or Thur)
10th – 12th Offense: In School Suspension
➢ After the 12th offense the consequence issued to a student will be at the discretion of administrator; suspension of parking privilege for the remainder of the school year may occur.
- Unexcused tardy to class
- All students are expected to be in class prior to tardy bell ringing. If the student is not in the room on time, they must go to the closet Academy Office to obtain an unexcused tardy pass. At this location, the student will obtain a pass and then be sent to class. The student will not be allowed into class without the pass. If a student fails to get a pass and/or fails to attend class, the student will be considered AWOL (absent without leave/permission).
- AWOL from class/school
- Students who skips a class, leave campus without checking out, or who have an unexcused absence that has not been prearranged will be considered AWOL and be subject to disciplinary measures. Once a student arrives on campus, the student is considered to be at school and must obtain administrative permission or check-out through the Attendance Office in order to leave campus, even if classes have not begun. Students found in unauthorized areas will be regarded as AWOL. Contrary to popular belief, there are no approved class “skip days.” If an AWOL involves leaving campus by vehicle, the students(s) involved will lose parking privileges for the remainder of the school year.
AWOL (from class)
1st AWOL - 3 days Restricted Lunch
2nd AWOL - 5 days Restricted Lunch
3rd AWOL - 1 day ISS
4th AWOL - 2 days ISS
5th AWOL - 1 day OSS & Parking pass revoked
6th AWOL - 2 days of OSS
7 or more AWOLS - 3 days of OSS per offense
AWOL (from school)
1st AWOL - 2 days ISS
2nd AWOL - 3 days ISS
3rd AWOL - 2 days OSS
4 or more 3 days OSS per offense & Parking pass revoked
- Out of Assigned Area
- Out of Assigned Area is defined as being absent without permission for more than 10 minutes and will be addressed as a disciplinary issue.
- Students are expected to be in their assigned areas at all times.
- A hall pass only allows a student direct, expeditious travel to a specific location.
- Hall Passes
- It is the student’s responsibility to have an appropriate hall pass.
- Students are not allowed to leave a classroom without a signed Hall Pass/Pass noting permission.
- Students are required to show their Hall Pass/Pass to any staff member, substitute teacher, or designee upon request.
- Students will minimize time out of the classroom.
- Students may not leave class within the first or last 20 minutes of a class period.
- Teacher verbal permission does not count as a hall pass.