• Attendance Office: (516) 441-4715

    Attendance Email: nhsattendance@greatneck.k12.ny.us

     

    Attendance Policy


    Attendance is taken and recorded on a period by period basis. Our automated call system makes its first call after third period and its second call in the evening for the purpose of reporting on whether or not a student was present in class.

    Objectives

    1. To confirm that students are meeting compulsory attendance requirements.
    2. To know the whereabouts of every student for safety and school management reasons.
    3. To identify individual and group attendance patterns.
    4. To provide data to develop interventions to help close the gap in student performance, given the high correlation between attendance and achievement.

     

    Absences
    For each day a student is absent, a parent/guardian MUST call the absentee line at 441-4715 prior to the start of the school day. Upon return to school, a student must present the attendance office with either a medical note or parent/guardian note within 24 hours of being absent to avoid disciplinary action. For absences longer than three days, medical note MUST be provided. Parents may not call or notify the school beyond the acceptable window of time in regard to reporting absences.


    Arriving to school beyond 11:00AM may prohibit the participation in any extracurricular or athletic activity. Athletic rosters are stored in Infinite Campus and it is incumbent upon the coaches to check attendance.


    Excessive Absences
    Excessive absences are problematic, regardless of whether the absence is excused or unexcused. Any student who is not present for at least 85% of class time in a given quarter is not eligible to receive a grade and will earn an “incomplete.” The student must make up the relevant amount of class time and all subsequent work, to get to the 85% within the final two weeks of that quarter, and the first two weeks of the next in order to receive a grade. Students failing to meet these minimum requirements may receive a failing grade for the quarter.

    • Absence because of religious observance, school-sponsored activity, death in the family, serious illness for which a doctor’s note has been submitted, home-instruction, or other unusual circumstances granted approval by school leadership will not be counted toward the student’s cumulative absence record.
    • Early dismissal requests will be considered and only granted for valid reasons when they are requested from the parent or legal guardian.

     

    Lateness
    We expect students who arrive after 8:00AM (or 8:35AM once advisory no longer meets) to first tap into the identification kiosk and then proceed directly to class, unless the student has a note, in which case the student should report to the attendance office to receive a late pass. Students who arrive late without a valid pass are subject to detention. Three (3) latenesses to class is the equivalent of one full absence. Just because a parent/guardian provides a note, it does not mean it will be accepted as a valid reason for arriving late. For example:

    • “There was so much traffic around the school.”
    • “I could not find a parking space.”
    • “I overslept because I was up late doing work.”

    These are not valid reasons for arriving late. Detention slips for tardiness are filled out at the teacher’s discretion. One copy of the slip is given to the student and the other is deposited in the main office. Students who do not report to detention are subject to further disciplinary action.


    Tardiness to school, dismissal prior to the end of the school day, and unauthorized vacation days are counted towards a student’s total absence record. Habitual tardiness will result in disciplinary action in addition to the effect it may have on the student’s ability to pass the class.


    Truancy
    Absence from school without a valid excuse or proper notification is considered truancy. Truancy includes going home ill without seeing the nurse or appropriate school personnel. Truant students will receive a “cut” in each class missed and a grade of zero for all relative work, including assessments given at that time. Truant students will serve detention and be a part of a conference to discuss the behavior. Repeated truancy can have a profound effect on a student’s ability to be successful in school.


    Cutting Class
    Unexcused absence from any class by a student present for the school day shall be considered a cut for that particular class. Leaving school for any reason without notifying the proper school personnel is considering cutting class. Unexcused tardiness to class in excess of twenty (20) minutes will be considered cutting class.