If your student is absent three or more days, or if there is a family emergency, please notify us.

Newport High School requires an email or a signed parent/guardian note for all student absences.  Students may drop off a signed note at the Attendance Office upon return to school.

Si su estudiante está ausente tres días o más o si hay una emergencia familiar, por favor póngase en contacto con nosotros.

 Newport High School requiere una nota del padre / tutor legal firmada para todas las ausencias. Los estudiantes pueden traer una nota firmada a la oficina cuando regresen a la escuela. 

STUDENT ARRIVING LATE?   Please send an email to [email protected] or a signed note when your student arrives late for any reason.  The student then brings the note to the Attendance Office and signs in to receive an admit slip to class.  If the student does not have a parent/guardian note, he/she will be excused if a note is received within 2 school days and if he/she signed in on the day of the absence.

STUDENT LEAVING SCHOOL EARLY?   Send an email to [email protected] or a signed note with your student in the morning, stating what time the student needs to leave and reason for leaving.  The student will show the note to his/her teacher as necessary, then bring the note to the Attendance Office and sign out.  If the student has no note, we will attempt to call parent/guardian for verbal permission for the student to leave but we will not excuse the student if we cannot reach you.   We must have an email or a written note (or speak with a parent) prior to the student leaving in order for the absence to be excused.

Newport High School Attendance Policies

 

ATTENDANCE POLICY AND GUIDELINES

**Please refer “SELECT DISTRICT POLICIES” in this document for detailed district policies covering attendance, absences, and truancy**

The staff at Newport High School considers regular attendance essential to learning.  Classroom sessions are carefully planned and are a valuable experience that cannot always be duplicated.  Absences create difficulty for both students and teachers in maintaining continuity in student progress at school. Regular attendance is necessary if students are to profit fully from the learning experiences offered. Attendance policies and procedures are aligned with BSD Policy 3122 and Procedure 3122 P

  • Student Absences – All student absences will be classified as excused or unexcused. Absences will be excused if there is timely verification. Verification must be an email or a written, signed note from a parent or doctor within 2 school days upon return. Excusals shall be granted for such reasons provided in the chart below. Under exceptional circumstances, a parent, guardian, or adult student may meet with their administrator to discuss other options.

In order for an absence to be excused, parent/guardian(s) or adult student must communicate an excuse statement to the school. NHS accepts an email or a written note from a parent/guardian, and does not accept phone calls to excuse student absences.  The email or written note should be submitted within 2 days of the absence to the Attendance Office when any absence occurs.  Faxes are accepted (425.456.7530) provided a parent/guardian signature appears on the fax.  Even if a student does not turn a note in within 2 school days for an excused absence, please send one as soon as possible.  A late note in the student file is certainly better than no note at all.  If a student is absent for more than 3 days, please have your student email their teachers to arrange a homework/assignment pick up plan.

  • Unexcused Absences –Students with unexcused absences may not be allowed to make up assignments or tests missed. Upon determination of an unexcused absence, a student will likely be subject to disciplinary action.
Examples of Absences

Excused

In almost all cases, a professional’s note or

pre-arranged form is required.

Unexcused

 

Sudden illness Oversleeping
Medical or dental appointments Transportation issues (car trouble, missing the bus)
Medical or family emergencies (ex. funeral) Arriving to class more than 10 minutes late, skipping class
College visits Leaving campus without prior administrator approval
Religious observances Family activities which have not been pre-approved
Special requests Driver’s Ed, errands/shopping, personal grooming appointment (hair, tanning, etc.)
Athletic/Activity events Job interviews or training
Required court appointments Babysitting
  • Pre-Arranged Absences – Students who know they will be absent prior to an absence must pick up a Pre-Arranged Absence Form from the Attendance Office. Students will need to obtain signatures for each of their teachers and their parent/guardian before returning the form to the Attendance Office. The purpose of teacher signatures is for the teacher to communicate the impact of the absence. To be valid, this form must be completed and returned to the Attendance Office four school days prior to the student‘s absence. Students should note that these pre-arranged absences will count towards their attendance allotment. Per Board Policy 3122P- Absence for parental –approved activities- unexcused absences may be counted as excused for purposes agreed to by the principal and the parent/guardian for a maximum of five days. An absence may not be approved if it causes a serious adverse effect on the student’s educational process. *Any unexcused absence will count against the five days that an administrator can excuses* 
  • Illness During the Day – A student who becomes ill after having arrived on campus must report to the clinic and/or attendance office. After receiving parental approval via phone, the student will be directed to sign out with the nurse or the attendance office before leaving campus and sending an email or bring an excuse note upon his/her return.
  • Activities/Athletics – Per District requirements, students must attend a minimum of five classes for a seven-period schedule and four classes for a six-period schedule that day or the preceding day if the activity/dance/event/practice occurs on a non-school day. On a block schedule day, students must attend all but one period.
  • Informing Parents/Guardians – Since absences affect a student’s academic performance, parents will be notified by phone each day that a student is marked absent unexcused.
  • Bells – If a student is tardy or absent for 10 minutes or more, it will be counted as an absence.
  • Authorized Signatures – Parents must inform the attendance office of a designated adult who will be responsible for signing notes for student absences when parents are not available.
  • Students Who Are 18 Years Old or Older – Once a student turns 18, he/she may obtain a form from an administrator indicating the wish to write his/her own notes for excused absences. The form requires signatures from the student and the parent/guardian.

Regular attendance procedures for truancies will also be employed.

TARDY AND UNEXCUSED ABSENCE POLICIES

As previously stated, the staff at Newport High School considers regular attendance essential to learning.  This includes timely and consistent attendance by all students.  Late arrivals can disrupt the continuity of the instructional time and ultimately detract from the learning experiences of other students and the student that is late.

Students are expected to be in class on time. This means that students are expected to be in their classrooms, in their seats, and ready for class at the beginning of the class. When a student’s tardiness becomes frequent or disruptive, the student may be referred to the principal or counselor and may be subject to corrective action.

If a student is late to class, the following steps will be followed:

  • First Tardy –warning
  • Second Tardy – teacher discretion

Truancy Law – THE BECCA BILL

The Attendance Office, administrators, and counselors will ensure that Newport High School complies with the Washington State truancy law, RCW 28A 225.  The law requires parents to cause their student(s) to attend school regularly and to provide valid justification to the school when their student(s) is absent.  Please refer to Board Policy 3122 and Procedure 3122P later in this document for details.

The Bellevue School District acknowledges that we learn, work, live and gather on the Indigenous Land of the Coast Salish peoples, specifically the Duwamish and Snoqualmie Tribes. We thank these caretakers of this land, who have lived and continue to live here, since time immemorial.