Attendance

In an effort to improve communication and support the safety and well-being of our students, PAUSD schools use an attendance notification system.

Starting on September 16th, absence notifications will be sent daily at 10:30am, 2:00pm and 5:30pm via email, text message, and phone calls. Messages will be sent if a student has one or more period absences in the day, that have not yet been cleared in the system**.

This system utilizes the contact information you provide in Infinite Campus. Please review your information to make sure it is current. It is important that we notify you of your child's absence so that you can clear the absence and help ensure your child's safety.

**Gunn Attendance staff work diligently to record each absence reported by parents/guardians via email, phone call, messages and in person. If we have not cleared a parent reported absence by the times the attendance notification system notifies you, and you are certain you have reported the absence, please do not call or email to report the absence a second time. Please check your child's Infinite Campus record that evening or the next day. If the following day the absence still appears, then contact the attendance office. Otherwise, we appreciate your patience as we clear the reported absences.

If you would like to opt-out of these notifications, follow the directions below. To opt-out of voice calls, dial the hotline at (855) 502-7867 from the device that you would like to opt-out from, and follow the voice instructions. To opt-out of email notifications, simply click the unsubscribe link at the bottom of this email. For text notifications reply to the text message with "help" for opt out instructions.

Should you have any questions, please contact Gunn Attendance at (650) 354-8210 or gunn-attendance@pausd.org.

SISTEMA de NOTIFICACION de ASISTENCIA

En un esfuerzo para mejorar la comunicación y mantener la seguridad y el bienestar de nuestros estudiantes, las escuelas de PAUSD utilizan un sistema de notificación de asistencia.

A partir del 16 de Septiembre, las notificaciones de ausencia serán enviadas todos los días a las 10:30am, 2:00pm y las 5:30pm a través de correo electrónico, mensaje de texto y llamadas telefónicas. Los mensajes serán enviados si un estudiante tiene una o más ausencias de un período en el día, y que aún no han sido rectificadas en el sistema.**

Este sistema utiliza la información de contacto que proporcione en Infinite Campus. Por favor revise su información para asegurarse de que esté correcta. Es importante que le notificamos la ausencia de su hijo para que pueda rectificar la ausencia y ayudar a garantizar la seguridad de su hijo.

**El Personal de Asistencia en Gunn trabaja con diligencia para registrar cada ausencia que los padres reportan por correo electrónico, teléfono, mensajes y en persona. Si aun no hemos aclarado una ausencia reportada por los padres antes que el sistema de notificación le notifique, y usted esta seguro que reporto la ausencia, por favor no llame o envié correos electrónicos una segunda vez para reportar la ausencia. Por favor revise el Infinite Campus (IC) de su estudiante esa tarde o el día siguiente. Si la usencia sigue apareciendo, entonces comuníquese con la oficina de asistencia. De otra forma, le agradecemos su paciencia mientras aclaramos las ausencias reportadas.

Si desea no recibir llamadas, siga las instrucciones a continuación. Para no recibir las llamadas de voz, marque la línea directa al (855) 502-7867 del número de teléfono que usted no quisiera que se utilice para mensajes de voz, y siga las instrucciones. Para no recibir notificaciones por correo electrónico, simplemente haga clic en la palabra "unsubscribe" al fin de este correo electrónico. Para no recibir las notificaciones de texto responda al mensaje con la palabra "ayuda" para recibir las instrucciones de como cancelar las notificaciones.

Si tiene alguna pregunta, por favor, póngase en contacto con la oficina de asistencia de Gunn al (650) 354-8210 o gunn-attendance@pausd.org.

Parents are to notify the Attendance Office when their student is going to arrive late to school. The parent will provide the reason for the tardy and the time of anticipated arrival. The student will report to the Attendance Office to sign in before proceeding to class.

Tardy Process and Procedures

Teachers file tardy policies with Instructional Supervisors and the Principal at the start of the school year.

Teachers formally notify students:

1. Class expectations stated at the beginning of a course.
2. At the 3rd tardy, a verbal warning to the student.
3. At the 5th tardy, the teacher officially notifies the student, parent, counselor and Attendance Office with a Notification of Tardiness form. The teacher also personally contacts the parent/guardian to address the student's tardy issue.
4. At 8 or more tardies, the teacher will notify the student, parent, counselor and an administrator, and may request one or more of the following actions may be taken; loss of open-campus privileges, family meeting, referral to SARB process, counseling referral, and/or loss of prep periods.

The Auto-Dialer message is sent to parents/guardians each evening alerting them to any unknown absence their student may have had during the day.

It is the parent's responsibility to know when their student is not in class. The Auto-dialer system assists in communicating to the home when a student is absent from class; however, it is not a perfect system. We encourage parents/guardians to frequently check their student's attendance record via Infinite Campus and to contact the attendance office to excuse any student absence within the 72 hour time period.

Student attendance data is available via the parent Infinite Campus. If you need assistance resetting your password, please email infinitecampus@pausd.org.

Accepted Excused Absences

• Health: See "Health Absences" below.
• Bereavement: One day. Three days if travel required.
• Religious observance: As necessary for religious holidays
• Administrator approved absences: See "Warranted Absences" below

Health Absences

A medical note is required when a student has been absent from school, for health reasons, for a period of 5 consecutive school days.

If a student is unable to participate in PE due to an illness or injury, the student is still required to report to PE, even if they are not going to be participating in the class. If the non participation is just for a single day, the parent/guardian should send a note with their student alerting the PE teacher to the fact that they do not want their student participating in PE.

If a student is unable to participate in PE for an extended period of time, (more than just one day), a medical note needs to be supplied to the Health Office Technician who will notify the PE teacher of the reason and dates the student is unable to participate in class.

Medical documentation is also required if a student has been absent with health absences for 10 percent or more of the school year. This translates into one or more periods of health absences, per day, over a period of 18 days. The 18 days is taken from the first day of the school year.

Warranted Absences

These include, but are not limited to court appearances, outside sporting events and personal reasons approved by an Administrator. Family oriented absences such as vacations or other similar personal absences, do not fall into this category.

1. Obtain a Prior Approval Form (or from the Gunn Main Office or Attendance Office)
2. The student and a parent/guardian need to sign the form
3. Obtain teacher signatures, along with class assignments
4. Return the form to the Attendance Office, with a letter from home, at least 2 days in advance of the requested absence
5. The Attendance personnel will return the form to the Main Office for final administrator approval.

College Visits

Seniors and second semester juniors, with written prior approval, may take five (5) days of Independent Study to visit college campuses. Students who do not complete a Prior Approval form prior to the visit, will be excused with a red "Other Unexcused" code for classes/days missed and may lose the opportunity to make up assignments/tests.

Students are required to obtain approval for a warranted absence by completing a Prior Approval form following the above process.

The teacher of any class from which a student is absent shall determine what assignments the student shall make up and in what period of time the student shall complete such assignments. Upon satisfactory completion, full credit shall be granted. The tests and assignments shall be equivalent, but not necessarily identical, to those which the student missed during the absence.

Other Absences

When referring to your student's attendance record on line, a personal excuse code will either have a red background or a green background.

Other Excused: OTE (green background)

The OTE code (Personal Excused absence, green background), results from the student filling out a Prior Approval form 72 hours PRIOR to the absence. This code is used for warranted personal absences or absences at the discretion of the Administration.

Other Unexcused: OTU (red background)

The OTU code (Personal Unexcused absence, red background), is used to excuse personal commitment absences such as non-health related appointments that cannot be scheduled outside of school hours or when no Warranted Absence form has been completed.

Gunn High School complies with the State of California Education Code and, as such, this OTU code is not recognized by the State of California as an excused absence. Once a student has 3 OTU codes on their attendance record, they will be considered truant by the State. If a student is marked with the OTU code, teachers are not obligated to grant credit for assignments, nor permit a student to make up tests they may miss while absent for this personal reason.

Cuts

Absences without parent, guardian or school approval shall be marked as cuts. If possible, parents shall be notified via auto dialer for each absence.

Truancy Letters

1. One, two, and three unexcused/unknown absences: Truancy Letter #1 will be sent home after the third unexcused absence.
2. Six unexcused/unknown absences: At the sixth unexcused absence, Truancy letter #2 will be sent home. The student's Counselor/Administrator team shall be notified that the student is now truant with 6 unexcused absences. The student will be required to meet with their counselor to discuss their truancy and ways to improve class attendance.
3. Ten unexcused/unknown absences: Truancy Letter #3 will be sent home. One or more of the following actions may be taken; loss of open-campus privileges, family meeting, referral to SARB process, counseling referral, and/or loss of prep periods.

Questionable/Excessive Absenteeism

In cases of questionable or excessive absenteeism, the school district may require a variety of reasonable methods for verification of illness, such as written excuses from parents or documentation from a physician or other health providers.

Excessive Health Absences

Students will be required to provide medical documentation when they have been absent from school due to health reasons for more than 10 percent of the school year.

Students Marked Absent in Error

If a student believes they have been marked absent in error, they will need to talk to their teacher to have the absence corrected. The student can pick up a yellow Attendance Correction form from the Attendance Office, have their teacher sign the form and return it to the Attendance Office for correction.

Per BP & AR 5113 and BP & AR 5113.1, the Palo Alto Unified School District recognizes that success in school is in part related to prompt and regular classroom attendance. Frequent absences or tardies, which result in a student's missing all or parts of presentations, demonstrations, discussions, explanations, and/or other classroom activities, are detrimental to the individual student and the class. Student non-attendance and/or persistent tardiness are therefore matters of serious concern. When a student's class load falls below five (5) classes, he/she is referred to the Alternative Program Review Team for possible placement in Continuation or Opportunity School. A student must be enrolled in and attending five (5) classes in order to be a student at Gunn High School.

This is a district-level committee which diverts minor students with school attendance or behavior problems from the Juvenile Court System and provides a forum where the problems affecting school adjustment can be discussed and solutions reached. To prevent students from establishing a continuing pattern of poor attendance or behavior, SARB may make dispositions which range from returning a student to the school of attendance under strict contract to making an involuntary transfer to another district program or educational option. Whereas the primary purpose is diversion, SARB is also the primary vehicle for referring students to the Juvenile Justice System once it is clear that they can no longer profit from the resources which the school district has to offer.