Student Attendance
Why attendance is important.
School attendance is one of the major factors affecting students’ success. There is a direct relationship among absences, poor grades, and dropping out of school. Attending school every day and being on time each day are the first steps to success.
Whether excused or unexcused, the number of days your student misses can greatly impact their academic progress. Strive for regular attendance, which means having, on average, fewer than two absences per month. An absence is defined as missing 50% or more of their scheduled day.
Below are some facts about the importance of regular attendance:
- Missing 10 percent (or about 18 days) increases the chance that your student will not read or master math at the same level as their peers.
- Students can still fall behind if they miss just a day or two days every few weeks.
- By 6th grade, absenteeism is one of three major signs that a student may drop out of high school.
- By 9th grade, regular and high attendance is a better predictor of graduation rates than 8th grade test scores.
- Absences can be a sign that a student is losing interest in school, struggling with schoolwork, dealing with a bully, or facing some other potentially serious difficulty.
- Unexcused absences are an early warning sign for unaddressed problems with school and potential decisions to drop out.
If you have concerns about your child’s attendance, please reach out to their school for support!
What to do if your student misses school
If your student is going to be absent, please contact your school by phone or email. Email is preferred.
Only absences for student sickness, appointments, religious holidays, family emergencies, or death in the family are considered excused.
(Per BLS policy it is the parent’s responsibility to clear unexcused absences within 48 hours of the absence or the absences(s) will remain unexcused). When you notify the school regarding the absence, please indicate the following information:
- Date of email or phone call
- Student's full name
- Reason for the absence
- Date(s) of the absence
Automated phone calls are sent out up to twice each day, depending on the educational level. If you receive an automated absence call, please follow these steps:
- Check ParentVUE to see what code was used to mark your student absent.
- If your student was marked "absent" and should have been marked "excused", please email the attendance office within 2 days of the absence. If you believe your student was incorrectly marked Absent, please have your student contact their teacher.
Information received from families is entered as soon as possible. However, we are not always able to process the large volume of absences prior to activating the auto-dialer, so you may receive a call even though you already reported the absence. You do not need to call or email again: all absences will be processed by the end of the day. You can check ParentVUE the next day to confirm the absence was marked correctly.
Student attendance policy
Oregon law requires parents/guardians to see that children between the ages of 7 and 18 years old attend school regularly. It is the legal responsibility of the parent to have their children in school and ensure the student attends school regularly and in a timely manner (Reference: ORS 339.010-339.020). This responsibility lies with the student, as well, because students are expected to attend all classes to the best of their ability, both daily and on time.
Bend-La Pine Schools' attendance policy, JEA-AP: Compulsory Attendance, is available for review.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Any absences (excused or unexcused) exceeding 10 consecutive school days require schools to withdraw students and remove them from enrollment; per State of Oregon Chapter 339 - School Attendance; Admission; Discipline; Safety.