ATTENDANCE LINE: 970 833-7205
If your student will be away from school, please call our 24 hour
Attendance line: 970 833-7205 to report their absence. Please leave your student's name, date of absence, and reason for absence.
Planned Absences: Students taking 3 or more planned days away from school must fill out a planned absence form (available in our office or click here to print
form) prior to the absence. This form will allow the student to get their assignments from teachers enabling them to keep up with the progress made in class.
Regular and punctual attendance is expected of every student at Severance Middle School and is required by Colorado school law and the Weld RE4 Board of
Education policy JE/JEA. As well as being a statutory requirement, regular attendance fosters a positive attitude and increases student performance and
success. Students and parents or guardians are responsible for meeting these requirements. Please keep students at home who have fever, sore throat,
worsening cough, or in general are unwell. Students must remain at home if they have or any person in their family has COVID or is awaiting COVID test
results.
On those occasions when you must be absent, please follow the following procedures:
a. Please call the attendance line at 970-833-7205 by 9:00 a.m. or stop by the office to report your child's absence. Absences will be marked
unexcused until verified by a parent or guardian.
b. If the school has been contacted about a late arrival, the student, upon returning to school, will report directly to the office to obtain a pass to
class.
c. If the office has not been contacted about an absence, please send a written excuse with your student to be turned in to the main office.
d. For planned absences of 3 consecutive days or more, please have your student pick up a Planned Absence Form from the main office. This
will permit your student to get all assignments before leaving. The completed Planned Absence Form must be returned to the office prior to
the absence. We encourage parents to meet with the student’s team of teachers before or after an extended absence of five consecutive
days or more to discuss missed assignments and ensure the work will be made up.
The responsibility for make-up work rests with the student. The student must check in with the teachers on the day he/she returns to get the
work missed (A day is given to make up for each day missed). The teacher will set a deadline for make-up work to be turned in. Parents and
guardians are encouraged to have their student communicate with teachers during this time. Occasionally, staying after school or going in at
lunch is necessary to complete all make-up work.
Student absences are divided into two categories: excused or unexcused:
1. Excused:
a. Illness, injuries. *** After frequent absences due to illness, a doctor’s note may be required. ***
b. Death in the family.
c. Bad weather (can cause transportation problems).
d. Doctors, dentists, etc. appointments (please schedule these at times other than school hours if at all possible).
e. Parent request - the office is presented with a request from the parent before the absence. We ask that these be kept to a minimum, as
attendance is directly related to academic success. Work may be given to the student to be completed before leaving.
f. Emergency - unavoidable and critical.
g. School instigated absences - counted as if present in class. All work missed needs to be made up. EX: field trips, athletic events, etc.
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2. Unexcused:
a. The determination of an absence as excused or unexcused rests with the building principal, assistant principal, dean or
designee.
b. Unexcused is any absence other than excused. This includes students staying at home in the morning to "sleep in" because they are tired or
staying at home to finish schoolwork.
c. Leaving the school for lunch is allowed only over the student’s lunch period. If gone longer than the lunch period,
students may be marked unexcused.
3. Absences and School Activities/Athletics:
a. Students not in attendance for a half day before the bus leaves or before a home game start time shall not be permitted to participate in or attend
student activities or athletics after school on the day of the absence