Student Affairs Center

The following Attendance Procedures can be found in the Moline High School Student Handbook

ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS
Illinois law requires that whoever has custody or control of any child between six (by September 1st) and seventeen years of
age shall assure that the child attends school in the district in which he or she resides, during the entire time school is in session
(unless the child has already graduated from high school). Illinois law also requires that whoever has custody or control of a
child who is enrolled in the school, regardless of the child’s age, shall assure that the child attends school during the entire time
school is in session. Students shall attend school as full-time students at least three years to be eligible for graduation; most
students will attend four full years. A full-time student is defined as one carrying three (3) credits of study per semester.
Work-study programs will be evaluated individually.

SCHOOL ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES
It is imperative, for the purpose of school safety, that students do not arrive before 7:30 a.m. and that students do leave
school property by 3:10 p.m. unless they are involved in a school related activity under the direct supervision of an MHS staff
member. The school day begins at 8:10 a.m. Loitering of any kind will not be permitted.

SIGN-IN AND SIGN-OUT REQUIREMENTS
Students are required to sign in and sign out of the Student Affairs Center for late arrival to school (10 minutes after the start of
their normal day) and for early dismissal (anytime during the normal day). Failure to follow this procedure may result in
disciplinary action.

ATTENDANCE AND TARDIES
Regular daily attendance and prompt classroom attendance are extremely important to a student’s success at school. The
following attendance and tardy policy is designed to promote positive student behavior patterns, which are important for
success in life.

Period 1 arrivals between 8:10 – 8:20 a.m. are considered tardy and students should report directly to their first period class
with a kiosk tardy receipt. Students arriving after 8:20 a.m. without a pass are to report to 1st period, but will be marked truant
by their teacher and reported for behavior management programming.
For Periods 2 – 7, students arriving within the first five minutes of class are considered tardy and should report directly to their
class with a kiosk tardy receipt. Students arriving after the first five minutes without a pass are to report to class, but will be
marked truant by their teacher and reported for behavior management programming.
*Students who are marked truant will be called in by the Deans with behavior management and/or disciplinary
consequences issued.
Procedure for Tardy Kiosks:
● Any student not in the classroom when the bell finishes ringing should be directed to the Tardy Kiosk closest to the
room.
● The student scans their ID (or types it in) and is issued a receipt-like ticket. This process also records the tardy in
Skyward.
● The receipt must be provided to the classroom or study hall teacher for admittance.

EXCUSED/UNEXCUSED ABSENCES
There are two types of absences: excused and unexcused. Excused absences include: illness, observance of a religious holiday
or event, death in the immediate family, family emergency, situations beyond the control of the student, circumstances that
cause reasonable concern to the parent/guardian for the student’s mental, emotional, or physical health or safety, attending a
military honors funeral to sound TAPS , or other reasons as approved by the building principal. Additionally, a student will be
excused for up to 5 days in cases where the student’s parent/guardian is an active duty member of the uniformed services and
has been called to duty for, is on leave from, or has immediately returned from deployment to a combat zone or
combat-support postings. The Board of Education, in its discretion, may excuse a student for additional days relative to such
leave or deployment.
A student and the student’s parent/guardian are responsible for obtaining assignments from the student's teachers prior to any
excused absences and for ensuring that such assignments are completed by the student prior to his or her return to school.
All other absences are considered unexcused. Pre-arranged excused absences must be approved by the building principal. The
school may require documentation explaining the reason for the student’s absence. In the event of any absence, the student’s
parent/guardian is required to call the school at (309)743-8811 (last names A-L) or (309)743-8812 (last names M-Z) before
8:00 a.m. to explain the reason for the absence. If a call has not been made to the school by 10:00 a.m. on the day of a student’s
absence, an automated call will be placed to the primary number to notify the parent/guardian of the unapproved absence.
Failure to inform the school, in a timely manner, of the reason for absence shall result in an unexcused absence. Upon request
of the parent/guardian, the reason for an absence will be kept confidential.

TRUANCY
Student attendance is critical to the learning process. Truancy is therefore a serious issue and will be dealt with in a serious
manner by the school and district. Students who miss more than 1% but less than 5% of the prior 180 regular school days
without valid cause (a recognized excuse) are truant. Students who miss 5% or more of the prior 180 regular school days are
considered chronic truants. Students who are chronic truants will be offered support services and resources aimed at correcting
the truancy issue. If chronic truancy persists after support services and other resources are made available, the school and
district will take further action, including:
• Referral to the truancy officer
• Reporting to officials under the Juvenile Court Act
• Referral to the State’s Attorney
• Appropriate school discipline
A student who misses 15 consecutive days of school without valid cause and who cannot be located or, after exhausting all
available support services, cannot be compelled to return to school is subject to expulsion from school. A parent or guardian
who knowingly and willfully permits a child to be truant is in violation of State law, specifically a Class C misdemeanor, which carries a maximum penalty of thirty days in jail and/or a fine of up to $500.00.

STUDENT RETURN FROM ABSENCE
Upon return from an absence, a student whose absence has been verified by parental phone call should report immediately to
class. A student whose absence has not been previously verified by parental phone call should report to the Student
Affairs Center.

MAKE-UP POLICY
It is the student’s responsibility to request their make-up work from their teachers. Administrators shall make decisions
regarding excused or unexcused absences.
● For unexcused absences, students may make up the outstanding work for no more than 60% credit, unless the test or
project covered a time period of more than five (5) school days, where up to 90% credit may be earned.
● For excused absences, students are allowed 2 days to make up school work for each day absent.

HOME AND HOSPITAL INSTRUCTION
A student who is absent from school, or whose physician, physician assistant or licensed advanced practice registered nurse
anticipates his or her absence from school, because of a medical condition may be eligible for instruction in the student’s
home or hospital. Guardians that anticipate that the student will be absent from school because of a medical condition may be
eligible for instruction in the student’s home or hospital. Eligibility shall be determined by State law and the Illinois State
Board of Education rules governing (1) the continuum of placement options for students who have been identified for special
education services or (2) the home and hospital instruction provisions for students who have not been identified for special
education services. Appropriate educational services from qualified staff will begin no later than five school days after
receiving a written statement from a physician, physician assistant, or licensed advanced practice registered nurse.
Instructional or related services for a student receiving special education services will be determined by the student’s
individualized education program.
A student who is unable to attend school because of pregnancy will be provided home instruction, correspondence courses, or
other courses of instruction (1) before the birth of the child when the student’s physician, physician assistant, or licensed
advanced practice nurse indicates, in writing, that she is medically unable to attend regular classroom instruction, and (2) for
up to 3 months after the child’s birth or a miscarriage.
Periodic conferences will be held between appropriate school personnel, parent(s)/guardian(s), and hospital staff to coordinate
course work and facilitate a student’s return to school.

ATTENDANCE INCENTIVE POLICY
A student may elect to be exempt from taking a cumulative, written semester final exam* if he or she meets the following
requirements AND has a cumulative course grade of A, B, or C:
1. Student has no more than five (5) absences from the class.
2. Student has no more than 5 tardies per semester in the class.
3. Student has no more than one major referral from a classroom teacher.
Any student with a cumulative course grade of D or F will be required to take the final exam regardless of absence, tardy, or
discipline status.

Explanation of class absences:
Class absences resulting from school-related activities will not count against a student’s attendance record. Unless otherwise
indicated, a student who misses class due to requests from administrators or counselors falls within the approved school activities
category.

A student who qualified for the attendance incentive exemption may elect to take a semester exam, but it will only be counted if it
improves the final grade. A parent who wishes to have a student take a final, even though the student qualifies for an exemption,  may send a letter to the school making the request. Any exempt student may elect to take a final and, if opting to take a final, should attend during the time of the assigned final.

It is difficult to specifically cover every absence a student may have. Essentially, if a student is at school and is absent from a class
due to a school-related or school-sponsored activity (with the exception of ISS or OSS), the absence will not count toward the final
exam requirement. The following are examples of school sponsored activities for which the absence will not count for the
attendance incentive policy:

1. Career/college/military visits – 1 per semester during a student’s junior and senior years. Juniors and seniors are allowed one career/college visit day per semester during the eleventh and twelfth grade years. These visits may not be made during the final two weeks of a semester and must be verified using Moline High School’s approved procedures for verification.
2. Absences related to a school-sponsored activity, such as field trips, athletic events, meeting with college or armed forces representatives, visits to the nurse’s office, student services office and main office.
3. Absence, documented and signed by a publicly-recognized religious leader, as a religious holiday.

Days that DO count as absences for the attendance incentive policy include, but are not limited to:

1. College/career/military visits other than the exception listed above.
2. Excused absences, as listed above
3. Unexcused absences, as listed above
4. In School Suspensions
5. Out of School Suspensions
6. Entering school year after first day of classes or semester, (if he/she enters 2+ days into the new year/semester, not exempt.)
7. State-approved mental health days.

Specific exceptions to the Final Exam / Attendance Incentive Policy:

• Dual credit courses taught at Moline High School, whose requirement per Black Hawk College is to complete a specific end-of-course assessment by a specific time period, will use the BHC guidelines for end-of-course assessments in lieu of the traditional final exam schedule and requirements.

Teachers of these specific courses are responsible for communicating these exceptions (and any subsequent schedule
alterations) to high school administration, students and parents/guardians.

*Final exams will be written exams covering the cumulative instruction for the semester, and will range in value from 10-20%
of the semester grade. With prior administrative approval, Professional Learning Teams may propose performance or
project-based final exams in lieu of a written exam, while still adhering to the building-wide final exam schedule and
cumulative skill assessment.

EARLY FINAL EXAMS POLICY
No early final exams will be scheduled unless there is a documented medical reason. Incomplete grades are not issued at
the end of the school year.

Final exam absences will be computed as if the student received a zero on the final. When the student makes up the final
exam, the grade change will be completed with the Registrar. Any exceptions to this policy must be approved by the high
school administration.

PREARRANGED ABSENCES FOR COLLEGE/CAREER/MILITARY VISITS
The Prearranged Absence procedure should also be followed for the purpose of visiting college/career facilities. Juniors and
seniors are allowed one college/career/military visit prior to the final two weeks of each semester. Upon return from the visit,
the student must supply the Student Affairs Center with documentation from a college official validating the student’s presence
on campus that day.

RELIGIOUS HOLIDAYS
According to state law, a student who is unable, because of the observance of a religious holiday, to attend classes on a
particular day or days shall be excused from any examinations, study, or work assignments on such days. The student’s
parent/guardian must give written notice to the building principal at least 5 calendar days before the student’s anticipated
absence(s). Students excused for religious reasons will be given an opportunity to make up any examination, study, or work
requirement.

Please see the Moline High School Student Handbook, pages 25-33 for specific procedures related to student discipline and expected behavior. 

MHS Student Handbook