Menlo-Atherton High School

• 555 Middlefield Road Atherton, CA 94027
• 650.322.5311

(650) 322-5311 x 50101

 

The Sequoia Union High School District recognizes that success in school is in part related to prompt and regular classroom attendance. Frequent absences or tardiness, which result in a student missing all or parts of lectures, demonstrations, discussions, or other classroom activities, are detrimental to the individual student and the class.  Persistent student non-attendance and tardiness are therefore matters of serious concern.

 

 

Below is contact information for support with attendance and a description of MAHS’s policy.

 

Attendance Line Available 24/7 to Clear Absences

Attendance (650) 322-5311 ext. 50101

Attendance Office hours: 8:00 a.m. – 4:15 p.m.

Attendance Clerk: Adrianna Gonzalez  adgonzalez@seq.org

 

When reporting absences or tardiness, please provide the student's name, grade, date, time, reason for the absence, caller's name, relationship to the student, and caller's phone number.

          *Please note: Voicemail and email are checked several times a day.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

If your student needs to leave school early please call at least 2 hours prior to avoid any delays in your child’s dismissal time. Calling 2 hours in advance allows time for a pass to be written and delivered to your student's classroom.  

 

We understand that appointments sometimes are made suddenly, but ask that you do your best to plan ahead and communicate with the attendance office in a timely manner. 

 

If you are ILL and want to go home:  Proceed immediately to the Health Aide office. The health aide will call home to obtain parent/guardian permission to leave campus and issue you a "permit to leave" pass.

 

Students: DO NOT CALL THE PARENT/GUARDIAN from the CELL PHONE or from the CLASSROOM. REPORT DIRECTLY to the HEALTH OFFICE WITH A PASS from your class and the Health Aide will contact home.

 

 

If an error has been made to a student's attendance, the student may pick up a correction slip in the Attendance Office.

If a teacher made an error and marked a student absent when they were present, the student first must contact the teacher and have them communicate with the attendance office to clear the error.

 

If you are concerned about truancy issues.  Contact your student’s counselor or Administrative Vice Principal.

 

The Sequoia Union High School District provides an automatic caller to notify parents/guardians of their student’s attendance for each day if a student has an absence or tardy.  The automated call will happen regardless of whether an absence is cleared or not.  Parents/guardians may track their student’s attendance via the parent portal on Infinite Campus.

Temporary Extended Absence from School

 

If a student will be missing school for an extended period of time, they should plan to fill out this form to be cleared appropriately.  There are certain criteria that we will use to determine if an absence is warranted.  This is the list of excused absences.

 

 

 

 

 

● It is the parent or guardian’s responsibility to clear all absences from school by telephone.
● Unexcused absences should be cleared within 5 days. It is best to call the Attendance Office on or before the day of an
absence. Absences not cleared within 5 days may still be excused but will not permit a student to participate in
school activities, attend dances, or attend prom.
● Be prepared to leave the following information when calling in an absences and/or tardy: Student’s name, grade, the date, time, reason for the absence, caller’s name, relationship to the student, and caller’s phone number
● Parent/Guardian must update telephone numbers if and when they change
● Attendance records are also available on the Canvas website. Mistakes do happen, and a teacher may mark a student
absent who was in class. If an error has been made, the student may pick up a correction slip in the Attendance Office.
● If your student needs to leave school early please call at least 2 hours prior to avoid any delays in your child’s dismissal
time. Your student must obtain a permit to leave campus before leaving school, as Menlo Atherton High School is a closed campus school. If a student leaves campus without a permit to leave, they will be marked absent and considered as a cut.

 

The Sequoia Union High School District does provide an automatic caller to notify parents/guardians of their student’s attendance for each day. Even though a parent calls the Attendance Office to clear a child’s absences or if students are excused for a school activity, an automated phone call will usually still be placed to the home. Parents/guardians may track their student’s attendance via the parent portal on Infinite Campus.

Attendance Office Contact Information: Call (650) 322-5311 extension 50101; or email adgonzalez@seq.org.

 

 

Absences due to illness, quarantine, medical or dental procedures will be excused. Students are allowed to miss school to observe religious holidays/ceremonies. Other absences that may be approved by the Attendance Office include appearance in court, employment conference, and funeral service for a member of the immediate family. Special circumstances may be approved at the discretion of the Principal or his designated representative. Seniors and second semester juniors are entitled to miss school classes to visit college campuses. Students are expected to complete all assigned class work and homework for the days they are gone. The Sequoia Union High School District recognizes that success in school is in part related to prompt and regular
classroom attendance. Frequent absences or tardiness, which result in a student missing all or parts of lectures, demonstrations, discussions or other classroom activities, are detrimental to the individual student and the class. Persistent student non-attendance and tardiness are therefore matters of serious concern.

 

The Sequoia Union High School District is committed to the education of all students. The District believes that regular attendance plays an important role in student achievement and that absenteeism, whatever the cause, may put students at risk of dropping out of school. The District desires to ensure that all students attend school in accordance with the state's compulsory education law and take full advantage of the educational opportunities provided by the district. It is the intent of the District that intensive guidance and coordinated community services are provided to meet the special needs of pupils with school attendance and/or school behavior problems.
1. Following four (4) unexcused absences, the teacher will call home to notify parents of the absences. An automatic call goes out after each absence/tardy and the night caller follows up in case of uncompleted calls.
2. The SUHSD sends out Truancy Notification letters to families of students: Students with at least 18 unexcused period absences receive Truancy Letter One, those with at least 36 period absences receive Letter Two, and those with more than 36 period absences receive Letter Three if they have not responded to offered interventions.
3. When a student accrues 36 or more unexcused period absences, the family is contacted for a truancy meeting with the student’s Administrative Vice Principal, Guidance Counselor, and the Community Liaison. At this meeting the student and guardian will sign an attendance contract. See below for information about attendance review meetings.

Students 18 years and older must be prepared to assume responsibility for their actions and decisions. Students that are 18 years of age or older may sign all documents including notes for absences. Students residing with their parents are encouraged to keep their parents informed. All rules of conduct and attendance apply to all students regardless of age.

State law asserts that absences are excused only if the child is ill or there is a death in the immediate family (1-3 day limit). All other absences are unexcused. Any tardy over 30 minutes, except for medical reasons, is also unexcused. If your child has three unexcused absences and/or tardies, he/she will be considered truant.

The Menlo Park Police Department, Atherton Police Department, and East Palo Alto Police Department working in cooperation with the Ravenswood City School District and the Sequoia Union High School District, will take an active role in ensuring all students attend school. As part of this effort, we are asking that parents/guardians do their part in making sure their school age children attend school.
Consequences for students deemed truant can vary from:

 

Students located in public places away from school during school hours are also subject to a citation (3.04.010 San Mateo County Ordinance). Parents/guardians who are responsible for ensuring students attend school may be prosecuted for Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor (272 Penal Code).

Attendance Review Meetings will be held when a student is deemed truant. The parent/guardian and student will be required to meet with the Administrative Vice Principal, Guidance Advisor, and other support staff. An attendance contract will be signed. If prevention and early interventions have failed to produce needed changes in a student’s problem attendance or behavior, a student may be referred to the District’s School Attendance Review Board (SARB) (E.C. 48263). Failure of the student and parent/guardian to appear at the District SARB meeting or comply with the District SARB’s directives may result in the involuntary transfer to another District or county educational program or referral to the San Mateo County Student Attendance Review Board for further action.