All students are required to attend school according to the adopted school calendar. You may be absent from school legally if the reason is one of the seven allowed under the State Compulsory Attendance Law. You will find these valid excuses listed below. Any questions of enforcement should be directed to the school principal. If the absence is excused, you will be allowed to make up work. It will be the responsibility of the student to contact his/her teacher or teachers as to details concerning makeup work. Within three days following an absence you must present a note from home to your homeroom teacher explaining your absence.

The note requesting that an absence be excused must contain the following:

Student's name

1. Date or dates of absences.

2. Date note is being written.

3. Reason for absence.

4. Parent signature.

Listed below are the seven legal reasons allowed by N. C. State law as lawful absences:

1. Personal illness

2. Quarantine

3. Death in immediate family

4. Medical appointment-please obtain a statement from the doctor

5. Court or administrative proceedings

6. Religious holidays

7. Absences that, in the judgment of the principal, have an educational value as great as that received during an equal time in the classroom are permitted only if the opportunity will not be available at a time other than during school hours.

The Principal shall determine if the amount of time missed is of reasonable length. In order to receive this type of excused absence, YOU MUST MAKE A REQUEST IN WRITING AT LEAST 10 DAYS IN ADVANCE, AND THE PRINCIPAL MUST APPROVE THIS TYPE OF ABSENCE IN ADVANCE OF IT BEING TAKEN.

In addition, a student whose parent or legal guardian (a) is an active duty member of the uniformed services as defined by policy 4050, Children of Military Families, and (b) has been called to duty for, is on leave from, or has immediately returned from deployment to a combat zone or combat support posting will be granted additional excused absences at the discretion of the superintendent or designee to visit with his or her parent or legal guardian. K-8  A K-8 student is expected to attend school 180 days unless absent for lawful reasons.

Any student who accumulates and exceeds fifteen (15) absences is in jeopardy of receiving no credit for work done during a given school year. After seven (7) accumulative absences, the teacher responsible for recording such absences shall send a "warning" notice to the parent/guardian that the student is in jeopardy of losing credit for work or courses taken due to excessive absences. A copy of this notice must be filed in the principal's or his designee's office. 

After more than fifteen (15) accumulative absences for the year, the teacher shall notify the principal or his designee, and the principal or his designee shall notify the parent/guardian that the student will not receive credit for the year unless a waiver is obtained.

If a student is absent more than fifteen (15) days in a given year, his/her parent/guardian may apply for a waiver of the attendance requirements in order to prove extenuating circumstances or legitimate illness.

The parent/guardian must present written verification acceptable to the principal or his designee within five (5) days of receipt of the no-credit notification. It shall be the responsibility of the parent/guardian to apply for the waiver. The principal may name an attendance committee to investigate and make a recommendation as to the granting of a waiver. The principal shall have the final decision whether or not to grant such a waiver. In the absence of a request by the parent/guardian to apply for a waiver, the principal shall make a decision on this matter and notify the parent/guardian by letter.  Upon denial of a waiver by the principal, a student will have the option of make-up as available and as prescribed at individual schools.