Attendance Matters
Regular school attendance helps students:
- Stay on track academically
- Build friendships & confidence
- Develop routines & responsibility
- Feel connected to their school community
Did You Know?
A student who misses 10% of the school year (2 school days a month or 9 school days a semester) is considered chronically absent and may be at greater risk for academic difficulties.
It adds up quickly! Missing just 2 days in a month is 600 academic minutes!
How You Can Help
- Set consistent bedtime and morning routines
- Encourage daily attendance
- Schedule appointments outside school hours when possible
- Communicate with the school if challenges arise
- Reach out early if your child needs support
- Submit your student’s absences via PowerSchool (Information Below)
Expectations
All MHS students are expected to attend at least 95% of their classes throughout the year in order to maximize their learning, stay engaged in their coursework, and stay socially connected to their teachers and peers. This means missing no more than ~2 days a month (excused or unexcused) or no more than 9 days a semester.
Unexcused Absences
When students reach key thresholds of 5, 10, 15, etc. unexcused class period absences, families will be notified, and students will be assigned lunch detentions. These lunch detentions are intended to provide time for academic recovery, completion of missing work, and reflection on the importance of regular attendance. This process is designed to promote accountability, reinforce positive attendance habits, and support students in developing the responsibility and consistency needed for long-term academic success.
Students that require further support will work with our deans to ensure they have the resources, guidance, and accountability needed to improve their attendance and achieve academic success.
Excessive Tardies
When students reach key thresholds of 10, 20, 30, etc. excessive tardies*, families will be notified, and students will be assigned lunch detentions. These lunch detentions are intended to provide time for academic recovery, completion of missing work, and reflection on the importance of regular attendance. This process is designed to promote accountability, reinforce positive attendance habits, and support students in developing the responsibility and consistency needed for long-term academic success.
*Excessive Tardy= Late to class by over 5 minutes
Parent Call Outs
Parent call outs will be capped at 9 full day call outs for each semester. At the 10th parent call out, students will be marked as “Parent Unexcused.” This means that while the parent has accounted for the student absence, they have exceeded the limit of excused parent call outs for that semester. If the excessive absences are medical in nature or your student needs additional assistance, please reach out to your students’ support team (dean, social worker, or counselor).
Incentives
To encourage positive attendance, we will hold bi-weekly raffles to win prizes for students who have met the 95% attendance threshold. At the end of each semester, we will do another raffle with larger prizes.
Extracurricular Participation
As a school, we believe that participation in athletics, clubs, activities, and extracurricular opportunities is an essential part of a well-rounded educational experience. These experiences allow students to explore their interests, develop new skills, build meaningful relationships, and strengthen their sense of belonging within our school community. That said, we further believe that academics need to come first– our student-athletes are always students first. Our expectation is that students are present for half the school day (4 full periods) in order to participate in extracurriculars that afternoon. Exceptions to this rule will be granted for college visits, bereavement, medical needs and extenuating circumstances by the Department of Athletics & Activities.
Co-curricular programs, which are tied to a grade, operate under specific parameters that support overall positive attendance.
Student Privileges
MHS students are expected to maintain an attendance rate of 95% or higher. Please note that attendance is a key requirement for student privileges, including parking permits and social events (such as Homecoming, El Baile, and Prom). If students do not maintain the attendance expectation, they will not be eligible to attend that specific event. Specific communication before these events will be emailed out.
Submitting Attendance
For more information on how to submit your student’s attendance, please use the QR code or link below:
https://shorturl.at/rbKWD
Please submit attendance by 10 a.m., via PowerSchool.
Support
We understand that attendance challenges can happen. If your family needs support with transportation, academics, or social-emotional needs, please contact your student's counselor, dean, or social worker. We're here to help!
For more support, please email Jim Schiffer, Assistant Principal of Student Services: jschiffer@d120.org.