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Patrick Henry Middle School Fine Arts and Media Education Magnet Academy |
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Parent Corner
Texas Education Code 25.092 states that “a student may not be given credit for a class unless the student is in attendance for at least 90 percent of the days the class is offered.” All students in HISD are expected to be in attendance in all their classes and to take advantage of the opportunity to learn and to pass their courses. To make that expectation clear to students and their parents, the Houston Independent School District, as allowed by the state, has a more stringent policy which requires that a student enrolled in a school with an 18-week per semester every-other-day block schedule may not have more than two unexcused absences per 18-week term to receive class credit. (This includes middle school students enrolled in semester credit and semester non-credit courses.)
Middle school students in year-long courses which meet every other day may have no more than four unexcused absences to be considered for promotion.
The intent of the district’s policy is to encourage students who exceed the absence limit and are in a position to be denied credit to stay in school. A provision of Senate Bill 1 states that a attendance committee must be implemented to hear appeals from students who cannot receive credit for courses due to excessive absences. HISD policy states that each school campus must have a School Attendance Committee, the composition of which shall be determined by the principal. The committee shall review petitions for class credit for students who are being denied credit as a result of excessive absences. The option of working to make up missed work and demonstrate acceptable achievement, and petitioning the School Attendance Committee for credit provides them a chance to rethink their choices without automatically enforcing a penalty of losing all credit in course attempted. This is in line with the dropout prevention program as established by the state, which is designed to encourage students to remain in school and work to be successful. Therefore, all students will be given the opportunity to make up work in both excused and unexcused absences.
If credit is denied by the Committee, the student can appeal that decision through the current appeal process: School Attendance Committee, to Principal, to District Superintendent, to HISD Student Record Appeals Committee. If credit is denied at each level, the student can then appeal to the HISD Board of Education.
The computer grade reporting system (SASI), may be programmed to flag subjects when the absence limit has been exceeded. If the student who has exceeded the absence limit is given the opportunity to make up all work missed and still has earned a grade below 70, he may not petition the School Attendance Committee to regain credit. In that case, he is failing because he has not mastered the academic elements of the course, not because he exceeded the absence limit. If the student with excessive absences has not been given the opportunity to make up work missed and his average is less than 70, he would have the right to petition the School Attendance Committee to regain credit.
Students who have been absent or tardy must present a written excuse from the parents or guardian when they return to school. All written excuses should be forwarded to the attendance office daily. Personal illness, sickness or death in the family, quarantine, weather or road conditions making travel dangerous, participation in school activities with permission of the principal, and emergencies or “any other cause acceptable to teacher, principal, or superintendent”, are all forms of excuses for absences and tardies. UNIFORM REQUIREMENTS 2007-2008 UNIFORME MANDATORIO
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