School Attendance
Every minute of a child’s time at school is important. Children who are absent for even one day, or who arrive later than their classmates, miss valuable instruction time and can easily fall behind in school. They also miss important socialization time and fun with their peers.
California State Law says that a child is excused if he/she is ill or if 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 is tardy or absent for three unexcused times, he/she will be considered truant. To read more about our policy on truancy, visit the BUSD Student Services Department webpage.
Reporting Absences
When your child is absent from school, please notify the school office as early as possible and by 9am at the latest. You can call the office 510-644-6290. Or you may send an email to smattendance@berkeley.net. In your phone call or email, please include the information below:
Student's name
Date(s) absent
Grade / teacher
Your name and your relation to child
Daytime phone number
Reason for absence
Excused absences include:
Illness
Medical and dental appointments
Funeral of a family member (1 day if in California, up to 3 days if out of state)
Religious holidays or celebrations
Court appearance
If a student is absent for more than three days due to illness, the parent/guardian must provide the office with a doctor’s note upon their arrival back to campus.
Vacations, family trips, and family emergencies are UNEXCUSED.
Even if you call and let us know about family trips, they are considered unexcused and documented as such on the attendance record. After three unexcused absences, you will receive a district warning letter regarding potential truancy issues, per the California Education Code. If the absences continue, a meeting with the district attendance liaison and the principal will be scheduled to discuss strategies regarding how to improve attendance.
Tardy/Late to School
Students are considered “tardy” when they arrive after 8:10am. If your child arrives after 8:15am, please go to the office before going to class to get a tardy slip before going to class. We need paper documentation of appointments or a dated note of explanation regarding the reason for the late arrival in case of audit.
Students who are 30 minutes late three times are truant according to the California Education Code; this may also trigger a district warning letter.
Checking attendance & correcting errors
Families can monitor their student’s attendance by logging into Infinite Campus. If there is an error on the student’s attendance, please contact the office so that we can correct it and verify with the teacher if needed. You can send an email to smattendance@berkeley.net.