Perris Elementary School District is committed to providing a quality education for your child.  Education is critical to your child’s success in life.  Regular attendance ensures your child will receive all the educational benefits school has to offer.  As the parent/guardian, it is your responsibility to ensure your child attends school regularly.  Poor attendance affects the student’s education and increases the chance of failure.

Did you know?

Attendance may be the single most important factor in school because:

• Children do best in school when they are in class every day.  The U.S. Dept. of Education reports that for every missed day of school, it takes a student at least two days to catch up.

• Students who are chronically absent in kindergarten and first grade are less likely to read proficiently by the end of third grade.

• By 6th grade, chronic absenteeism becomes one of the leading indicators of dropping out of high school.

• Students who graduate from high school will earn 30% more than those who don’t complete high school.

   

Tips to help your child succeed:

• Let your child know you think school is important.

• Know and support the school rules and tell your child you expect them to follow the rules.

• Set a regular bedtime and enforce it.

• Set up an alternative transportation plan for getting your child to school.

• Make sure your child arrives to school on time daily.

• Plan medical, dental, and other appointments before and after school if possible.  IF appointments must be during the school day, bring the child to school before or after the appointment.

• Contact the school for any special circumstances to discuss possible solutions.

• Sign your child up for Saturday Academy to make up any full day prior absence.

California Education Code 48205 defines Excused Absences:

• Student Illness

• Quarantine

• Medical/Dental Appointment

• Funeral of immediate family member. Service in CA: 1 excused day / Service outside CA: 3 excused days

• Upon advance written request by the parent/guardian and the approval of the principal or designee, justifiable personal reasons including, but not limited to:

• Appearance in court

• Observation of a holiday or ceremony of his/her religion

• To spend time with his/her immediate family member who has been called to military duty for deployment or is on leave from or has immediately returned from deployment.

Examples of reasons that are not considered excusable absences:

• Lack of transportation

• Vacation

• Medical appointment for someone other than the student

• Running errands

• Oversleeping/waking up late

   

Notification of Absences:

• It is the parent’s responsibility to notify the school of any absence.  Parents may provide a written note, call the school (leave a message if after school hours), or send an email to the school’s attendance clerk to excuse an absence.

• Absences may be excused within 3 school days, otherwise the absence will be marked unexcused. 

• A student with more than 10 total absences within the school year (excused or unexcused) must have each additional absence cleared with a medical note or verified through the school health office.

Consequences of Poor Attendance:

The Compulsory School Attendance Law states that parents/guardians who fail to have their children attend school are subject to the following:

• Poor academic performance

• Issues of low self-esteem may develop

• Increased behavior incidents

• Referral to the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office where charges may be filed against a parent/guardian.

School Attendance is the Law:

California's compulsory education laws require children between six and eighteen years of age to attend school, with a limited number of specified exceptions.

Under state law, a pupil who, without a valid excuse, is absent from school for three full days in one school year, or is tardy or absent for more than 30 minutes during the school day on three occasions in one school year, is considered truant.

Once a student is designated a truant, state law requires schools, districts, counties, and courts to intervene to ensure that parents and pupils receive certain services to assist them in complying with attendance laws.