• Attendance Policy

     
    When a student returns to school after having been absent, he or she is required to bring in a written excuse within one week (7 days) of the absence. The excuse should be on a full sheet of paper and signed by a parent or guardian. If a student is absent from school and treated by a doctor, the student should bring a doctor's excuse. All excuses/notes should be turned in to the attendance clerk in the front office.
     
    A student is considered truant when they have accumulated 3 consecutive unlawful absences or a total of 5 unlawful absences. An attendance intervention conference is required once a student is considered truant. Incidents of truancy are documented in a student's permanent file.

    Students and parents are reminded that according to South Carolina law, absences are classified as lawful or unlawful. The following are examples of lawful absences:
    • absence caused by a student's own illness and whose attendance in school would endanger his or her health and the health of others
    • absences due to an illness or death in the student's immediate family 
    • absences due to a recognized religious holiday of the student's faith
    • absences due to activities that are approved in advance by the principal

    Unlawful absences are defined as a student's willful absence from school without the knowledge of the parents, or a student's absence from school without cause with the knowledge of the parent. Suspension is not to be counted as an unlawful absence for truancy.
     
    In accordance with the Anderson School District One attendance policy, cases involving excessive numbers of unexcused absences will be referred to the county attendance office and/or the courts.