Attendance

OCPS/CMS Attendance Policies

Students shall not be on campus before 9:00am unless they are enrolled in the YMCA Before School Program, are practicing for one of our sports teams, or have documented prior arrangements made (a signed pass) with school staff. Students should be picked up by 4:15pm (3:15 on Wednesday) unless attending the YMCA after-school zone. Campus supervision is not provided before or after these hours for students not enrolled in one of the YMCA programs. Any student found loitering on campus outside of these hours may be subject to CMS disciplinary and/or law enforcement action.

Regular school attendance is required by Florida state law. A student must be present at least half a day (4 full periods) in order to be counted present for the day. All absences will be recorded as unexcused. For the absence to be changed to an excused status, a note should be taken by the student to the Front Office within 48 hours of the absence. Absences will only be excused for notes indicating a valid reason for absence. Valid reasons for absence are limited to:

  1. Personal illness or need for emergency medical attention.
  2. Serious injury or death in the immediate family.
  3. Recognized religious holidays observed by your faith.
  4. Documented medical/dental appointments.
  5. Pre-arranged absence requests must be submitted at least 48 hours before requested date and must be approved by the principal.

Family vacations are NOT excused.

The principal has the ultimate authority to decide whether an absence is excused or unexcused. 

The following rules and procedures also apply to student attendance.

  • Students who arrive after 9:30am are considered tardy to school and should go straight to 1st period or 2nd period on Wednesdays. 
  • Students arriving anytime during the day after 9:45am must sign-in at the Front Office.
  • Students absent from school due to a bus suspension are not excused. Transportation arrangements are the responsibility of the student and parent in these cases.
  • Per district policy, once students arrive on campus, they may NOT LEAVE until the end of the day during normal dismissal unless proper sign-out procedures are followed through the Front Office. Students are not allowed to be signed out after 3:05 PM on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, and 2:05 PM on Wednesday.
  • Students may not participate in sports or other after-school events unless they have been present on the day of the event. 
  • Students who are absent during any part of the school day without authorized permission may receive a disciplinary referral for an unauthorized absence (skipping).
  • Students may be reported to the school social worker for excessive absences of 5 or more within a calendar month, and/or 10 or more within 90 calendar days, resulting in the possible filing of a petition to Truancy Court.
  • Students 14-18 years of age with 15 accumulated unexcused absences may be reported to the Florida DMV for the revocation of the student’s driver’s license.
  • Students will be given one day for every day of excused absence to turn in missing work.
If you have any questions concerning errors in your child's attendance, send Ms. Natali in the front office an email or call at extension 5032221.

 

To see the complete OCPS Attendance Guidelines, click here.