ATTENDANCE (POLICY 204)
Absentee Reporting
1. When a child is absent, the parents/guardians are required to call the school on the morning of the
absence and report the absentee’s name and grade.
2. Parents/guardians will receive an automated phone call when their student has been marked absent
from school.
3. When a child is absent from school, the parent/guardian is responsible for sending a note to school
stating the reason for the absence. This should be sent with the child when they return to class or
submitted via the child’s Skyward account. If a note is not received within three (3) days after an
absence, the absence will be marked unlawful.
Regular student attendance is a vital part of every child’s education. Because of the importance that
daily attendance plays in the educational process of every child, the Department of Education and the
schools of the Commonwealth are obligated to comply with state and federal requirements for student
attendance and truancy.
With the PA Legislature's passage of Act 138 (2016), Cumberland Valley's attendance procedures reflect
PA's truancy laws:
When a student is absent from school, the absence is considered unlawful until the school receives a
written excuse from the parent/guardian. After three school days without a written excuse (or
acceptable excuse per School District policy), the absence is considered unlawful. The District will send
letters indicating an unlawful absence.
If a student accumulates a fourth unlawful absence, the parent will receive a reminder from the district
stating the number of unlawful absences and invitation to participate in a School Attendance
Improvement Conference (SAIC). The goal of this conference is a partnership between parents, student
and school personnel to improve school attendance.
If a student accumulates six unlawful absences, the student is considered habitually truant. At this time
the child may be referred to a community or school based program, Cumberland County Children and
Youth and/or a truancy citation with the District Magistrate.