COMPULSORY EDUCATION INFORMATION
Dear Parents and Guardians,
Jordan School District is committed to providing a quality education for all students. Absence from school interferes with students’ opportunities to master important skills. We are concerned when students miss school for any reason.
The Utah Compulsory Education Law (53 a-11-101) states that every school age child (6 to 18 years of age) must be enrolled and attending school. The law indicates that parents are responsible for their student’s regular attendance. It is a Class B misdemeanor if you fail to have your student enrolled and attending school regularly.
It isn’t a surprise that, in a school of over 600 students, the front office deals with multiple absences, tardies and check in/out issues every day. Tracking student attendance allows us to accurately report to the district and to the state, but more importantly, it helps us know more about our students and how to meet their educational needs. We will contact parents about absences by phone through our automated system. We are hopeful that this communication will be useful to parents and keep us focused on our common goal-to give children the best possible educational experience. As a reminder, absences are excused in the following ways:
- A note from the doctor/dentist (include time and date of appointment)
- We can keep a note from the doctor on file for ongoing illnesses. Parents should reference the note when calling to report the absence.
- Students are excused for the funeral of a family member or close family friend. (A funeral program or obituary notice will speed the process.)
- Students can be excused for Education Leave for up to 10 days. Parents should complete and return the form several days prior to the absence, to allow teachers time to compile student work. Students should hand in their completed work within 5 days of returning to school.
Please inform the office of your child’s absence by calling before 9:30 am each day they will miss school. Leave a message on our automated system. Please provide your student’s name and a reason for the absence. If your child is absent and we do not receive a call prior to 9:30 am, our automated system will call to inform you and your child will be marked as having an unexcused absence.
We appreciate our students and their families. Jordan Hills Elementary is a great school. Together, we can make a difference!