Attendance

The Allentown School District is a trusted partner for families to help your child attend school on time on the first day and every day during the school year. We are providing helpful information, toolkits, and other resources to support your child’s attendance success.

Attendance Matters

Research shows that daily school attendance is critical for every student’s academic success and social-emotional well-being. Students with good attendance are more likely to:

Read on or above grade level.
Perform well in math.
Build healthy, lasting relationships at school.
Successfully graduate high school on time.

Children get much more than academics at school. They also learn social and emotional skills, get healthy meals and exercise; and stay connected to mental health supports and other important services.

Attending school on time, every day:

Provides your child with the opportunities for discovery, exploration, learning, and achievement they need to thrive.
Allows teachers to best support your child’s academic progress and their unique learning styles and abilities.
Offers students real-time access to the technology and other educational resources they need to engage in their education.
Leads to daily interactions with teachers, peers, and support staff who help students develop friendships, learn more about themselves, build empathy, and better handle stress. This is especially important for children with diverse learning needs.

The more school time a student misses:

The less likely they are to be proficient in math and reading by fourth grade, which is when students are no longer learning to read, but reading to learn.
The less likely they are to graduate high school on time.
The more likely they are to drop out of school.
The more challenging it becomes to catch up.

Nonetheless, it’s never too late to work with your child’s school to help improve attendance.

Families can help children achieve good attendance and stay on track at every grade level by:

Familiarizing yourself with the District’s student attendance requirements.
Ensuring your child is prepared for the school day.
Informing the school of your child’s absence.
Provide written excuse notes to the school when your child is absent.

Attendance Expectations

Who Must Attend School?

Under Pennsylvania law, all students between the ages of six (6) and eighteen (18) must attend school every day.

Once a student is enrolled in school, this includes students in kindergarten, they are subject to compulsory school laws until the student reaches age 18.
A parent/guardian who enrolls their child in Kindergarten may formally withdraw their child from school prior to reaching compulsory school age (age six), at which point the child would no longer be subject to compulsory school laws until they turn six (6) years old.

A student shall be considered in attendance if:

Present at any place where school is in session by authority of the Allentown School District School Board of Directors.
Receiving approved tutorial instruction or health or therapeutic services.
Engaged in an approved and properly supervised independent study, work-study, or career education program.
Receiving approved homebound instruction; or if the student’s placement is instruction in the home.

Absences

Read the Allentown School District Student & Family Handbook to understand what is required of you when your child is absent from school.

Don’t be quick to call in sick. Good school attendance today fosters good work attendance in the future.
Too Sick for School document.

Keep Your Child On Track in Middle and High School: Pay Attention to Attendance

Attendance Frequently Asked Questions

Excused Absences

When Can a Student’s Absence Be Excused?

An excused absence is when a student is absent from school for a reason identified by the District as legitimate, valid and reasonable. The following conditions or situations are examples of reasonable causes for absence from school.

Student illness, including if a student is dismissed by designated district staff during school hours for health-related reasons.
Obtaining professional health care or therapy service
Quarantine
Recovery from accident
Required court appearance
Death in family
Educational, project or performance (i.e. music/dance/stage) related trip/tour under specific conditions
College tours, trade school tours, career and technical training program tours, community college tours, or tours of other non-District schools, with prior approval.
Observance of a religious holiday observed by a bona fide religious group, upon prior written request from the person in parental relation.
Family Emergency (An unexpected, serious event that is outside of the control of the student’s family).
Other urgent reasons that may reasonably cause a student’s absence, as well as circumstances related to homelessness and foster care.

Some of these events have their own conditions that need to be met in order for the absence to be excused.

You can also learn more in the Attendance Policy.

Excused Absence Procedure & Written

The District’s attendance policy requires written excuse notes explaining the absence.

Contact the child’s school to verify ways excuse notes may be submitted.
Excuse notes must be given to the school within three (3) days upon the student’s return to school. If the note is not submitted to the school within the required time frame, the day(s) may not be excused.
Excuse notes must include the student’s name, date(s) of absence(s) and a valid telephone number or other means of contact for verification purposes.
All absences resulting in a total of three (3) or more consecutive days due to illness will require a written excuse note by a licensed healthcare provider. Excuse notes from a healthcare provider may also be submitted in lieu of a parent note for any absence.
For absences that do not total three (3) consecutive days, parents may submit a written excuse note stating the reason for the absence.
When a student has been absent due to illness, excused with a parent note, totaling eight (8) days (cumulative), all subsequent absences may require a written excuse note from a licensed healthcare provider.

* The submission of notes does not guarantee automatic excusal of absences and are subject to school review to determine the validity of submitted notes.

Temporary Excusals

School age children unable to attend school upon recommendation of the school physician and a psychiatrist or school psychologist, or both, and with approval of the Secretary of Education.
Students receiving tutorial instruction in a field not offered in the district's curricula from a properly qualified tutor approved by the Superintendent, when the excusal does not interfere with the student's regular program of studies.
Students participating in a religious instruction program, if the following conditions are met:
- The parent/guardian submits a written request for excusal. The request shall identify and describe the instruction, and the dates and hours of instruction.
- The student shall not miss more than thirty-six (36) hours per school year in order to attend classes for religious instruction.
- Following each absence, the parent/guardian shall submit a statement attesting that the student attended the instruction, and the dates and hours of attendance.

Unexcused /Unlawful Absences

An absence is considered “unexcused” or “unlawful” when either a written note was not submitted to the school upon the student’s return from the absence (in accordance to written note protocol), or the reason provided in the written note by the parent/guardian was deemed invalid by the school, and did not meet the conditions or situations outlined in the Attendance Policy.

Examples of invalid excuses include (but not limited to):

Babysitting
Waking up late
Illness of a family member
Family vacation

Note: An out-of-school suspension may not be considered an unexcused absence.

Attendance Tips & Resources

Here are some tips and resources to support you as you prepare your child to attend school on the first day of school and every day throughout the school year.

BEFORE the school year begins:

Know your child’s bell & bus schedule – Check the school’s website or call the school office for details.
Plan Your Daily Routine with Your Child – Post it at home using our Daily Routine Reminder.
Make a plan and backup plan for getting to school on time – It’s so important to have people in your life who have your back. Ask family, friends or neighbors to be your school drop-off back up. And be theirs, too.
Plan Ahead for Early Dismissal Days – Learning continues on these days. Be sure your child attends school and has an after-school care plan in place. Visit philasd.org/calendar for the full calendar.
Update your contact information – Moved? New phone number? Have emergency contacts changed? Contact the school and let them know. Having correct information on file allows school staff to keep in touch with you on attendance and other matters, and to contact you in an emergency.
Make sure your child is up to date on required immunizations
To schedule an immunization appointment please contact your student’s school nurse.
Register for a Parent and Family Portal account if you don’t yet have one
Access information about your child’s attendance, grades, test scores, and more, anytime. Register by clicking here.

DURING the school year:

Be Your Child’s Attendance Champion – Let them know you care about school because when you’re excited, they are too!
Celebrate Great Attendance At Home – Use our Weekly Attendance Tracker and Attendance Hero Certificate to make it fun for all.
Talk To Your Child’s Principal, Teachers or the School Nurse – If you are having or expect to have attendance challenges, they can work with you to help address them.

Truancy

A student who is subject to compulsory attendance is considered truant for having three (3) or more unexcused absences during the current school year.

Students with six (6) or more unexcused absences are considered habitually truant.

Students with ten (10) or more unexcused absences are considered chronically truant.

Truancy Process

The Allentown School District has an obligation to address truancy through a designated process. The intention of this process is to provide assistance and support. We aim to avoid involving families in truancy court or the child welfare system.

Your cooperation is appreciated in ensuring that your student fulfills attendance requirements. For more information, please refer to the Attendance Policy.

Who should I contact for assistance with my child’s attendance?

Teacher
Principal
Counselor
Home School Visitor
School Social Worker