Every Day Counts!
Regular attendance in all classes is an expectation of all Austin ISD students. State law and District policy state that students must be in attendance for 90% of the instructional days for a class to receive credit. A student who misses more days than allowed by AISD policy, excused or unexcused, may not be given credit for that class unless time and/or work is made up for the absences. Students will work with the grade level administrator to complete the appropriate steps to reach compliance.
Parents: Making sure your student is in school and on time every day is the law. For more information visit the district's attendance page.
Notification
Please send in documentation of student absences using the School Absence Form on the AISD website or complete a paper form (pick up in Front Office).
We, DO NOT accept phone calls or voicemail messages as documentation for a student's absence.
Mary Lira, Attendance Specialist
BAILEY@austinisd.org | 512-414-4990 (office)
Please have medical offices submit documentation of your student’s visit to bailey@austinisd.org.
Please allow up to 72 hours (3 business days) for attendance to be corrected.
Set up notifications for your student’s attendance and grades via Parent Self Serve. Click here to learn more about attendance descriptions and codes.
Students attending family trips during scheduled school days will remain coded as an unexcused absence. Car problems, traffic, or oversleeping will not be considered as an excused absence or excused tardy.
- If a student arrives after 8:40a.m, they must report to the front office and be signed in by parent/guardian.
- If a student is more than 20 minutes late to other class periods, they will be marked ABSENT by the teacher.
Please read this power point explaining the attendance policy for the district:
CHECK-OUT PROCEDURE
Please do not plan to pick up your student from school 30 minutes prior to dismissal (ie 3:20 PM). Parents should follow the steps below to check out their student from school for an appointment or other reasons:
- You may call the office at 512.414.4990 to begin the process before you arrive.
- Park [insert relevant guest parking]
- Enter the main office and present your driver's license or any official identification like a passport
- The office staff will complete the checkout process to document the student's departure from campus
- The office staff will call for your student from class or send a staff member to retrieve them
Parent/guardian must sign the student out in the front office. Leaving for any part of the day will result in an unexcused tardy. Students leaving for a medical appointment must bring a note from the doctor to excuse the absence/tardy.
Additional Attendance Information:
Regular attendance in all classes is an expectation of all Bailey MS students. State law and District policy state that students must be in attendance for 90% of the instructional days for a class to receive credit. A student who misses more days than allowed by AISD policy, excused or unexcused, may not be given credit for that class unless time and/or work is made up for the absences. Students will work with the grade level administrator to complete the appropriate steps to reach compliance.
Absences exempt from the 90% rule:
- School field trips
- UIL activities and events
- Other school-related events
Documented medical appointments
When returning to school after an absence for any reason, a student must submit a note to the attendance clerk in the front office, signed by the parent or doctor, describing the reason for the absence. All notes for absences must be submitted within 48 hours of the student’s return to school in order for the absence to be excused. Failure to submit notes in this time frame will result in the absence remaining unexcused in the student’s attendance record. Any notes signed by the student even with the parent’s permission will be considered a forgery and the student will be disciplined.
Notes may also be emailed to the attendance clerk, at bailey@austinisd.org
Illness: A student with a fever of 100.0 must be sent home and cannot return to school until the student has been fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication. If a student has been absent because of illness, a signed note from the parent stating that the student was ill must be turned in. If a student has been out more than 5 days because of illness the parent note must be accompanied by a doctor’s note/receipt, in order for the extra days to be excused. Additionally, the school will accept up to 5 parent notes for illnesses during the course of the school year. After 5 parent notes, the student will be required to submit a doctor’s note for any other illnesses (regardless of the number of days out) for the remainder of the school year in order for the absences to be excused.
Medical Appointment: When returning from a medical appointment, a signed note from the
doctor is required. This ensures that the school receives funding from the state of Texas for the
student when they were absent. In order for the school to receive this funding, the student must have attended school for part of the day on the day of the appointment.
Family Emergencies: We all have family situations that arise and Bailey Middle School is
sensitive to that. Please clearly explain the nature of your family emergency in order for the absence
to be excused. Excusing absences for family emergencies will be decided on a case by case basis with the final decision being made by the administration.
Funerals: Students will be excused for up to two consecutive school days for family funerals. We realize that sometimes travel for these special events will keep a student out longer, and extra days for absences will occur. Again, the administration will determine whether any extra days required for attending a family funeral will be excused.
Family Vacations and Out of Town Trips: School days missed due to family vacations, out of town trips, taking extra days to extend the weekend, and time taken off for non-AISD extracurricular activities will not be excused.
Notification of absences: An automated phone message or email will be sent to the primary contact of any student who is given an absence on the day the absence is recorded. On the third and tenth absence, the district’s central office automatically mails a letter to the residence of the parent of the student. Ten or more unexcused absences may result in the campus pursuing legal action.
For more information on attendance requirements, visit the district website at
https://www.austinisd.org/attendance/compulsory
Change of Address
If your address changes, please advise the Registrar with a copy of a utility bill as proof of your new address.
Need more help?
Contact our Attendance Specialist, for more help: 512-414-4990.