Student Absences

Attendance Procedures

Regular attendance is essential to students’ consistent academic progress. If your child will be absent, parents are asked to call the school in advance at (403) 239-9607 with the name and grade of your child, the reason for absence and the anticipated date of return to school.

Illness, medical appointments and family emergencies are considered acceptable absences. We will attempt to contact the parent in the event of an unexplained absence. Please help us by ensuring we have your current phone numbers including emergency contacts.

Extended Absences

In the event of any extended absence, other than for illness, parents must provide a note indicating the nature and duration of this absence. This note should be addressed to the Principal and delivered one week prior to the start of the absence. Under the School Act, the school can not support extended absences for holiday or travel purposes. Please consider extra holidays during the school year carefully as student achievement may be affected. Teachers are under no obligation to provide instruction or materials for students who miss school due to extended holidays.

Arriving Late and Leaving Early

Students should arrive 10-15 minutes before the first class commences. Late arrivals are disruptive to instruction and do not provide the best start to the day for your child. Students should be seated and ready to learn in their classroom by 8:30 a.m. Students who arrive after 8:30 a.m. must be signed in at the office. Students are expected to arrive promptly to all classes. Individual incidents of tardiness will be handled by the classroom teachers. Chronic tardiness will be referred to Administration. Since many students are driven to school, parent cooperation with arriving on time to class is essential.

Students leaving school at any time during the day other than regular dismissal must be signed out by a parent or guardian at the office. For security purposes, the school reserves the right to decide if a student can be released to the care of an adult based on permissions and custody orders that may be on record. Parents are asked to ensure our records are up-to-date including phone numbers. Parents are also asked to provide written permission for someone other than the regular adult to pick up your child.