Our computerized parent notification system will call your home up to two times a day to inform you of unexcused absences. We appreciate your help in following these procedures. If you have any questions, please call the Attendance Office or your student’s Dean.
 

Errors: If you believe your student was marked tardy or absent in error, your student should communicate directly with their teacher to clear up any discrepancies. If any corrections need to be made, your student's teacher will email the attendance office with any corrections needed. Due to call volume, the attendance office cannot contact your student's teacher for you.                    

Our computerized parent notification system will contact you four times a day to inform you of unexcused absences. Messages on the attendance line are reviewed daily and every effort is made to update PowerSchool in a timely manner. However, changes may take 24 - 48 hours to be reflected in your student’s record. If you receive a prerecorded call or email from attendance/deans and have already left a message, please disregard the automated message.

We appreciate your help in following these procedures. If you have any questions, feel free to call the Attendance Office or your student’s Dean.

Attendance Codes

L - Excused Tardy or Super Tardy

• Student arrives late but is excused by parent/guardian.

T - Tardy Pass from Deans

• Student arrives late but within the first 10 minutes of class.

UP - Unexcused Presence (Super Tardy) - Pass from Deans

• Student arrives 10-50 minutes late to class

U - Unexcused Absence [1]

• Student does not show up to class at all
• Student arrives more than 50 minutes late [2]
• Student does not return from lunch
• Student leaves early and fails to return to class and/or leaves without permission [3]

For any of the above processes, please reference CCSD Policy JH, JHB, JIC, JFC-R, JK, and JEA.

The district may require suitable proof regarding the above exceptions, including written statements from medical sources.

[1} 3.02 (2) (a) Unexcused Absences occur when the student is absent without a reason or for an unacceptable reason as identified within the attendance rules set by local school board of education policy as declared in 22-33-104 (4)(a) C.R.S.

[2] 3.03 (3) For Department reporting purposes, a student who is absent from school without a valid and verifiable excuse by the parent/guardian that is consistent with school or board policy as defined in 22-33-104 (4)(a) C.R.S. or the student leaves school or class without permission of authorized school staff.

[3] 2,00 (13) “Unexcused Absence/Truancy” means a student is absent from school without a valid and verifiable excuse by the parent/guardian that is consistent with school or board policy as defined in 22-33-104 (4)(a) C.R.S. or the student leaves school or a class without permission of authorized school staff.

http://www.cherrycreekschools.org/BOE/SectionJPolicies/JH.pdf

If your student attends CCIC, you'll need to call their attendance line as well to excuse classes for CCIC.

CCIC Attendance Line: 720-554-2695.

Use TalkingPoints or call the Attendance Line: (720) 886- 5450

Students who attend school regularly and punctually learn more and enjoy a more successful academic experience than those that do not. At Smoky Hill, consistent attendance and promptness are an expectation. If a student is unable to attend school for a valid reason (See CCSD policy JH), a parent or a legal guardian must do the following:

1. To report/update your student's attendance in TalkingPoints:
   Step 1 - Open TalkingPoints and select New Message
   Step 2 - Scroll to the bottom of the list and select Smoky Hill High School (under School Admins)
   Step 3 - Include this information in your message: STUDENT'S NAME, the DATE and TIMES of the absence, the REASON your student is missing class.
   If any of the above information is missing or indecipherable, your student's attendance may not be updated. 
   • Report absences using the app TalkingPoints mobile application. Download the app above, use the web version here, or sign in to your account at https://my.cherrycreekschools.org and use the TalkingPoints Tile (you may need to add it to your dashboard).
2. Call the Attendance Office if your child is going to be absent from school. When calling, please leave:
   • Student’s name, spelling the last name
   • Reason for the absence, otherwise students will not be excused. 
   • Parent/ Guardian Name
   • Phone number where you can be reached. Please inform us of changes in home or work numbers.
3. For immediate or early dismissal, please call (720) 886-5457 at least one (1) hour prior to dismissal, if possible, OR send a note with your student to the Attendance Office in the morning before school begins to obtain a pass for early dismissal. If the student is already at school, please call and leave a message on the voicemail. 
4. In the event a student becomes ill at school and needs to go home, student must either:
   • Report to the clinic, and the nurse will phone a parent/guardian and obtain permission
   • Have a parent/guardian call and give permission to the Attendance Office with a time the student will be leaving the school
   • Students who leave campus without the following above may be marked “unexcused.”
5. Absences that are not excused within 48 hours will require Dean’s approval for changing absence to “excused.” 
6. In the event of a situation in which the student is supervised temporarily by an adult other than the parents, the parent should notify the Attendance Office in writing, providing the name, address and phone number of the supervising adult. 
7. If you believe your student was marked unexcused in error, your student should communicate directly with their teacher to clear up the discrepancy. If any correction needs to be made, your student’s teacher will email the attendance office with any correction needed.
8. PLEASE NOTE: A student may not be excused from class because they are not prepared or need to do work for another class. Students who are “excused” must be off school grounds during an “excused” absence. 

Our computerized parent notification system will call your home twice during the school day–once after second period and after school–to inform you of unexcused absences. Additionally, this system will send notification via email. Please use the online form or call the Attendance Office to excuse the absence on the day of the absence (before 10 a.m.) to prevent the computer from calling and emailing you. We appreciate your help in following these procedures. If you have any questions, feel free to call the Attendance Office or our Attendance deans.

Attendance, grades and behavior can be reviewed at any time by our deans to determine if students have earned privileges such as attending any school dance, sporting event, theatrical performance or any school sponsored activity. Seniors are put on notice that poor attendance, poor grades and/or poor behavior can adversely affect participation in all senior activities.

We will celebrate students who meet the following attendance thresholds on a quarterly and semester basis:

• Students improving attendance by 10% or more
• Students achieving 90% or better attendance rate
• Students achieving 100% attendance rate

Legally excused absences are defined by state law and by Cherry Creek School District Policy. The following will be considered excused absences:

1. A student who is temporarily ill or injured, or whose absence is approved by the administrator of the school of attendance on a pre-arranged basis. Pre-arranged absences shall be approved for appointments or circumstances of a serious nature only which cannot be taken care of outside of school hours.
2. A student who is absent for an extended period due to physical, mental or emotional disability.
3. A student who is pursuing a work-study program under the supervision of the school.
4. A student who is attending any school-sponsored activity or activities of an educational nature with advance approval by the administration.
5. A student who is absent in observance of an established religious holiday.
6. A student whose absence is approved by the building principal at the request of the parent or guardian.

   • Club Sports: Absences for club sports will be excused when verification and documentation are provided by families at least one week (7 days) in advance of the competition date.

   • College Visits: All college visits will be excused with verification and documentation submitted at least 24 hours in advance.

   • Vacations: Students will receive 3 (three) excused vacation days for the entire school year with appropriate documentation. Any vacation days beyond the initial three will not be excused. 

7. A student who is suspended or expelled.

NOTE: In accordance with Colorado State Law, Smoky Hill High School can only accept absences that meet the above criteria.

The district may require suitable proof regarding the above exceptions, including written statements from medical sources. If a student in an out-of-home placement (as that term is defined by C.R.S.22-32-138(I)(e)), is absent due to court appearances and participation in court-ordered activities, such absences shall be excused. The students’ assigned social workers shall verify the student’s absence was for a court appearance or court-ordered activity.

An unexcused absence is defined as an absence that is not covered by one of the foregoing exceptions. Continued unexcused absences and/or repeated tardiness may be considered cause for disciplinary action. In accordance with law, the district may impose appropriate penalties that relate directly to classes missed while unexcused. Penalties may include:

• Academic Re-engagement(s)
• Family Meeting(s) 
• Being Placed on Attendance Support Plans
• Guardian Shadows
• Loss of privilege(s) (LOP)
• Medical Note Requirement 
• Truancy Court Referral

The administration shall develop procedures to implement appropriate penalties, and may consider the correlation between course failure, truancy and a student dropping out of school in developing procedures, and may implement relevant strategies to re-engage students with a high number of unexcused absences. Students and parents/guardians may petition the Board of Education for exceptions to this policy or the administrative procedures provided that no exception shall be sustained if the student fails to abide by all requirements imposed by the Board as conditions for granting any such exception.

Advisors, activity sponsor or classroom teachers who have had their field trip approved by their department coordinator and the administrator in charge will complete an Advance Notice of Absence Form located in Staff Pages on the website, listing all students who will attend field trip activities. These school sponsored absences are considered an excused absence. 

If a student is absent without a signed parental/guardian excuse or if the student leaves school or class without permission of the teacher or administrator in charge, the student shall be considered truant. Determination of an absence as excused or unexcused will be based upon the criteria stated in School Board Policy JH. Someone that is "habitual truant" shall be defined as a student of compulsory attendance age who has four total days of unexcused absences from school in any one month or ten total days of unexcused absences during any school year. The determination of a “habitually truant” status for a student is calculated using the sum of unexcused absences converted to days and fractions of days. Said absences are cumulative, need not be consecutive, nor confined to one class. Absences due to suspension or expulsion shall not be counted in the total of unexcused absences for purposes of defining a student as an “habitual truant.”

A plan shall be developed for a student who is declared habitually truant with the goal of assisting the child to remain in school. When possible, the child's parent, guardian or legal custodian will be expected to participate with district personnel during the development of the plan unless extenuating circumstances prevent their participation. Appropriate school personnel shall make all reasonable efforts to meet with the parent, guardian or legal custodian to review and evaluate the reasons for the child's truancy.

In order to reduce the incidents of truancy, parents of all students shall be notified in writing at the beginning of each school year of their obligation to ensure that all children of compulsory attendance age attend school. Parents/guardians shall be required to acknowledge in writing awareness of their obligations and to furnish the school with a telephone number or other means of contacting them during the school day.

The school shall establish a system of monitoring individual excused and unexcused absences. When a student fails to report on a regularly scheduled school day and school personnel have received no indication that the parent/guardian is aware of the absence, school personnel or volunteers under the direction of school personnel shall make a reasonable effort to notify the parent/guardian by telephone.

The school will attempt to determine the reason for a student's unexcused absence, taking timely and appropriate corrective and/or disciplinary action relevant to the cause of the student's absenteeism. In accordance with law, the district may impose appropriate penalties that relate directly to classes missed while truant. Penalties may include a warning, school detention, in-school suspension, or other alternative to suspension. Academic penalties, out-of-school suspensions or expulsion shall not be imposed for any truancy.

Tardiness is defined as the appearance of a student without proper excuse after the scheduled time that a class begins. Because of the disruptive nature of tardiness and the detrimental effect upon the rights of the non-tardy student to uninterrupted learning, appropriate penalties may be imposed for excessive tardiness. 

In an unavoidable situation, a student detained by another teacher or administrator shall not be considered tardy provided that the teacher or administrator gives the student a pass to enter the next class. Teachers shall honor passes presented in accordance with this policy. The provisions of this policy shall be applicable to all students in the District, including those above and below the age for compulsory attendance as required by law.

A tardy is considered as missing the first ten minutes of a class period. All students must check in at a tardy station. If they are at the door the teacher can allow them in and utilize MINGA to record the tardy. We have two tardy carts located around our building throughout the day: one in the  Activities Hallway (first period only), one by the Lecture Center (this one will be by the Attendance Office/Main Entrance). Students can also obtain a Tardy Pass at the Attendance office. 

We are excited to share that Smoky Hill High School will begin using Minga, a digital student management and engagement platform, to enhance campus safety, streamline daily operations, and support a more connected and accountable school environment.

Minga is a secure digital platform that provides students with a virtual ID card, allows for hall pass tracking, and improves event and club communication. It’s designed to reduce classroom disruptions, support our staff in knowing where students are during the school day, and provide students with easier access to school resources and information.

How will Smoky Hill use Minga?

• Digital IDs: Students will use their phones to access their school ID, which they’ll scan to enter after school events. (Students will need a physical I.D. for the school day. Either digital (Minga) or hard copy but one must be shown when asked.) 
• Hall Passes: Teachers will issue digital hall passes, giving staff real-time information about students who are outside the classroom.
• Accountability & Safety: By having accurate and immediate visibility, Smoky Hill can better support student safety, reduce hallway wandering, clear bathrooms and respond quickly to concerns within the building.
• Engagement: Minga will also be used to highlight school events, announcements, and student celebrations to build a stronger sense of community. Minga will also support tickets for homecoming and prom. 

Why are we implementing Minga?
Our goal is to create a safe, structured, and engaging environment for all students. Minga helps ensure that students are where they need to be, when they need to be there, while also increasing student responsibility and supporting positive behavior. It also reduces the need for paper passes and provides consistent communication across campus.

What should families know?

• Students will receive Minga training and login instructions at school.
• Minga is FERPA compliant.
• Students and staff are expected to use Minga as the hall pass system and violation of this policy will result in disciplinary action(s).

We appreciate your partnership as we continue to innovate ways to make Smoky Hill a safe, inclusive, and forward-thinking school.

For more information visit https://minga.io/ 

Present (blank) – Student is on time, present for entire class

Tardy (T) – Student arrives late, but within first 10 minutes of class

Unexcused Present (UP) – Student shows up late more than 10 minutes of class or missed more than 10 minutes of class

Unexcused Absence (U) – Student did not show up to class, student left early and failed to return or left without permission

For any other codes, please consult PowerSchool through your my.cherrycreek portal.