Attendance

**The school day starts at 7:30 a.m. each day. Students are expected to be seated in their homerooms for attendance prior to 7:30 a.m. Students who enter the school building after 7:30 a.m. will be marked tardy.

It is very important that your student is in school all day, every day. However, we do realize some absences are unaviodable. If your student has an ongoing medical condition that will cause him/her to be absent numerous times during the shcool year, please provide us with written documentation from the doctor.

If your student has a medical or dental appointment, please send a doctor's note with your student and have them turn it into the front office when they return to school.

If you know in advance that your student will be out, please email dawn.schmitz@fcps1.org or call the attendance office at 540-422-7434.  You can leave a voicemail message at any time.   

Please REMEMBER we must have verification (a phone call, e-mail or a written note) of an absence from a Parent or Guardian - we cannot take the word of a student.   

Please note that all attendance letters mailed home are automatically generated. If you have any questions or concerns regarding attendance, please feel free to give me a call at 540-422-7434 or send me an e-mail at dawn.schmitz@fcps1.org

Attendance Procedure for Absences

• For absences of any description, schools will implement the following actions:

Six (6) Absences:

• Letter will be mailed home

Ten (10) Absences:

• Letter will be mailed home and a conference may be requested

When attendance issues are considered truancy, in that parents are unaware or not supporting the student’s absences, a plan will be developed on the fifth (5th) absence.

If absences are considered a failure to comply with compulsory attendance law, a referral will be sent to Student Services

Tardy to School Procedures

Discipline will be assigned once a student accumulates 9 tardies to school.  Tardies to school are considered unexcused unless professional documentation is provided (example: medical notes).

All tardies will be discplined by the following schedule:

• 5 tardies - Verbal Warning to the student
• 7 tardies - Parent will be contacted
• 9 tardies - Students will serve lunch detention
• 11 - 14 tardies -One Day After School Detention (ASD)
• 15 or more tardies - Saturday Detention may be assigned

A parent conference may be scheduled at any time to come up with a tardy improvement plan. 

Tardiness, Early Dismissals, and Class Cuts: Fauquier County Public Schools treat tardiness, early dismissals, late arrivals to class, and failure to attend all assigned classes (class cuts) with the same seriousness as truancy.

For questions regarding tardies contact school administration at 540-422-7430.

All documentation (medical, etc.) regarding a student's tardies and/or absence should be submitted to Mrs. Schmitz in the Main Office upon student's return to school.

Dawn Schmitz - Attendance Officer

Phone: (540) 422-7434

For information on school attendance, email Dawn Schmitz at dawn.schmitz@fcps1.org