Attendance

Important Attendance Information

Absences/Tardies

• Students may not be checked out after 2:00 PM (11:00 AM on Early Dismissal Days)
• All absences must be reported by a guardian. Students are NOT allowed to call themselves in.
• To Report an Absence: Notify the Attendance Office via the online absence form for each day the student is absent, preferably before 11 a.m. On the campus website, click on the "Families" tab, then select the link "Absence Reporting."
• If a student leaves campus without permission, it will be an unexcused absence (No Exceptions).
• Doctor’s notes must be received at the attendance office within five (5) days of the visit.
• All tardies/absences are unexcused unless accompanied by:
  1. A doctor's note for a healthcare appointment
  2. A parent note or completed online absence form explaining your student's tardy/absence (reason must be in accordance with District Policy for Excused Reasons)
• Miller Students' absences must also be reported to this email: MCTCattendance@katyisd.org 

Attendance Errors/Corrections

• If you notice an error in your student's attendance, please contact the teacher first regarding a student's absence in class, especially if you have received an automated call from the district. Contact the teacher the same day, if possible. The teacher must notify the Attendance Office with the correction BEFORE any corrections can be made. 
• For healthcare appointments and teacher corrections, please allow 24–48 hours to update the system.
• Parents can access current attendance data via the Home Access Center or via the Katy OnTheGo Mobile app.

Student Pickup

• Students may not be checked out after 2:00 PM (11:00 AM on Early Dismissal Days)
• A parent or guardian must enter the building and present a picture ID to sign the student out.
• Please allow us at least 10 minutes to remove your student from class. To avoid a long wait, please send a note on the dismissal day. Your student must bring the note to the Attendance Office before the first period, where he/she will receive a pass to come to the Attendance Office at the specified time.
• For more details, see the Student Handbook.
• Only a legal guardian or emergency contact listed on the student’s information can sign out the student (see student handbook). If the student is being picked up by someone other than the legal guardian or emergency contact listed, the guardian must email the attendance clerk with the specific date/time/reason and name of the person picking up the student and provide a copy of their government-issued identification.

Students Who Drive to School and Need to Sign Out

• Students may not be checked out after 2:00 PM (11:00 AM on Early Dismissal Days)
• A note to the attendance office must be received to allow your student to sign out and drive off campus before the first period begins. We follow up on all such notes with a phone call to get verbal confirmation that the student has parent/guardian permission.
• Students must have a parent/guardian's permission before being allowed to leave campus, even if they are 18 years of age.

Compulsory Attendance Notifications (CAN Letters) 

• A CAN letter will be mailed when your student has one or more of the following, including full or partial days:
  • A student has three (3) or more unexcused absences in a four-week period.
  • A student has ten (10) or more unexcused absences in a six-month period.
• If you receive a CAN letter from the district, you have only five (5) school days to resolve it with the school attendance clerk. Unresolved CAN letters may result in a Court Warning Notification and/or subpoena.

Failure to Attend School Notifications

• A Failure to Attend School Letter will be mailed when your student has excessive absences for personal illness for one or more of the following, including full or partial days.
  • A student has eight (8) cumulative personal illness days in a six-month period.
  • A student exceeds five (5) consecutive personal illness days.
• If you receive this letter, all future absences require a statement from a physician or health clinic to be excused.
• Send a doctor's note, when possible, to avoid having too many personal illness absences. An excuse from a health care provider must be turned in to the attendance office within five (5) days of the student's return to school.

Exemptions

Please refer to the exemptions page for more details regarding attendance exemptions during semester exams.

Attendance for Credit

In addition to the statute related to compulsory attendance, a student must also be in compliance with the attendance for credit statute, which states that the student must be in attendance for at least 90% of the days a class is offered to gain credit or be promoted. All absences, excused and unexcused, are counted to determine attendance for credit. For each course/class in which a student falls below the 90% threshold, a review of the record will be conducted, and the student may be required to complete a plan created by the principal to gain credit or be promoted. Once a student falls below the 75% threshold, an Attendance Review Committee must meet to develop a plan for the student to complete to gain credit or be promoted. TEC 25.092 and Board Policy FEC (LOCAL).

Viewing your student's attendance records

To see absences for your student, go to Home Access Center and select the Attendance Tab. Days with absences will be color coded. To see detailed information, hover over the date to see the period and reason.

College or military visits

Students in 11th and 12th grade are allowed two (2) excused school days each year for college or military visits. The student is responsible for obtaining and completing a COLLEGE/ MILITARY VISIT FORM from the attendance office or from the campus website prior to the visit. Once the visit is complete and all signatures are obtained, the student must return the form to the attendance office, so the absence can be updated to be excused. A letter from the university visited is accepted in place of their signature on the form, but the form with other signatures is still required. The absence remains unexcused until ALL documents are signed and returned. ALL absences will count against exemptions. College and Military visits, more than 2, will count against 90%.

College or Military Visit Form