Did You Know Attendance Matters? School attendance leads to Lower chance of drop out, greater earning potential. and better time management habits for the workplace. Every day counts!

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4 Ways to Encourage good school attendance

Attendance

Modesto City Schools: Where Every Day Counts

This year, Modesto City Schools has gladly joined our County in the Every Day Counts attendance campaign.  Our District goal is a 96% attendance rate at all of our school sites.  Your schools and the District will continue to promote positive attendance through acknowledgment and reinforcement.  Sites will provide recognition for perfect and improved attendance efforts.  Listed below is information regarding attendance.   It is imperative for our families to verify all absences.  It is equally imperative to report to your schools any barriers you face in getting your student to school on-time daily.  Working together we can ensure your student excels while in Modesto City Schools.

What does the law say about school attendance?

Compulsory attendance is required by California Education Code 46010 and mandates that all students ages six through 18 attend school regularly. A student with three or more unexcused absences or tardies in excess of 30 minutes violates this code and is considered a truant. Districts are required to refer habitually truant students to the School Attendance Review Board (SARB) for remediation. If the student continues to miss school after attendance at SARB, the student and/or parents will be referred to the District Attorney for prosecution.

Why is it important to attend school?

Every day counts in a child's education. Each day a student misses school, he gets more than two days behind his peers because he must make up missed learning and catch up with new learning at the same time. Every day a student is in school, she raises her chance to score well on tests. Every day a student goes to school, he learns a little more about responsibility.

What does Modesto City Schools District do to prevent attendance problems?

  • Phone calls to verify absences.

  • Home visits to discuss attendance problems.

  • Letters to notify parents of excessive absences.

  • Student/parent meetings with administrator or attendance liaison.

  • School Attendance Review Board (SARB) hearing

  • If all else fails, referral to District Attorney.

What can parents do to prevent attendance problems?

  • Stress with your child the importance of regular school attendance.

  • Teach your child to be on time for school each day.

  • Maintain reasonable and regular bedtime hours on school nights.

  • Schedule doctor/dentist appointments before or after school hours.

  • Bring your child to school before and/or after daytime doctor appointments.

  • Plan family vacations when your child is off track.

David Houck
Senior Director, Child Welfare & Attendance
Houck.D@mcs4kids.com
(209) 574-1595

Frequently Asked Questions

MCS Junior High School Attendance Challenge. The schools have spoken. The challenge is ON!
RJHS is officially in a monthly attendance competition with La Loma, Hanshaw and Mark Twain! Roosevelt daily attendance is at 94.04% and La Loma is at 95.46%. RJHS Students - show up every day, on time, because EVERYDAY COUNTS!
Beard Elementary Flag with 'Perfect Attendance #1' written on it
Rose Avenue poster depicting attendance percentages per grade level and overall.
Everett Elementary School, group photo of students attending school on the first day
Everett Elementary School, group photo of students attending school on the first day
Everett Elementary School, group photo of students attending school on the first day
Franklin Poster - 'Our class has Perfect Attendance today!'

Principal Butler emphasizing the important of daily attendance for the Hanshaw Titans.

Rose Avenue students receiving a free kids cone ticket for Baskin Robbins for achieving 81% attendance rate on the first week.

GREAT job Rose Ave! What a great way to start our school year. Excellent job families on getting 81% of students ON TIME! We celebrated by awarding 419 students with Baskin Robbins certificates for a kids cone! Enjoy your special treat and keep it up Rose!

Robertson Road News - August/September 2023 Edition - Dear Rob Road Families, Welcome to a new school year! As the new principal, I feel fortunate to be part of the Rob Road community. The first few weeks have been wonderful! We are excited to provide an exceptional educational experience for your children. The staff worked really hard to provide a welcoming environment for all of our students. Students have done an excellent job learning the expectations and they are already in a routine that will provide a year of success. This month, our attendance rate was close to 96%. Our goal is to have every student attend school every day. Please help us get each student to school on time and remain here the whole day. If a student is absent, they miss out on critical learning. We also need your support in helping our students read. Find opportunities for them to read to you and you to them. Also ask your students about what they learned at school. I invite you to get involved at Robertson Road. You are welcome to participate in the School Site Council, 2nd Cup of Coffee, and ELAC. Thank you again for your support. We can work as a team to ensure your student's success. Guillermo Lopez, Principal.

Rob Rd alerting parents of the importance of daily attendance and PBIS incentives

Lakewood Principal and staff members in office

Lakewood Staff and Administrators celebrating their attendance victory over Enslen and Rose Avenue

Kirschen Principal Millie Jackson celebrating the classes where students demonstrated their perfect attendance.

Kirschen Principal Millie Jackson celebrating the classes where students demonstrated their perfect attendance.

La Loma Principal and staff member in office with Trophy

Principal from La Loma and an office staff member receiving the coveted MCS attendance trophy. La Loma beat Roosevelt, Hanshaw, and Mark Twain for the month of September