Is your student going to miss school? Call the Kennedy High School attendance office and leave a message at 319-558-2251, option 1. Note, with our new phone system, all voicemails are transcribed into emails which are quicker for our attendance staff to address. Utilize this system whenever possible.
If you need your student released from school, please call early and avoid lunch hours so we have time to send out the pass.
The attendance office is open Monday through Friday, 7:15 a.m. to 3:15 p.m.
Excused absences
Excused absences include:
• Illness
• Professional appointments (requires professional appointment excuse form, available in the attendance office)
• Prearranged college visits
• Court summons
• Bereavement
• Religious observance
• School-sponsored activities
Excused tardies include:
• Doctor/dentist/legal appointments
• Medical necessity
• Late bus
For pre-arranged absences, students must obtain the advance absence permission form from the attendance office. They must arrange for make-up work and get the teacher’s signature. Students must return the completed form to the attendance office at least 48 hours prior to the absence. This will constitute an excused absence.
Students and parents/guardians will be notified of each unexcused absence by a phone call. Students are responsible for having absences cleared through the attendance office. All work needs to be made up in any class missed.
All absences, excused and unexcused, will be reported by class period on all grade reports.
Consequences for tardies and absences
• Excessive absences are defined as five or more excused or unexcused days during a term. These absences will be addressed by our attendance facilitator and/or an administrator. Specific consequences will include after-school detention. It may also result in the student being dropped from the class. Hospitalization or extended illness under doctor’s care is considered as exceptions to this rule.
• Three unexcused tardies to class will result in a detention, assigned by school administration. Subsequent unexcused tardies will result in additional disciplinary consequences.
• For additional information, please refer to the parent student handbook.
Missing Assignments
Students who are absent from school for any reason will be expected to make arrangements with their teachers to make up missing assignments. Students may be able to access class assignments while away from the building. Contact teachers via email and check Google Classroom and Canvas.
Students who receive an unexcused absence WILL NOT be allowed to make up work, including tests, quizzes or projects missed during their absence.