Attendance Procedures

The attendance line is open 24 hours a day, and it is the parent’s responsibility to report a student’s absence. The phone number for our Attendance Hot Line is (949) 936-8401. Please report known absences ahead of time. If possible, we ask that you call this number and report your child’s absence by 8:00 a.m. By doing this, we can avoid calling you at home or work to verify your child’s absence. It is necessary to include the following information:

• Student’s full name (spelling last name)
• Date of absence
• Specific reason for absence
• Teacher’s name/ Grade
• Name of parent/ guardian

Beacon Park and IUSD take student attendance very seriously. We believe that student success begins with daily attendance. As a result, we take steps to ensure that students attend school daily and that each student complies with school attendance laws and stipulations outlined in the California Education Code. The two basic attendance laws are:

• All persons 6 through 18 years of age are required by California State Law to attend school. Parents have a legal responsibility to ensure their child’s attendance. (Education Code Section 48200)
• A pupil is considered truant if he/she is absent for more than 3 full days in one school year without a valid excuse; tardy or absent for more than a 30-minute period during the school day without valid excuse on 3 occasions in one school year, or any combination thereof. (Education Code Section 48260)

Absences or tardies are only excused if the child is ill, is attending a funeral for an immediate family member, or involved in religious observance. In each case, documentation or proof may be required. Unless it is an emergency, it is recommended that medical and dental appointments be scheduled after school.

Soft Truancy includes, but is not limited to:

• Bringing a child late to school (less than 30 minutes).
• Picking up your child early for family outings, vacations, frequent medical appointments or business, or even trying to avoid traffic.
• Excusing a student as ill more than 10 days without medical verification.
• Frequent excused absences.
• Taking vacation during school.

As important as punctuality and attendance are to student achievement, children should not be sent to school ill. Children who come to the office with a body temperature of 100 degrees or above will be sent home and should remain home until a normal body temperature is maintained for 24 hours. You may contact the teacher directly and check the classroom website for assignments.

Should you find it necessary that students need to leave before dismissal time, they must be signed out in the front office by a parent, guardian, or other adult listed on the Emergency Information Card. Students will be only be released to individuals whose names are listed as contacts in the Parent Portal (http://myiusd.org ).

It is important that students arrive to school on time to minimize classroom interruptions, avoid unnecessary embarrassment, and encourage student responsibility. If your child is tardy to school, he/she must report through the front office to allow us to update our attendance records for that day. Consistent tardiness also impairs your child’s ability to perform well at school, disrupts other students learning, and will result in parent contact and appropriate consequences.

• After any unexcused tardy, the child is responsible for making up the lost instructional time.
• After the fifth unexcused tardy, the child is responsible for making up the lost instructional time. A letter will be sent home.
• After the tenth unexcused tardy, the child is responsible for making up the lost instructional time. A conference with the principal may be held. A second letter will be sent home.
• After the fifteenth tardy, the child is required to make up the instructional time. The student will be referred to the district’s School Attendance and Review Board.

In the interest of safety for our students, our campus is closed while school is in session. Any visitors must report to the Administration building to sign in through our automated computer system with a government issued ID. At that time, they will be issued a badge to wear, indicating to the students and staff that they are authorized to be on campus. The badge must be worn at all times when they are on school grounds.

All volunteers must complete an IUSD Volunteer Registration & Screening Information form prior to volunteering. The following link has the form that is completed once, and it only needs to be completed at one Irvine school. Once completed, you will be able to sign in at the front office to get a badge.

https://iusd.org/parents/parent-involvement/volunteers

• Please do not interrupt classes while in session. You will be asked to go to the office and sign in.
• All student information observed or obtained while providing volunteer service is to remain confidential. Adults who breach this confidentiality expectation or whose presence in the classroom proves otherwise undesirable will not be invited to return.
• Please recognize that when volunteering in the classroom, you are offering your assistance to the classroom teacher. If you are interested in observing in your child’s classroom, you are allowed up to three observations of no more than one hour each during the school year, per IUSD Board Policy. Please request your desired observation in writing at least two school days in advance.

The Beacon Park staff makes a concerted effort to establish a learning environment that is productive to the development of good study habits and uninterrupted academic learning time. We seek your cooperation and assistance in this effort. You can help us by:

1. Sending the teacher an e-mail and giving yourself some time should you need to pick up your child early. This will allow the teacher and office staff time to have your child prepared for pick up.
2. Avoiding calling school and leaving messages for your child, unless it is an emergency. The telephone is made available to students only for emergencies.
3. In order to establish student responsibility, please set up a system with your student that will eliminate disruptions in learning to deliver forgotten items. Parents bringing forgotten items to school should leave them at the front office and students can pick them up at appropriate times. Classes will not be interrupted to deliver forgotten items.

Illness

Children should not be sent to school ill in order to protect the health safety of others. If a child is ill or has a fever, please keep him/her at home. State law mandates that a child must be kept home until he/she is “FEVER FREE” for 24 hours without the use of medication. If your child vomits at home or school, they need to be symptom free for 24 hours before returning to school.

Students may not arrive at school more than 15 minutes early and should leave campus within 15 minutes of the final bell. Adult supervision is not provided outside these times.  

If a student needs to leave school before the end of the school day, the parent/guardian must come into the front office and sign him/her out. Students will be released only to those listed as an Emergency Contact and who are at least 18 years of age. Identification may be required. Please be patient and allow time while the front office locates your child (ex: at P.E., Science, etc.) so they can grab their belongings in their homerooms.  

Adults on Campus

To ensure student safety, all adults need to check in at the front office before entering the school campus. Parents/visitors need to sign in and wear a “Volunteer” or “Visitor” badge at all times while on campus.   

Forgotten items

In order to provide students with a consistent focus on academics, class times will not be interrupted.  Don’t interrupt the office or class for items forgotten by students. We know it may be uncomfortable for them to not participate in music for a day because they left their instrument at home, but it’s a good way for students to learn responsibility and planning.