Elementary Attendance

About Attendance

Regular attendance is one of the strongest predictors of a student’s success in school. Students who are in class every day keep up with instruction, build relationships with teachers and classmates, and develop habits that carry into adult life. The North Schuylkill School District requires the attendance of all students on every day and hour that school is in session, and works with families to identify and address the reasons behind absences early.

This page explains how to report an absence at North Schuylkill Elementary (grades K–6), how PickUp Patrol handles late arrivals and early dismissals, which absences are excused, and what happens when absences become unexcused. The rules themselves are set by Board Policy 204: Attendance (opens in new window), which governs attendance for all students in the District.

Report an Absence

An absence is recorded as unexcused until the school receives a written excuse from a parent or guardian. Send an excuse in one of two ways:

• Email nseabsent@northschuylkill.net
• Send a handwritten note to school with your child

All excuses must be received within three (3) days of the absence. Every excuse should include your child’s name, the date(s) of the absence, the reason, and your name. If your child has a doctor’s note, you may email a photo or screenshot of it and keep the original for your records.

PickUp Patrol is for dismissal changes, late arrivals and early dismissals; it does not take the place of an excuse for an absence.

Questions? Contact Jamie Johnson, Attendance Secretary, at (570) 874-3661 ext. 3037 or jjohnson@northschuylkill.net.

PickUp Patrol

North Schuylkill Elementary uses PickUp Patrol (opens in new window) to manage changes to your child’s dismissal plan, so you no longer need to write notes or call the office. Use PickUp Patrol for:

• A late arrival
• An early dismissal
• A parent pick-up at dismissal
• Any other change to your child’s regular dismissal plan

All plan changes must be submitted through PickUp Patrol by 2:15 PM. Please do not send notes, emails, or call the office for dismissal changes except in an emergency.

Getting started

1. Register. Before the school year begins, and whenever a new family enrolls, the school sends a registration email with a link to create your password. The link expires in 48 hours. Returning families do not need to register again if their email address has not changed.
2. Get the app. Log in at app.pickuppatrol.net/parents (opens in new window) from any phone or computer, or download the free app for iPhone (opens in new window) or Android (opens in new window) and sign in with the same username and password.
3. Confirm your child’s default plan. A default plan is the regular dismissal plan your child follows each day, for example “rides Bus 1 every day” or “goes to aftercare Monday, Wednesday and Friday and is picked up Tuesday and Thursday.” Log in and confirm it before the first day of school so your child can be dismissed accurately.

Need help? See the PickUp Patrol Parent Registration flyer (PDF), or contact Jamie Johnson at jjohnson@northschuylkill.net or PickUp Patrol at support@pickuppatrol.net.

Excused and Unexcused Absences

Under Board Policy 204: Attendance (opens in new window), the following are considered excused (lawful) absences:

• Illness, including when a student is sent home by the school nurse for health reasons
• Medical, dental, or therapy appointments with a licensed health care provider
• Quarantine
• Family emergency
• Recovery from an accident
• Required court attendance
• Death in the family
• Participation in a statewide or countywide 4-H or FFA project, with prior written request
• Participation in a musical performance for a national veterans’ organization event or funeral, with a signed excuse from the organization
• Observance of a religious holiday, with prior written request
• Non-school-sponsored educational tours or trips, with prior approval (see Educational Trips below)
• Other urgent reasons, including circumstances related to homelessness, foster care, or other educational instability

Absences that do not meet one of the reasons above, or for which no excuse is received within three days, are recorded as unexcused. Families are notified promptly of each unexcused absence. An out-of-school suspension is not counted as an unexcused absence.

What kind of excuse is needed?

• Parent notes: A parent or guardian may excuse up to ten (10) absences per school year with a written note. Once a student has 10 absences, a doctor’s note is required for every absence after that. You can use the Excuse for Absence form (fillable PDF) or write your own note.
• Three or more days in a row: If a student is absent 3 consecutive days, a doctor’s note is required for it to be an excused absence.
• Doctor’s notes: The student must be seen by the doctor. Notes from a doctor stating that the student was not seen are not accepted.
• Death in the family: Please provide a copy of the obituary or the mass card (memorial card) from the service.
• Court: Please provide the note or documentation issued by the court.
• Medical appointments: Please provide the doctor’s note. A photo or screenshot emailed to nseabsent@northschuylkill.net is acceptable; keep the original for your records.

Late Arrival and Early Dismissal

Notify the school of a late arrival or early dismissal through PickUp Patrol by 2:15 PM. Walk your child to the main office on arrival, or sign your child out at the main office for an early dismissal. Children are only released to a parent, guardian, or adult listed on the child’s emergency contacts.

For an early dismissal you may instead send a note to the elementary office by 9:00 AM that morning with the date and time of dismissal, the reason, and your signature.

If your child arrives late from an early-morning appointment, bring the doctor’s note to the office on arrival so it is marked an excused tardy. After an early dismissal for an appointment, present the doctor’s note when your child returns to school. Without a note, the time missed is unexcused.

A student who arrives after 11:15 AM or leaves before 12:45 PM is counted present for a half day only. Five tardies count as a half-day unexcused absence.

Educational Trips and Planned Absences

Students and parents are encouraged to schedule educational trips and tours when school is not in session. Parents planning an educational trip while school is in session may request an excused absence if these conditions are met:

1. At least one week before the trip, the parent or guardian turns in the Educational Trip Request form (fillable PDF) to the principal’s office. Paper copies are available in the main office.
2. The student gives the form to each teacher to request the assignments that will be missed during the absence.
3. The parent or guardian accepts total responsibility for the student’s education during the absence.
4. A total of 10 days will be approved. The student must not have a record of excessive absences.

Educational trips are not approved during the first two weeks or the last two weeks of the school year. The excused absence for a trip is given when the student returns to school, and students are responsible for missed work.

Under Board Policy 204 (opens in new window), the trip must also be approved by the Superintendent or designee, and the adult directing and supervising the trip must be acceptable to the parent or guardian and the Superintendent.

See the Elementary Student Handbook (PDF) for more information.

Truancy Information

Pennsylvania law and Board Policy 204: Attendance (opens in new window) define a student as truant after three (3) unexcused absences in a school year and habitually truant after six (6). The District follows the steps required by law, which are meant to find and fix the reasons for absences rather than to punish:

• After 3 unexcused absences: The family receives written notice within ten (10) school days explaining the consequences of continued absences and the resources available to help. The notice may include an offer of a School Attendance Improvement Conference.
• School Attendance Improvement Conference (SAIC): A meeting with the student, family, school staff, and any helpful service providers to look at the reasons for the absences and agree on a written School Attendance Improvement Plan. The conference is held even if the family chooses not to attend.
• After 6 unexcused absences: Depending on the student’s age, the District may refer the student to an attendance improvement program or to Schuylkill County Children & Youth Services, or file a citation with the local magisterial district judge. No legal action is taken until an SAIC has been held.
• Students with disabilities: If a truant student may have a disability, the Director of Special Education and the appropriate team are notified so the student’s needs can be addressed.

The District does not suspend, expel, or reassign students for truant behavior.

Questions about truancy? Contact Kayla Rank, Truancy Prevention Specialist, at (570) 874-3661 ext. 2123 or krank@northschuylkill.net.

Attendance Forms

Return completed forms to the elementary main office.

• Excuse for Absence form (fillable PDF)
• Educational Trip Request form (fillable PDF)
• PickUp Patrol Parent Registration (PDF)