Welcome to E-LEARNING for the 2020-21 school year. Please take the time to read this email as it gives information regarding Attendance Policies for the next few weeks. Your daily online presence in all classes is imperative during the time we are all virtual. Being virtual gives you the opportunity to attend your classes when you may have otherwise not been able to attend in-person. You should not be using a cold/other minor illnesses, traveling, etc. as an excuse to not attend school. While we have been a bit lenient with the Attendance Policy in light of COVID-19, we will adhere to the Attendance Policy during our E-LEARNING days. Please refer to the 2020-21 Mercy Family Handbook & Code of Conduct for all attendance policies.

• Absences need to be called in to the Attendance Office at 248-476-2222 by 9am. It is not Ms. Kelly’s job to track down parents when you are absent. An absence not reported by a parent is a skip.  

REPORTING OF ABSENCE/LATE ARRIVAL/EARLY DISMISSAL: Parents are required to phone the school 248-476-8020, ext. 1616 by 9:00 a.m. or call the 24-hour attendance line at 248-476-2222 by 9:00 a.m. each morning of the student’s absence or late arrival. If an emergency arises during the school day, a phone call from a parent to the Attendance Office is required for early dismissal. A student must provide proper verification to the Attendance Office upon arrival after an absence, late arrival, or early dismissal. Examples of proper verification are, but not limited to, a doctor’s note, police ticket, or court documents.

• If a school or class absence is determined a skip, meaning there has not been notification by a parent/guardian, the following procedures will be followed:

School Truancy: When a school truancy is verified, the Attendance Office notifies the student’s parents. Any work or assessment missed on the day of truancy will receive an NCR and will be counted in the student’s final GPA. Disciplinary actions will be given for skipping school, which could include suspension.

Class Truancy: When a class truancy is verified, the teacher notifies the student’s parents. Any work or assessment missed on the day of truancy will receive an NCR and will be counted in the student’s final GPA. In the event of a third instance of verified truancy in that same class, the student may be dropped from the class. Skipping class will result in 2 JUGs.

• This week we will be evaluating the number of absences for all students over this semester. Any student with excessive absences will be notified.

As a reminder, here is Mercy’s Absence Policy:

ABSENCES: The school views any absence from class as a serious impediment to a student's education. Class attendance will be closely monitored. The Dean of Student Affairs will oversee this process. This process applies to non-school related absences.

Number of Days Absent Per Semester & Action Taken

• 1-4 class or daily absences: No action taken
• 5 class or daily absences: Email sent to student and parents/guardians
• 7 class or daily absences: Required student meeting with Dean of Student Affairs
• 9 class or daily absences: Required parent/guardian meeting with Dean of Student Affairs
• 10 class or daily absences: Email & letter sent to parents/guardians notifying that student has reached the allotted absences for the semester
• 11-15 class or daily absences: Automatic deduction of 5% from final grade
• 16-20 class or daily absences: Automatic deduction of 10% from final grade
• 21 or more class or daily absences: Student will receive NCR in each class and must earn credit by repeating the class or taking another similar class

Mercy's Administration reserves the right to make exceptions to this policy on a case by case basis, see Attendance Appeals.

Additional actions taken due to excessive absences may include:

• Loss of unscheduled time
• Loss of Senior Privileges
• Inability to submit missing work and/or make-up missed assessments, which could result in grade or credit loss

Ladies, we made it this far with our Hybrid Model! This temporary adjustment of moving to E-LEARNING is just that, temporary. Let’s finish first semester strong whether it is all online or hybrid. I know you can do this!