Minutes 9.13.17/Agenda 9.20.17

Post date: Sep 22, 2017 5:41:46 AM

• • • Mod: Hello! Welcome to the 9th graders.

    • A-Mod: Committees met for the first time yesterday. If you didn’t go, understood because on short notice but make sure to attend all meetings on Tuesdays. If you cannot attend for some reason, reach out to committee chair. Every committee but OEC elected a chair.

    • Treasurer: Council fund = $6,584.29, but will go down $283.68 dollars for basketball hoop approved last year. Co-curricular fund = $5,700, unchanged.

    • DSB: Going to start committee looking at into possible later start times for next school year or year after. Want students on committee. Contact DSB if interested.

    • Secretary: No alternates can vote. Powerpoint on Council is on HHS Council website to view now.

    • Admin: Co-chairs: Romaney Granizo-Mackenzie & Clay Kynor. Read through bylaws. Bringing cell-phone motion soon that goes with discussion today.

    • Curric: Chair: Elizabeth Napier. Discussed goals for year and things achieved last year.

    • SAC: Co-chairs: Lois Schwarz & Tessa Stewart.

    • SL: Chair: Marion Umpleby. Discussed bringing Southegan High School to visit to get outsider perspective. Discussion about more communal spaces around the school.

    • OEC: No elected chair yet. Plan to hold New and Student Tuition elections next Thursday during Common Ground.

    • COI: Changes on course numbering that will be reflected on transcript for greater transparency of courses at Hanover High School. Each course will have different numbers based on how students took the course. Talked briefly about cell-phone use. Plan to bring motion to start new scheduling committee.

The Principal has a two week limit to respond to or produce a timeline of action in regard to a passed motion. This two week period begins when the Principal receives the “Council Passed Motion Form.” This form contains the wording of the motion and a space for the signature of the motion maker, the moderator, and the Principal, along with a space where the Principal will indicate the outcome and explain their motives. If the Principal decides they need more time to consider the motion, they must give a precise weekly timeline to the Moderator and Assistant Moderator. During weekly meetings with Administration, the Moderator and Assistant Moderator will confirm that the timeline is being followed, reporting progress back to Council. If the Moderator and Assistant Moderator decide that Administration is not attempting to make progress on the motion, they can choose to consider the motion vetoed. “

• • • With bylaw change, necessary to bring notification one week in advance to voting or discussion. Next week, bylaw change will be on agenda. Review this week in order to be ready to discuss and vote.

4. Attendance Policy

• • • Reason on GoldenRod allows for teachers to understand why student is missing school and adjust expectations based on reason.

“I move to divide the motion into everything excluding point three under Prior Notification  Absences / Planned Absences”

• • • Dividing motion allows for Council to pass rest of wording excluding point three, which most agree on. Can examine rationale for missing school under Goldenrod more closely after rest of motion is passed, which is the part that discussion is focused on.

    • Motion Passes

“I move to amend the HHS Handbook, Section V: Student Policies and Responsibilities, Attendance Policy to be the following:

Our first priority at HHS is education, either in the classroom or in other activities planned by

classroom teachers. Classroom attendance is the first expectation placed on students by parents,

teachers and administrators. A student in the classroom is part of the learning community. The

student owes it to themselves to be present.

• • Parents must report absences due to illness and must give permission for all other absences.

  • Absence from the classroom without parental or teacher approval is a cut.

  • Missed class time may impact a student’s eligibility to participate in their next Co-curricular event. Without a goldenrod or doctor’s note, a student that has missed class will not be eligible for Co-curricular activities, regardless if they are excused by a parent. Please see the Co-curricular Code of Conduct for more information.

  • If questions arise about how an absence or tardy should be counted, the decision will be made the Dean of Students. Decisions can be appealed to the Judiciary Committee.

Prior Notification Absences / Planned Absences

Notifying teachers prior to a planned absence encourages students to communicate proactively with their teachers. Students who complete the goldenrod process learn to communicate and manage time more effectively. As a result, student’s that have completed the goldenrod process are able to take part in their co-curricular activities.

In order to complete a goldenrod:

• 1. A student’s parent or guardian informs the main office of the absence indicating their approval.

  2. The student picks up the goldenrod form in the Main Office

  3. The main office receptionist checks off one of the reasons on the form:

     1. Family travel

     2. College visit

     3. Scheduled medical appointment

     4. Religious holiday

     5. Travel for non-HHS sports

     6. Bereavement

     7. Other (please specify)

  4. The student brings the goldenrod to teachers of the classes they are going to miss.

• • 1. Teachers must be given advance notice of an absence equal to the number of days a student will be missing

• 5. The student turns in the completed goldenrod form to the main office.

Day of Absence Notification

The parent or guardian will telephone the school by 8 A.M. The number is 603-643-3431, extension 3535. An absence will be considered a cut if a parent or guardian does not notify the school within 48 hours. If a student is in school and feels too ill to attend a class or scheduled obligation, the absence will be excused only if the student reports to the nurse, or to the Main Office if the nurse if unavailable. Failure to follow these steps equals a cut.

Lateness

A student is marked tardy if they arrive after the class’s starting time. Parents may call or send in a note to excuse a student’s lateness. Any tardy over fifteen minutes will be counted as an absence, either excused or unexcused.

• • Three tardies on a quarter are equivalent to a cut.

  • Any other penalties for tardiness must be stated in the teacher’s course standards.

  • If the teacher has not arrived fifteen minutes past the scheduled start of the class, students may leave the classroom.

Lateness caused by school travel

Students will still be eligible to participate in Co-Curricular activities if school-sponsored transportation returns students to Hanover after midnight. The guidelines are as follows:

• • Arrival 12:00 - 1:00 AM: Student may miss the 1st period class but must be in school for the 2nd period class.

  • Arrival after 1:00 AM: Student may miss the 1st and 2nd period classes but must be in school for the 3rd period class

Makeup Work

Absent students are responsible for asking the teacher what assignments or handouts they missed. Before a planned absence, the student will show the teacher a plan for making up written work that is missed, and the teacher must approve this plan. If the student takes a planned absence without a makeup plan, grades for late work may be reduced at the teacher’s discretion. The student must complete work missed due to their absence. The student will be allowed time equivalent to the number of days missed, unless the student and the teacher agree to other arrangements. Work assigned before the absence will be due on the scheduled date or on the day of return from the absence, unless the student and the teacher agree to other arrangements. In cases of family emergencies, illnesses, or other circumstances beyond the student’s control, deadlines for papers, tests, projects, etc. will be extended by arrangement between the student and the teacher. For example, if the student is absent due to illness and misses a two-day review for a test, he/she will have two days to receive and study the review material before taking the test.

NOTE: Individual course standards may contain additional attendance requirements.

Unexcused Absences / Cuts

Cutting a class at Hanover High School is a serious offense with serious consequences. An absence is considered a cut when it has not been excused by a parent, guardian or school staff.

Consequences for Cutting

• • The student will receive NO CREDIT for work done that day in the class(es) he or she missed. Any other academic penalty must be described in the class’s course standards.

  • The student will not be able to participate in that day’s athletics or in other co-curricular activities that have manageable attendance.

  • In a first instance, the Dean of Student’s Office will alert the student and teacher to the unexcused absence recording. The student will have a 24-hour period to resolve any misunderstandings with the teacher otherwise there will be a 5-day schedule up.

  • If the student cuts a second time, the Dean of Students will speak to the student and email the student’s parents to inform them that the student has been scheduled up for five school days. The Dean will remind them of the consequences for more cutting.

  • If the student cuts the class a third time, the student and the student’s parents will be notified and the student will be scheduled up for ten school days.

  • If the student cuts the class a fourth time, a hearing will be held to determine whether the student should remain in the course. The student, teacher, guidance counselor and parents will be invited to attend the hearing.

  • If the student cuts the class a fifth time, the student will be removed from the class with No Credit reported on the transcript.

Truancy

Truancy is defined as any unexcused absence from school. Ten half days of unexcused absences during a school year constitutes habitual truancy. A half day absence is defined as missing more than two, but less than three and half hours of instructional time. A full day is defined as missing more than three and a half hours of instructional time. X Periods are considered instructional time. For more information, please see Dresden School District Policy JH.

Excessive Absenteeism

Extended or persistent absences from class and school are detrimental and disruptive to the learning process and may have long term negative impacts on a student’s education. Chronic absenteeism also denies students the opportunity to participate in school activities and events, and other beneficial social interactions. Students, their parents and the school have an obligation to minimized a student’s absences from class and school.

In addition to the intervention process for addressing student truancy, the school shall also provide an intervention process for students who have extended or persistent excused and/or unexcused absences. When a student has ten (10) excused and/or unexcused absences in a school year the principal shall notify the student’s parents of the total number of absences during that period of time and provide a copy of Policy JH. Should a student have fifteen (15) absences within a school year the principal shall request a meeting with the parents and students. The purpose of the meeting will be to identify the reasons for the extended or persistent absences and to develop a plan to address the cause(s) of the student’s absences. When a student has a qualifying disability, the matter shall be referred to the appropriate education team. Should the intervention process fail to minimize or eliminate a student’s school absences and a student is absent for twenty (20) or more days within a school year, the principal, after discussion with the parents may seek intervention from appropriate state agencies, including court intervention. The procedures set forth in Policy JH to address student absenteeism shall be in addition to, and do not replace, any procedures required for identifying students with disabilities and providing those identified students with appropriate educational services. See Policies ACE-R and JQL-R. “

• • • Motion Passes

“I move to strike point three under Prior Notification  Absences / Planned Absences:

3. The main office receptionist checks off one of the reasons on the form:

• 1. Family travel

  2. College Visit

  3. Scheduled medical appointment

  4. Religious holiday

  5. Travel for non-HHS sports

  6. Bereavement

  7. Other (please specify).”

     • Can be helpful for teacher to see reason for absence of student, optional write-in could be alternative solution.

     • Any absence for any reason results in the same result: missed work.

“I move to amend the motion to read:

If a student chooses to explain their reason of absence, they can do so in the optional line provided.”

• • • If promoting independent students through open campus and free students, teachers should not collect phones. If students are to manage cellphones in free time, is own personal loss if on during class.

    • Many teachers this year have collected phones during class. Would like to see cellphones not being allowed to be present at all.

    • Although stopping personal cellphone use during class is important, should not be writing jurisdiction.

    • Helpful to have phones in location where teacher and student can both see cellphone, but not too easily accessible by student.

    • During lockdown, felt it was helpful to have phone in order to have parents.

    • Cultural change in classes occur by collecting cellphones.

    • Students texting during lockdown drill can perhaps cause issues: at previous school lockdown drill and students texting parents caused parents to cause safety hazard by showing up on campus. Students can create false hysteria through technology. Notion of safety can be seen from multiple perspectives.

    • Personal bin for individual students would be better idea than large bin.

    • Teachers should be more liable for lost cellphones and take more responsibility if taking student personal property

6. Meeting Adjourns