chsattendance@colliervilleschools.org

Attendance and Participation in School Activities
Regular attendance is essential for academic success and school engagement. Only absences that meet state-approved criteria will be excused. Students with unexcused absences totaling 10% or more of the school year (up to the date of an event) will not be permitted to participate in certain school activities.

Key Attendance Cutoffs for Major Events:
 

• Homecoming (September 27, 2025):
   Students with 4 or more unexcused absences by September 19, 2025, may not attend.
• Prom (April 25, 2026):
   Students with 16 or more total absences (excused or unexcused) by April 13, 2026, may not attend.
• Graduation (May 8, 2026):
   Seniors with 17 or more total absences (excused or unexcused) by May 1, 2026, may not participate.

Appeal Process
Students who believe their absences were misclassified or who have extenuating circumstances may submit a written appeal. Appeals must be submitted to the Attendance Office at least five school days before the event. Appeals should include:
 

• Supporting documentation (e.g., medical notes, legal documents)
• A brief written explanation

The principal will review each appeal and notify the student of the decision.

Every parent and student should review the Tennessee Department of Education's definition, rules, and guidelines as it pertains to Chronic Absenteeism and how it impacts our school district and each individual school. 

Please help us support your student’s success by encouraging consistent attendance. If you have any questions, feel free to contact the school office.

Full Day Absence

1. If you have documentation for the absence (parent note or doctor’s note) send it in with your student to the attendance office within two days of their return.
2. After 8 total absences, the student will be required to produce a doctor’s note to excuse any subsequent absences.

Student Checkout

1. There are absolutely no checkouts after 2:00 pm
2. A parent or guardian must come to the attendance office to check their student out.
3. Written or email permission for students to check themselves out of school must be received before 7:30 am on the day of checkout. Last minute emails will not be accepted. 
4. We do not accept phone calls as permission for a student to check themselves out. Students must be aware of their self-checkout permission and come to the office before the start of class to receive a pass to exit class.
5. All students must check out through the attendance office. Failure to do so could result in a disciplinary consequence.
6. We will not call into a classroom to excuse a student unless there is a parent or guardian in the office. Genuine emergencies will need approval from a CHS administrator.
7. A new permission note must be given for each day that a student is checking out.

Illness During the School Day

If a student becomes too ill to stay at school, it is required that the parent or the parent's designee come to the Attendance Office to sign out the student. For their safety, students too ill to stay at school cannot leave school based on a phone call, email, fax, or note. No exceptions.

Late Arrival – students arriving after 7:40

Students who enter the building after 7:40 must check in through the Attendance Office.

College Visits

1. 9^th-12^th grade students are allowed 3 college visits per year. The college visits will be counted as field trips with proper documentation turned in to the Attendance Office. 
2. At least 2 days before the scheduled visit, students must print and complete the College Visit form below with the signature of their counselor, one parent, the attendance office, and each of their teachers.
3. Upon returning, you must submit a letter from an official of the college you visited with your name on it along with the form you had signed before the visit to the Attendance Office. Failure to return both of these items will result in an unexcused absence.

• College Visit Form

Make up work

In the event of an excused absence, students are expected to make up missed work within a reasonable amount of time as determined by the school policy, with a minimum of one day allowed per day absent.  

In the event of an unexcused absence, students may make up missed work for a maximum of 75% credit. Work must be completed within a reasonable amount of time, with a minimum of one day allowed for each day absent.  

Final Exams

Any student may be exempt from a course’s final exam if: 

1. The student has a ninety percent (90%) or higher final average.
2. The student has no more than 3 excused absences in a full-credit course or no more than 2 excused absences in a half-credit course. Three (3) unexcused tardies to the course equal one unexcused absence.

Any unexcused absence disqualifies the student from exemption. Religious holidays and excused postsecondary travel days will not count against the exemption status of the student. 

Exemptions only apply to teacher-made final exams.  

Per Collierville Schools policy, final exams count for 15% of a student’s final course average. When a student is exempt from the final exam, the final average will be the average of the two (2) term grades for full-credit courses or one (1) term grade for half-credit courses.