• Educational Trips and Absences

    EDUCATIONAL TRIPS
    If you are planning to take your child(ren) out of school for an educational experience, please complete the District’s Educational Trip Request form. Forms are available in the school office.

    Parents must provide information that substantiates the educational benefit of the trip. Additionally, students must have a record of satisfactory school attendance. Approval of such trips means that the student absences will be recorded as excused.

    Please note that no educational trips will be approved during the following weeks due to standardized testing:
    • March 4 - March 8, 2013 - Grades 1-2 Standardized Tests                     
    • April 8 - 19, 2013 - Grades 3 & 4 PSSA Testing Window                      
    • April 22 - 26, 2013 - Grade 4 PSSA Science

    ABSENCES
    Regular attendance is an important part of every student’s success and is necessary in order to gain attendancethe greatest benefit from the educational experience. Students who are frequently absent from school miss direct instruction and regular contact with their teachers, which may ultimately result in academic difficulty.

    ALL ABSENCES BEYOND TEN (10) CUMULATIVE DAYS SHALL REQUIRE AN EXCUSE FROM A PHYSICIAN.
    Upper St. Clair School District Policy 6008

    Current policy requires parents to send in a written excuse within three days of the original absence. If a written excuse is not sent, the absence is considered unlawful or illegal. After each of the first two unlawful absence parents will receive a letter notifying them of the unlawful absence. After the third unlawful absence parents will be asked to participate in a Truancy Elimination Plan (TEP). The plan is an attempt to remedy the attendance situation with both school district personnel and parents playing an equal part. If a child accumulates any additional unlawful absences after the TEP, we must, by state law,notify the district magistrate.

    Click here to refer to the Elementary Student Handbook for further explanations.