Attendance

Consistently attending school is a crucial competent to all students feeling connected and successful in their academic pursuits. 

Absences: 

Please call 312-7551 and press "3" to report absences when your child is away from school. When you call, you will hear a brief message that will ask you to state your name, the student's name, the date(s) of absence, and the reason for the absence. If parents do not inform the office regarding absences, the school will attempt to contact the parent for verification. Unreturned calls will result in the student’s absence being marked “unjustified”.

Tardiness: 

It is very important that your child arrive at school on time so that s/he begins the day with the rest of the class. Students who arrive late for class need to check in through the office for a late arrival slip. Your child's attendance record will be changed from an absence to a tardy. Your child will be considered a “truant” if s/he is more than 30 minutes late up to 3 times, due to an unjustifiable reason.

Elective Absences: 

An elective absence is a day a child is not in school for a reason other than legally approved absences such as illness, appearance in court, funeral services for a member of the immediate family, etc. When your child takes an elective absence day, the District loses $30 per day per child. In the 2010-2011 school year, Beresford was responsible for at total loss to the district of $49,680.00 due to absences.

Unjustified Absences:

Your child receives an “unjustified absence” if s/he is not at school and it not because 1) s/he is ill; 2) s/he has a medical appointment; 3) s/he is absent due to a death in the family.  Family vacations result in an unjustified absence.

The District's Fiscal Advisory Committee has created an Elective Absence Fund. If you would like to make a voluntary donation of $27 per absent day, you may make a check payable to San Mateo Foster City School District and bring it to the school's office. All donations to the Elective Absence Fund are tax deductible to the extent provided by law. Please take advantage of our year-round calendar and schedule planned vacations during non-student days.