Pennsylvania law defines absences as excused when a student is prevented from attendance for mental, physical or other urgent reasons. Otto-Eldred School district consider illness, family emergency, death of a family member, medical or dental appointments, authorized school activities and educational travel with prior approval as the only lawful absences.
Below is clarification to the process to request an excused absence related to EDUCATIONAL TRAVEL:
-Requests must be received by the superintendent from the parent or guardian prior to the date(s) requested.
-Request must include educational value of absence, specifically, location the student be traveling and the activities that will take place that could be considered of educational value.
-Request must include the parent/student effort to gather missed classroom work in advance of the absence and a due date for missed work to be complete.
-A plan to share the educational trip with the student's class may also be included and would enhance the value of the educational trip.
-Additional information or clarification may be requested by the building principal or superintendent.
-Denied requests will result in an illegal absence for students under age 17 or a unexcused absence for students age 17 or older.
Request for educational travel can be submitted to either building main office or the district office. A response will be provided to parents within one week of receipt of request.