Attendance Secretary: Ms. Audrey Irons
Telephone: 301-649-8166
According to Maryland law (7-301: Compulsory Attendance), every child between the ages of 5 and 16 must attend school. Maryland recognizes home instruction as an alternative to public school enrollment as a means of meeting the compulsory school attendance law (Read more on home schooling).
Students are expected to attend classes unless they have an excused absence. Attendance will be reported to parents on report cards. According to Northwood's procedures, if a student is absent from school, the school will follow up on the absence through an automated calling system that contacts parents to alert them about the absence. If students are late, they may received an after school tardy detention.
Students may miss school for the following reasons:
- Death in the immediate family
- Certified illness of the student
- Court summons
- Observance of religious holiday
- Hazardous weather conditions (Conditions that would endanger students on the way to or from school; the Superintendent decides whether the weather is hazardous.)
- State emergency
- Lack of authorized transportation (i.e. a student's bus doesn't show up)
- Permission from your principal
If a student misses school for any of the reasons listed above, he or she must bring a note from his or her parent our guardian within three school days after the student's return to school. Otherwise, the absence will be considered unexcused. If a student it 18 or older or married, he or she may write the note.
Dr. Johnson may allow students to miss school for work or another activity if the student's parent (or the student, if the student has reached the age of majority) has asked permission five school days in advance.
Dr. Johnson will usually excuse students if they miss school due to one of the following reasons:
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Visiting a college campus
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Participating in a college orientation program
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Interviewing for a job
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Working as part of an approved cooperative education program
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Participating in short-term, full-time work
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Participating in a school-sponsored activity
Family vacations are not usually excused. lf unusual circumstances arise, however, Dr. Johnson may excuse the absence.
Unexcused Absences
An absence that is not excused according to the above conditions is an unexcused absence. If you are late to class three times without valid excuses, that counts as one unexcused absence in the class. If you miss a day of school and are not excused, you will have an unexcused absence in each class you miss. When you have five unexcused absences in one class, you will not get credit for the class that semester. For the third unexcused absence, a loss of credit (LC) letter is sent as a warning. For the fifth unexcused absence, the school informs you and your parents that you will lose credit for the semester. You will receive an LC and will not receive credit for the semester.
Tardy Policy
Three unexcused instances of tardiness equal one unexcused absence. Any unexcused tardiness will result in a tardy detention (2:30 - 3:30 PM) which will be served the day of the tardy, Monday through Friday.
Loss of Credit and the Appeal Process
If you have five unexcused absences in a class, you will lose credit for the class and receive a failing grade for the semester. For the marking period in which you lose credit, a failing grade will be used in calculating your marking period average. The failing grade will be counted in your grade point average. If you lose credit in a class, you may petition the teacher to restore credit. Your guidance counselor can help you do this.
To petition for restoration of credit, tell your teacher, in writing, the reason why you think you should get credit and how you propose to earn it. The teacher will look at your reasons and make a recommendation to your administrator, who will then decide whether to restore your credit. If you still are denied credit, you then may petition your administrator directly. Give him/her your reasons in writing and he/she will respond within ten days.
