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Dear Vestavia Hills City Schools Families,
As we begin the 2026–27 school year, we want to share a friendly reminder about the importance of daily school attendance. Our shared goal is to help every student experience Learning Without Limits, and the best way to do that is by starting each day together in the classroom.
Why attendance matters
Attendance is required: Alabama state law requires every child between the ages of 6 and 17 to attend school for the entire length of the school term in every scholastic year. Academic success: Regular school attendance is 8 times more predictive of a student’s academic success than their test scores. Students who attend consistently build the knowledge and skills they need to excel. Building positive habits: Daily attendance supports responsibility, time management, and resilience — skills that last a lifetime.
How many absences are allowed?
The state and our school system use the following attendance benchmarks:
Chronic absenteeism: Students who exceed 18 absences in a school year (excused or unexcused) are considered chronically absent under state guidelines. However, Early Warning Referral can happen when a student has reached 7 unexcused absences. Parent-excused absences: Parents/guardians may write notes to excuse up to 10 days per school year. After that, additional absences must be excused with proper documentation (such as a doctor’s note). Written excuse policy: We will strictly enforce the policy that parents must provide a written explanation for excused absences to the school within three (3) days of the student’s return to school, or the absence will be marked as unexcused. An email from the parent will be accepted as a written excuse if it also contains a signature from the parent/guardian.
What kind of absences are allowed?
Absences will be permitted for the following reasons:
An illness affecting the student’s health or the health of others Students who are deemed ill by the school nurse Death of an immediate family member Students who are receiving healthcare, hospitalized, or are quarantined Legal obligations for students Observance of a religious holiday Military deployment date of a student’s parent Emergency conditions as determined by the school system
Thank you for making attendance a priority. When students are present and engaged, they thrive — and so does our entire school community.
Vestavia Hills City Schools
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