Attendance Information

Attendance Office Contacts

• Attendance Secretary: Valerie Friedman
• Email: AAI-Attendance@forsyth.k12.ga.us
• Phone: (470) 695-7823 x 571102
• Fax: (470) 695-7824

Student Check-Out

• Parent Walk-Ins: You may come to the Attendance Office to check out your student. Please have your government-issued photo ID ready; individuals checking out a student must be listed in Infinite Campus. There will be NO checkouts after 2:30 PM. Please plan appointments accordingly.
• Student Drivers: If it is necessary for a student to check out early, student drivers are responsible for submitting a note to the office before school starts and it must include a parent signature and cell phone number. Another option is to have a parent email the note to the front office (AAI-Attendance@forsyth.k12.ga.us). The note must include the student's name, date, time of checkout, and a parent/guardian phone number.
• Checkout Process: All check out notes will be verified via Infinite Campus before the checkout. We will then deliver a checkout pass to the student's class. It is the student’s responsibility to come to the front office at their designated checkout time. We will not be calling classrooms to locate students this year.
• Skipping: Students who do not formally check out with the Attendance Office before leaving campus will be considered skipping.

Student Check-In

• Students may check themselves in without a parent present.
• Upon arriving late to school, students should report directly to the Attendance Office to check in and receive a pass to class.
• Notice for Student Drivers: You may lose your campus parking privileges if you are late to school on more than nine (9) occasions.

Reporting an Absence

A note must be submitted within five (5) school days for a student’s absence to be excused. Notes can be emailed to AAI-Attendance@forsyth.k12.ga.us. If emailing is not possible, you may send in a written note or fax it to (470) 695-7824. All attendance notes must contain the student's name, the date(s) of the absence, and the reason for the absence. The principal may require appropriate medical or other documentation upon return to validate excused absences.

Hospital Homebound Service

In cases of extended illness, hospitalization, or injury, parents should apply for hospital homebound services. This service should be applied for immediately when absences of ten (10) or more days are anticipated.

Excused Absences

As permitted under Georgia compulsory education law and Forsyth County Board of Education policy, students may be excused for the following reasons:

• Personal illness or attendance in school that endangers a student’s health or the health of others.
• A serious illness or death in a student’s immediate family.
• A court order or an order by a government agency, including pre-induction physical examinations for the armed forces.
• The observance of religious holidays.
• Conditions rendering attendance impossible or hazardous to student health or safety.
• A scheduled medical, dental, or eye exam for the student.
• Registering to vote or voting.
• Visiting with a parent or legal guardian who is in military service and has been called to duty or is on leave from overseas deployment to a combat zone. (Maximum of 5 days per school year).

Please Note: Non-school-related activities and vacations are considered unexcused absences.

Consequences of Excessive Absences

If a student has excessive absences, early checkouts, and/or late check-ins, the student and/or the parent may be referred to the School Social Worker, Juvenile Court, State Court, and/or the Department of Family and Children Services. A parent or guardian who violates the compulsory education law shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction, shall be subject to a fine ($25.00 - $100.00), imprisonment not to exceed 30 days, community service, or a combination of penalties. Each day’s absence from school is considered a violation.

Juniors and seniors may visit colleges during the school year for no more than 4 days per year. College visitations will be considered field trips, provided the student supplies proper documentation from the visited school.

Visitation Process

• Before visiting a college, students must download the College Visitation Form 
• Have the form signed by their teachers, the assistant principal or principal, the school counselor, and a college representative at the time of the visit.
• Forms must be returned to the Attendance Office within five (5) school days following the visit for the attendance to be coded as excused.