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Excused Absences

In North Carolina every parent, guardian or custodian, having charge or control of a child under the age of 16 years, shall cause the child to attend school continuously while school is in session.  H.J. MacDonald Middle School has a duty to enforce the Compulsory Attendance Law, but the burden of proof for all absences lies with the parent, guardian, or custodian.  Student success is directly tied to classroom attendance and H.J. MacDonald Middle School is committed to ensuring the academic success of our entire student body.  Additionally, excessive unexcused absences can result in a Forced Failure, ultimately withholding credit for a completed course.

When a student must miss school, a validated email or written excuse signed by a parent or guardian must be submitted within 5 days of return to school.  Failure to submit within the required timeline may result in a delay or denial of the request.  Excuse notes will NOT be accepted beyond the last day of each semester.

For the 2024-25 school year, absence note submissions will ONLY be accepted via the Absence Note Submission Form.  Emails to school staff will be returned with instructions to submit via the online form.

As of January 25th, 2024, we are no longer accepting notes in physical form.  If a student has a physical note to submit, they will be required to scan a QR code in the Front Office, which will open a form to submit their absence note. Students will only be notified if the absence note is not accepted.  *This change has been made to meet digital filing requirements, allowing us to quickly identify and locate submitted absence notes.

Specific absence codes are authorized in accordance with NC State Board of Education and Craven County Schools guidelines. Please review the Attendance Homepage for more information and additional links to governing regulations. Please review the Unexcused Absence page for any event not covered below.

 An absence may be excused for any of the following reasons (click to expand):