Attendance Policy
As an educational institution, Cardigan Mountain School offers a comprehensive program that best serves those boys and their families willing to participate fully in all facets of school life - academic, athletic, and residential.
Inherent to such a commitment is the logical necessity of attending and participating in all school days. The school takes attendance seriously and requires parents to provide information regarding absences, tardiness, and early departures. The school does not grant extended absence or early departure from school. The school realizes that situations arise in which students will need to miss school days for illness, family emergencies, or other pressing family commitments, and the Student Life Office will excuse absences when appropriate, not counting against a student’s attendance record. In order to minimize the impact of absences on a student’s progress, the school has established the following policy:
● In the case of any absence, early departure, or late return from breaks, it is the responsibility of the student and his family to contact attendance@cardigan.org. Parents must provide evidence of absence, tardiness, or early departure.
● For legitimate reasons, students will be allowed to apply for an excused absence (meaning that they will miss an academic, athletic, or residential commitment). This is above and beyond absences for illness or injury and the scheduled school visit days for ninth graders. The School will determine whether or not to approve an excused absence. When approved, students are responsible for informing their teachers, coaches, and dorm parents ahead of time. If a student is absent without school approval, the absence is considered unexcused.
● After six (6) unexcused absences (one full week of school), the school will evaluate a student's academic standing. Extended unexcused absences may affect a student's academic standing and jeopardize the school's ability to provide credit for the term in which the absences occurred.
● It is the responsibility of the student to obtain (in advance) and complete any academic work missed during an absence.
● Per the athletic section of the Student Handbook and our school philosophy on healthy adolescent/athletic development and commitment to team, Cardigan boys are required to attend all school practices and competitions and are discouraged from missing any school commitments to try out or compete for any type of outside tournament or select teams.
During the Day
To leave campus during the day with a family member––without missing any School commitments and not overnight––a student must receive permission from the administrator on duty (AOD). Once permission is received, the student must sign out of the dormitory, and they must obtain a job substitute if necessary.
If a student wishes to leave campus with another family, the student’s parents/guardians must email attendance@cardigan.org granting permission.
Open/All-In Weekends
We require students to remain with us the first three weekends, including registration, so that they fully acclimate to (and immerse themselves in) the community before spending overnights at home or elsewhere. These first three weekends of the school year are designated “all-in weekends.” This helps many students with bonding here and reduces homesickness in the long run. Following these initial weekends, other weekends are generally considered “open,” with the exception of the weekends immediately preceding and following the Winter and Spring Vacations. That said, parents are welcome to come to campus during that time (or at any time during the year) to say hello, watch a sporting event, join us for a meal, take their son off campus for a meal if his schedule allows, and the like. Again, finding the right balance in terms of frequency of visits may be key to helping your son adjust. Once weekends are “open” for overnight departure, a student may leave after his last commitment on Saturday and return in time for study hall on Sunday evening, signing out properly in all the appropriate places (e.g., the online “Weekend Away” form, dining hall) and with all the appropriate people (e.g., administrator on duty).
Scheduled Vacations
All students are required to check out with the AOD if they are traveling by car or taxi. Those traveling by school transportation will be automatically checked out.
Throughout the course of the year, Cardigan provides for substantial vacation time. As such, the School believes that students should meet all of their community responsibilities before departing for scheduled breaks. Consequently, students are required to attend all commitments prior to vacations, including sports awards and recognition assemblies. Following vacations, students must return to Cardigan on the appointed day.
Transportation
For most vacations, charter buses leave from campus to Logan Airport in Boston. Schedules and travel forms are available online. Travel forms must be returned to the student travel coordinator by the specified dates. Please communicate any changes in travel arrangements to the student travel coordinator as soon as possible.
Secondary School Interviews & Revisits
The School realizes the importance of allowing ninth-grade boys and their parents opportunities to visit secondary schools during the fall and winter. At the same time, Cardigan ninth graders are engaged in rigorous courses of study, in addition to many other on-campus responsibilities for which missing time is prohibitive.
Thus, the School approves the following times for ninth-grade boys to visit secondary schools during the fall and winter terms. Students are accountable for all academic work missed during secondary school visits.
- October 14, 2024: Founders’ Day/Sandwich Fair Day
- October 20-25, 2024: Fall Term Long Weekend (*Seniors depart after their last commitment on October 19 and they must return before their athletic commitment on October 25.)
Dates and times for interviews should be shared with the director of secondary school counseling in advance. Students will be expected to communicate with their teachers in advance of any missed academic commitments during these visits.
Regarding spring revisits, ninth-grade students may miss a maximum of two school days to attend events at schools where they have been admitted if a revisit is necessary for the boy’s decision process.
*Note: Students must secure permission from the director of student life if they wish to depart campus for any reason (other than those directly associated with Cardigan programming) during the academic year. If a 9th grade student wishes to depart campus for a secondary school visit, they must contact the director of secondary school counseling.
Special Trips
On occasion during school vacations, special athletic and extracurricular trips are available for students to attend on an optional basis. These trip expenses are separate from the School’s budget and are paid for by the parents of the boys who choose to participate. However, the School believes that cost should not hinder student participation and thus offers non-tuition financial aid opportunities for students as appropriate. In the past, these trips have occurred over the winter and spring breaks. On these occasions all school rules apply at all times unless otherwise stated. Further, should a disciplinary consequence received prior to the trip preclude the student’s ability to participate, the family will forfeit all non-refundable fees associated with the trip.