Student Support Services

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Annual Notice 2024 - 2025

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Alternative Placement

How can a student get into an alternative program?

High school students are discussed and/or placed into alternative programs by the Alternative Placement Committee (APC) on a weekly basis.  Referrals to the APC are made through the onsite school counselor, school administrator, or through Student Support Services.  (The APC meets monthly to discuss and/or place middle school students.)

How can a student be enrolled in Homestead, Grs. K-8?

Students seeking entrance into Homestead School do not go through the APC.  Contact the Homestead program, Tera Shrum at  (805) 289-1893 ext.2916 for more information.  

Good attendance is essential  for school success.  Parents can help by promoting punctuality and regular attendance.  Medical appointments should be scheduled outside of school hours or on non-school days.

The parent must call the school as soon as possible, if a student is absent from school.  If the school does not receive a call or note from the parent, the school will notify the parent that the student is not in school.  High schools have an automated phone notification system.

EXCUSED absences include:

    •  Illness or quarantine

    •  Funeral attendance for an immediate family member (1 day if within California, up to 3 days for out of California)

    •  Court subpoena of the student

    •  Medical appointment of the student

    •  Religious holiday

    •  Illness of the child of a teen parent 

During excused absences, students will be allowed to complete assignments and tests that can be sensibly provided and completed in a reasonable period of time with full credit.

UNEXCUSED absences include:

    •  Family vacation on days when school is in session

    •  Late more than 30 minutes.  Three lates is considered truant.

    •  Personal reasons such as moving, car breakdown, family illness, etc. A principal may excuse an absence under some circumstances.

    •  Truancy - ditching or cutting class.

    •  Tardy

    •  Uncleared absence with no contact from the home

 Family vacations need to be scheduled for non-school days.  These absences are unexcused if they occur when school is in session.

After 10 days of consecutive uncleared absences, a student may be dropped from the school in which he/she is enrolled and could be at risk of losing his/her classroom assignment or place at the school.  

COMPULSORY EDUCATION

"Each person between the ages of 6 and 18 years not exempted under the provisions of this chapter or Chapter 3 (commencing with section 48400) are subject to compulsory full-time education.  Each person subject to compulsory full-time education and each person subject to compulsory education not exempted under the provisions of Chapter 3 (commencing with section 48400) shall attend the public full-time day school or continuation school or classes and for the full time as designated as the length of the school day by the governing board of the school district in which residency of either the parent or legal guardian is located and each parent, guardian, or other person having control or charge of the pupil shall send the pupil to the public full-time day school or continuation school or classes and for the full time designated as the length of the school day by the governing board of the school district in which the residence of either the parent or legal guardian is located."  

California Education Code §48200

Parent Connect

Parents can access their student's attendance daily on the internet using Parent Connect.  Contact you child's school to sign up and get an access code.  

Ventura Unified SD Board Policy §5131.2 (Bullying)

Bullying is defined as any severe or pervasive physical or verbal act or conduct, including communications made in writing or by means of an electronic act, as defined, including, but not limited to, sexual harassment, hate violence, or harassment, threats, or intimidation - while on school grounds, at a school sponsored-activity, while traveling to and from school, on a school bus, during any activity related to school attendance - that typically has the effect or can reasonably be predicted to have the effect of placing a reasonable pupil, as defined, in fear or harm to that pupil's or those pupil's person or property, causing a reasonable pupil to experience a substantially detrimental effect on his or her physical or mental health causing a reasonable pupil to experience substantial interference with his or her academic performance, or causing a reasonable pupil to experience substantial interference with his or her ability to participate in or benefit from the services, activities, or privileges provided by a school.

The electronic act is defined as the transmission of a communication, including, but not limited to, a message, text, sound, or image, or a post on a social network Internet Web site, by means of an electronic device, including, but not necessarily limited to, a telephone, wireless telephone or other wireless communication device, computer, or pager.

California Education Code §48900(r)

Engaged in an act of bullying.  For purposes of this subdivision, the following terms have the following meanings:

(1) "Bullying" means any severe or pervasive physical or verbal act or conduct, including communications made in writing or by means of an electronic act, and including one or more acts committed by a pupil or group of pupils as defined in Section 48900.2, 48900.3, or 48900.4, directed toward one or more pupils that has or can be reasonably predicted to have the effect of one or more of the following:  

(A) Placing a reasonable pupil or pupils in fear of harm to that pupil's or those pupil's person or property.

(B) Causing a reasonable pupil to experience a substantially detrimental effect on his or her physical or mental health.

(C) Causing a reasonable pupil to experience substantial interference with his or her academic performance.

(D) Causing a reasonable pupil to experience substantial interference with his or her ability to participate in or benefit from the services, activities, or privileges provided by a school.

(2) "Electronic act" means the transmission of a communication, including, but not limited to, message, text, sound, or image, or a post on a social network Internet Web site, by means of an electronic device, including, but not limited to, a telephone, wireless telephone or other wireless communication device, computer, or pager.

(3) "Reasonable pupil" means a pupil, including, but not limited to, an exceptional needs pupil, who exercises average care, skill, and judgment in conduct for a person of his or her age, or for a person of his or her age with his or her exceptional needs.

Resources

The purpose of home and hospital instruction is to provide instruction to a student with a temporary disability in the student's home or in a hospital or other residential health facility, excluding state hospitals.

A temporary disability is defined as a physical, mental, or emotional disability incurred while a student is enrolled in regular day classes or an alternative education program, and after which the student can reasonably be expected to return to regular day classes or the alternative education program without special intervention.

A temporary disability does not include a disability for which a student is identified as an individual with exceptional needs pursuant to California Education Code (EC) Section 56026.

Parent Information

For more information, please contact your school's nurse/health technician or counselor.

Student Support Services works with parents to help students achieve success by meeting with students and parents on attendance and behavior issues.  We coordinate the Parent Project, a parent education program that specifically targets the challenges of raising teens in today's world.   We can provide referral information to parents for community agencies who can also help.

Mental Health & Substance Use Information & Resources

Suicide Prevention - Policy & Regulation

Ventura County Public Health - full list of services