Attendance

The School District of Springfield Township has a strong commitment to fostering student achievement and partnering with families to promote student success.  We want your child in school and learning every day.  Families are bound and required by law to ensure that their children are present every day during the school year except for the legal exceptions cited below.

If your child will be absent from school, please email the attendance office and include your child’s full name and grade in the subject line as well as a reason for absence, citing one of the approved reasons.  Email is the preferred method for communicating an absence as your email serves as the required documentation to excuse your child’s absence (pending approval).

However, if you do not have access to email or need a last minute early dismissal, please call.  If you do call to report a child’s absence, please note that a written note must be provided within 3 days of your child’s return to school in order to mark the absence as excused.  

Excused Absences

All students have 10 non-consecutive school days that may be excused by a parent/guardian note for one of the following reasons:

  • Illness (physical or mental)
  • Observance of religious holidays by a bona fide religious group
  • Family Emergency, including death in the family
  • Impassable Roads
  • Recovery from Accident
  • Family Educational Travel, Tours, and Trips (See procedures below)

*Nurse dismissals during the school day are automatically coded as an excused absence. 

Students who are absent for more than 3 consecutive days for a physical or mental illness require a doctor’s note. The district offers support to students who have a documented medical condition that requires them to miss school for an extended period of time.  

  • Educational Hospitalization- students who are currently in the hospital for physical or mental treatment and are not able to attend school may be eligible for educational services.  Please contact your child’s counselor for additional information and to excuse your child’s absence.
  • Intermittent Absences- students who require on-going care and miss school frequently due to appointments may be eligible for an excused intermittent absence.  Please contact your child’s counselor for additional information.
  • Homebound Instruction- students who are unable to physically attend school related to a physical illness for a period over two weeks and less than six weeks may be eligible to receive homebound instruction.  Please contact your child’s school counselor for more information.

Students may also receive an excused absence with a note for one of the following reasons:

  • Quarantine (must provide documentation from the Office of Public Health)
  • Required Court Appearance (must provide court documents or subpoena)

Once a student reaches 10 days of absences in a given school year, families must submit a doctor’s note for each subsequent absence.  Absences without a doctor’s note will be considered unexcused.  

Please note, attendance at all athletic events, activities, and after school events is governed by the Student-Athlete Family Handbook.  

Reporting Absences

To report an absence to your child's school, please email and include your child's full name and grade in the subject line as well as a reason for your child's absence citing one of the approved reasons.

Note:  If you email, you do not have to call the office.

If you choose to call the office or are in need of a last minute early dismissal, please dial:

  • Enfield: 215-233-6080
  • Erdenheim: 215-233-6085
  • Middle School: 215-836-3006
  • High School: 215-233-6030 (Option 1)

 If you choose to call, you must follow up with an email or a written note within 3 school days for the absence to be excused.