This is the time of year when two seasons converge: the holiday season and cold and flu season! So there are two considerations regarding attendance that need to be mentioned. One is our request that when students are ill, they stay home. While we always want our students to be at school, we also want to minimize the spread of viruses across campus. An ill student can infect many classmates and teachers. Some schools across the country have already had to close their doors to try to contain the spread of the flu. And you may have heard that the 2014 flu shot has limited effectiveness because of the particular viruses this year. Absences due to illness are unavoidable. That’s one reason that regular attendance when you’re not sick is so important.

Which leads to the second attendance issue we would like to address; the temptation to extend the regular school holiday break by a few extra days. Sometimes it’s hard to fit travel or family plans within the allotted vacation time. We understand how that happens, but of course we encourage you to make every effort to schedule travel and family obligations within the school vacation time. Even a few extra days away from school can impact a child’s academic progress, especially for struggling students.

Attendance issues aside, however, we wish all our wonderful Liberty families a safe, healthy and happy holiday break!