Students skipping classes has been an ongoing issue that has continued to get worse in my years at CHS. Many question the consequences of skipping and whether or not the policies will change.

“We have a high rate of absenteeism,” stated principal Mairi Scott-Aguirre. “Skipping is way too common.”

Currently, the consequences that are in place for an unexcused absence (skip) are a phone call home and a lunch detention. However, at times, it’s hard to keep track of every student, considering that some students have late arrival/early dismissal or an off campus pass, said Scott-Aguirre.

While there was an attendance committee in place this spring, as far as the changes that are being considered to improve the rate of absenteeism, nothing is concrete yet.

Scott-Aguirre remarked, “I don’t know yet. Maybe checking better and tightening it up more.”

Although the consequences of skipping have not changed significantly within the past few years, the consequences of skipping should increase. This would result in the motivation for school increasing while also keeping the building more secure.

Creating a system that can track students better while also keeping the school safe would be the best option. If the security guards were to have a more efficient system that would have easy access to students’ attendance, students could return to classes and attendance could be tracked more effectively.

Ultimately, more students would graduate if they were to attend classes more regularly. Students struggle to makeup the material that they missed, which can lead to more issues and stress, when they miss class.  This is a serious issue that needs to be addressed.

While many consequences of skipping are short-term, many are long term also.

Each class at a college costs approximately between $50 and $150; by skipping, money is essentially thrown away from students’ education. If students get used to skipping in high school, by the time they get to college, skipping might become a norm.

If the consequences of skipping were to increase, the school would have the potential to become safer and benefit students in multiple ways.