LINN  — Linn R-2 administrators presented faculty and building-level handbook changes to the board at the July meeting. No action was necessary, but board members were supportive of the additions and changes.

Faculty handbook changes include the following: absence requests will not be approved for the last day of school or on any planned PD day. Absences during the month of May will only be allowed under extreme circumstances. Probationary teachers will be notified of the school board’s intent to re-employ them by written notice on or by April 15. Permanent teachers will be provided with an indefinite contract as provided by state statute.

• High school handbook changes included several additions as follows.

— If a student has eight absences, there is a mandatory appeal of credits, with the following addition: The appeal form must be turned in within seven calendar days of the eighth absence, or all credits to appeal will be automatically lost. The Missouri Children’s Division may be notified.

— Attendance appeals: When a student has reached eight absences in one hour, the credit for that hour is eligible to be denied due to the student not attending class. In this case, the student must complete the appeals process.

1. The student is notified that they have eight absences and informed that they will need to appeal their credit. A letter is also sent to parents so they are aware that their student must appeal.

2. The student must write a letter explaining why they were not in attendance and why they should receive credit for this course. Parents, counselors, or other important individuals can also write letters on behalf of the student.

3. The appeals committee meets the last week of each semester to review all documentation (attendance, grades, letters, etc.) relative to a student’s appeal. The committee consists of high school teachers. The counselor and principal will be in attendance for this meeting but are there only for information purposes and do not have a vote on the appeal. The committee will discuss the appeal and make a decision on the student’s credit. Possible actions could include but are not limited to fully restored credit and probation for the following semester - the student must not have to appeal the same hour the following semester.

4. After the decision is made, the student will meet with the principal to explain the outcome. A letter explaining the outcome is also given to the student and sent to the parents.

5. If a student loses credit, this will be marked as “No Credit” on their transcript and will affect the student’s GPA. If the course is required for graduation, the student must retake it. 

— Freshmen and sophomores can complete credit recovery during the summer or in summer school.

— To be nominated for King/Queen/Prince/Princess Candidate, students must not be a previous winner of  Prince/Princess during their high school career, and may not be a previous winner of King/Queen during their senior year.

— High school students may earn an exemption from taking finals by meeting the following criteria: have a 95% or higher and no more than four absences that semester, a 90%-94% with no more than three absences that semester, or an 85%-89% and no more than four absences that semester.

— Academic dishonesty refers to any form of cheating that occurs in relation to a formal academic exercise. It includes, but is not limited to, submitting another student’s work as your own or allowing another student to copy your work and submit it as their own; copying text, ideas, or other content directly from the internet or any other source without proper citation and without paraphrasing it into your own words, thereby presenting it as your original work (plagiarism), and misuse of Artificial Intelligence tools to generate assignments, essays, or other academic work and submitting it as your own without proper disclosure or attribution, thereby misrepresenting the work as a product of your efforts and understanding.

• Middle school handbook changes included several additions as follows.

— Students can still turn an assignment in up to three days late for partial credit: one day late (25% off assignment grade), two days late (50% off assignment grade), three days late (75% off assignment grade), and four days late (0% on assignment).

— Being sent home from school by the nurse is an unverified absence. To be verified, the student must bring in a doctor’s note when they return to school.

— Buses are provided for students to ride to and from school. Students can have one morning bus route and one afternoon bus route. These routes can be the same or different. These routes must remain the same throughout the school year. Changes cannot be made for a student to ride a different route unless the student changes their residency. Students may only get off at their designated drop-off location. A student cannot get off at another stop, even if (they are) riding the same bus. If a student cannot ride home on that route, parent pick-up must be arranged. Students must always ride their assigned bus. Students are not allowed to ride home on the bus with other students, even if parents give permission.

— All participants are required to ride school-provided transportation to events; exceptions to this policy include participating in one school-sponsored event and requiring additional transportation to another school-sponsored event. In this circumstance, participants and parents or guardians must discuss this process with their coaches and the administration at least 24 hours before the events. Additional circumstances will be handled on a case-by-case basis.

All participants are encouraged to ride the bus home from events (games, tournaments, competitions) as this is a great time for team bonding (win or lose). If it is necessary for a participant to ride home from a game or tournament with a parent/guardian or person listed in Infinite Campus (IC), the required process will be as follows: 1) In the spirit of a collaborative partnership, Linn R-2 asks that the parent or guardian of the participant give advance notice to the head coach and administration by emailing or messaging them through district-approved communication tools, requesting to transport their child home after the competition.

2) The parent/guardian, or person listed in Infinite Campus (IC), must sign the participant out with their coach before departing the event.

Exceptions to number one will be handled on a case-by-case basis, but examples may include but are not limited to, participant injury, family emergency, game delay, etc.

When giving advanced notice for alternative modes of transportation, we ask the parent/guardian to include event details, contact information, and emergency contacts.

The parent, guardian, or person listed in IC providing transportation must meet driver requirements, including possessing a valid license, adequate insurance, and a suitable vehicle.

This policy strictly prohibits transportation being provided by siblings, friends of the student, or any other individuals who are not the student’s parent or guardian unless they are listed as an emergency contact (household or non-household) in IC or Linn R-2’s management database.