Overview

openSIS automatically calculates a student's Daily Attendance based on the attendance recorded for each scheduled class period throughout the school day. Instead of manually marking daily attendance, the system evaluates the total instructional minutes the student attended and compares those minutes against the attendance thresholds configured for the school.

These thresholds are defined in Settings > School > Periods, where administrators configure the Full Day Minutes and Half Day Minutes required for attendance calculations.

In certain situations, the automatically calculated attendance may not accurately represent the student's official attendance status. The Attendance Administration page allows authorized administrators to review the calculated attendance and override it when necessary.

How Daily Attendance is Calculated

Each scheduled course period contributes a specific number of instructional minutes toward a student's total attendance for the day.

For every school day, openSIS:

1. Calculates the total instructional minutes attended across all scheduled periods.
2. Compares the attended minutes against the configured attendance thresholds.
3. Automatically determines the student's daily attendance status.

The calculation uses the following settings:

• Full Day Minutes – The minimum number of instructional minutes required for the student to be considered Present for the day.
• Half Day Minutes – The minimum number of instructional minutes required for the student to be considered Half Day.

If the student's attended instructional minutes are below the configured Half Day threshold, the student is generally considered absent based on the attendance rules configured by the school.

Example

A student is scheduled for six class periods totaling 360 instructional minutes.

If the school's attendance settings define:

• Full Day Minutes: 300
• Half Day Minutes: 180

Then:

• A student attending 320 minutes is marked Present.
• A student attending 210 minutes is marked Half Day.
• A student attending 120 minutes is considered Absent.

Why Override Daily Attendance?

Although openSIS automatically calculates attendance, there are situations where an administrator may need to assign a different attendance code.

Common examples include:

• A student returns with a doctor's certificate after being marked absent.
• A previously unexcused absence becomes an excused absence.
• Administrative approval changes the attendance status.
• Attendance corrections are required after reviewing supporting documentation.
• Special circumstances require the attendance record to differ from the automatically calculated result.

Overriding daily attendance allows schools to maintain accurate attendance records while preserving the original period attendance entered by teachers.

Access Attendance Administration

1. Log in to openSIS with administrative privileges.
2. Navigate to Attendance.
3. Select Administration.

The Attendance Administration page displays the daily attendance calculated for students on the selected attendance date.

Filter Attendance Records

Use the available filters to locate attendance records quickly.

Attendance Date

Select the date whose attendance records you want to review.

Attendance Code

Filter students by a specific attendance code, such as:

• Present
• Absent
• Half Day
• Tardy
• Late
• Excused Absence
• Unexcused Absence

Additional attendance codes may be available depending on your school's configuration.

Search

Use the Search box to locate a student by name or other available search criteria.

Advanced Search

Select Advanced Search to further refine the displayed attendance records.

Understand the Attendance Grid

Each student record displays several attendance-related fields.

Daily Attendance (Based on State Code)

Displays the attendance status automatically calculated from the student's recorded period attendance.

This value is generated by the system and serves as the default daily attendance.

Override Daily Attendance

Allows administrators to replace the automatically calculated attendance with a different attendance code when appropriate.

The original calculation remains available for reference.

Comment

Click the Comment icon to record additional information explaining the attendance override or providing supporting notes.

Examples include:

• Doctor's certificate received
• Parent informed school in advance
• Medical leave approved
• Administrative correction

Providing comments helps maintain an audit trail for attendance changes.

Action

The Delete icon removes an attendance override and restores the student's attendance to the system-calculated value.

View Period Attendance Details

Administrators can review the attendance recorded for each class period before making changes to the student's daily attendance.

The period attendance window displays:

• Course section
• Class period
• Attendance code recorded by the teacher
• Comments entered during attendance
• Attendance history

Reviewing period attendance helps administrators determine whether a daily attendance override is appropriate.

Override Daily Attendance

To override a student's daily attendance:

1. Open the Attendance Administration page.
2. Select the attendance date.
3. Locate the student.
4. Review the automatically calculated Daily Attendance.
5. Select a new attendance code from Override Daily Attendance.
6. Add a comment if required.
7. Save the changes.

The updated attendance becomes the student's official daily attendance for that date.

Best Practices

• Allow teachers to complete period attendance before overriding daily attendance whenever possible.
• Review period attendance details before making administrative changes.
• Record comments whenever attendance is overridden.
• Use overrides only when official documentation or administrative approval supports the change.
• Periodically review attendance overrides to ensure attendance records remain accurate and consistent.