The bell schedule at WJPS is from 8:05 AM to 2:25 PM. The first period begins at 8:05 AM; Students who enter third period, which is from 9:42 AM to 10:28 AM, are marked present as if they were in first and second period.

This policy should be changed, seeing that it’s unfair to students who arrive on time to school and others who arrive periods late, but are still marked as present for the day. Students being marked as present if they enter third period can cause them to skip more frequently, which can affect their academics.

WJPS 11th grader Valery Cardona Caldron said, “I think they should be marked present for the whole day because for some people it can be hard for them to get here. At the end of the day, they’re here for more than half of the day.”

WJPS math teacher Mr. Suela said, “I agree in the sense of record keeping. This is preface to that we are taking attendance on Jupiter every period. Third period attendance is for New York State, so if a student is 90% absent, then they face Promotion in Debt (P.I.D.).”

A solution is requesting the New York City Department of Education to allow students to only be marked present if they enter school first period.