CLC’s attendance policy should measure commitment, not circumstance

“Attendance is a Must” by NA.dir is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

It is 7:30 a.m., and I am already faced with a decision: do I go to class and risk being late to work, or skip class, take the attendance penalty, and make it to my shift on time?

For many students at College of Lake County (CLC), this is not an occasional dilemma. It is a daily reality. Yet despite how common this struggle is, attendance policies often treat every absence the same, deducting points regardless of the circumstances behind it.

Attendance policies at CLC should be more flexible and consistent across the board, rather than left entirely to individual instructors. These policies need to reflect the complex lives students are actually living. Stricter rules do not always promote responsibility. Instead, they can unfairly penalize students who are already doing their best to balance school, work, and personal obligations. In a community college setting where most students commute, nearly all are managing responsibilities beyond the classroom. Many are employees, caregivers, or both, which makes perfect attendance not just difficult, but often unrealistic.

Students at CLC are not just students. They are also workers, family members, and, in many cases, primary sources of support for others. Work schedules can change without warning, especially in industries like retail or food service. A single shift adjustment can easily conflict with a class, leaving students with no real choice. From personal experience, I have had to rearrange entire days just to attend class, sometimes sacrificing sleep or other responsibilities just to avoid losing attendance points. When policies are rigid, they fail to recognize that many students have little control over their schedules.

Health is another critical factor that strict attendance policies tend to overlook. Whether it is physical illness or mental health challenges, there are times when attending class simply is not possible or even safe. Especially when there has been a rise in mental health issues over the last decade or even within the last year alone. While some instructors allow for excused absences, others require documentation or offer no flexibility at all. This inconsistency creates an unfair system where a student’s grade depends more on an instructor’s leniency than on their effort or understanding of the material.

Supporters of strict attendance policies may argue that they promote discipline and keep students engaged. Regular attendance can, in many cases, lead to better academic performance. However, this argument assumes that attendance is always a choice. In reality, many students are already motivated but face circumstances beyond their control. Penalizing them for those circumstances does not improve performance. It increases stress, which often leads to the opposite outcome.

Instead of rigid policies, CLC instructors could adopt more flexible approaches that still encourage participation without being overly punitive. For example, allowing a set number of grace absences without requiring documentation, offering alternative assignments, or incorporating participation methods that do not rely solely on physical attendance could make a meaningful difference. These changes would not lower academic standards. They would simply make them more attainable.

Additionally, greater consistency across courses would help students better understand expectations and plan accordingly. When every class has different attendance rules, balancing responsibilities becomes even more challenging. A more unified, student-centered approach would better reflect the realities of today’s college experience and support students rather than setting them up to fail.

At its core, education is about learning, growth, and opportunity. If students are understanding the material, completing their work, and staying engaged, occasional absences should not define their success. Showing up matters, but so does acknowledging everything students are juggling just to get there.

It is time for CLC to rethink what attendance really means. For many students, simply making it to class is already an achievement, and that effort deserves recognition, not punishment.