Overview
The Reasons page lets your school standardize why a student is absent, tardy, or excused by managing a set of “reason codes” (e.g., Absent Excused = AE) that are used across attendance tracking, roll calls, and leave management. These codes can also be mapped to SIS like Blackbuad, Veracross, Synergetic and FACTS.
🧭 Navigate
Location > Attendance > Reasons
Get Access to Reasons Settings
You will be able to see the reasons settings page if on the Admin Console > Staff > Additional Permission > Supervise > General Settings OR Roll Settings is enabled
Ask your admin to assign General Settings OR Roll Settings access under additional permission to the individual staff (or in bulk using Roles)
🧭 Navigation : Admin Console > Staff > Select a staff or user role > Additional Permisison > under Product Access section > Supervise > Attendance > General Settings OR Roll Settings access
Reason Code Management
Create New Reasons
Click "Add Reason" button to create new reason codes
Enter Name: name of reason to be displayed across app (e.g. "Absent Excused")
Enter Short Code: max of 8 alphanumeric identifier (e.g. "AE")
Provide Who has access to this reason ?
(newly added)Selected user type for each reason can choose that reason when creating a pass or marking attendance :
Staff or User Roles
Parents or Guradians (Family App users)
Secure Parent Link (Approved Contacts or Family App users)
Students (Student App)
Kiosk/Checkpoint
Click Save to create the reason
Once added the reasons will be list out in table, providing quick peek on who has acces to individual reasons. Segreated by Staff, Student and Contacts (parents)
Edit Existing Reasons
Click the edit icon on right side of any reason in the table
Modify the name, short code or who has acces to this reason as needed
Click Save to update the reason
☝🏽 Note - if you are a new school, reasons templates will be pre-populated to get you started with common reason codes schools typically use:
Name | Code | Purpose |
Absent Excused | AE | Student absent with valid excuse |
Absent Unexcused | AU | Student absent without excuse |
Tardy Excused | TE | Student late with valid excuse |
Tardy Unexcused | TU | Student late without excuse |
Dean Approved | DA | Absence approved by dean |
Health Center | HC | Student at health center |
Medically Excused | ME | Medical absence |
Parent Approved Absence | PAA | Parent-approved absence |
School Counselling | SC | Student in counselling |
School Approved Activity | SAA | School-sanctioned activity |
Attendance Officer Approved | AOA | Approved by attendance officer |
IT Approved | ITA | Approved by IT department |
Truant Not Excused | TNE | Unexcused truancy |
Weather Event | WE | Weather-related absence |
Family Bereavement | FB | Bereavement leave |
Delete Reasons
Click the edit icon next to any reason in the table
Click "Delete Reason" written in red in the edit modal
Confirm deletion to remove the reason
Deleted reasons are soft-deleted to preserve historical records
If a leave type is configured to require reason codes and uses the deleted reason code:
New Pass Requests: Cannot be submitted using the deleted reason code
Existing Passes: Remain completely unaffected - they keep their existing reason codes historically
Leave Type Configuration: The leave type loses the deleted reason code from its available options
Before Deleting Reason Codes:
Check Usage: Verify which leave types use the reason code
Update Leave Types: Remove the reason code from leave type configurations first
Notify Staff: Inform staff about the change
Consider Alternatives: Replace with a new reason code if needed
Alternative to Deletion:
Rename: Update the reason code name/code instead of deleting
Gradual Phase-out: Remove from new configurations but keep for historical data
Where Reason Codes Are Used
Roll Calls
Staff can assign specific reason codes when marking students absent or late
Reason codes appear in roll call dropdowns and selection lists
Historical roll call records preserve the reason codes used
Attendance Records
Student roll records include reason code breakdowns per roll call level
Attendance records can be filtered and analyzed by reason codes
Leave/Pass Management
Leave types can have default reason codes assigned
Students/parents can select appropriate reason codes when requesting leave
Leave requests are categorized by the selected reason code
Exports and SIS Syncing
Reason codes are included in attendance exports via csv
Reasons are mapped to SIS based reasons in Integration Settings
SIS integrations use reason codes for data synchronization
External SIS systems which currently sync with reasons :
Blackbaud: Map to Blackbaud excuse types and categories
Veracross: Map to Veracross attendance reasons
Synergetic: Map to Synergetic absence reasons
FACTS: Map to FACTS attendance codes
Best Practices
Naming Conventions
Use clear, descriptive names (e.g., "Absent Excused" not "AE")
Keep short codes consistent and memorable (e.g., "AE", "AU", "TE", "TU")
Avoid special characters in codes - use only letters and numbers
Code Management
Avoid Duplicates: Ensure each reason code is unique across your school
Archive Instead of Delete: Archive unused codes to preserve historical data
Regular Review: Periodically review and clean up reason code lists
Document Changes: Keep records of reason code additions and modifications
SIS Integration
Map Carefully: Double-check SIS mappings before saving changes
Test Integrations: Verify reason codes sync correctly with SIS systems
Coordinate with SIS: Ensure reason codes align with SIS terminology
Backup Mappings: Export reason code configurations before major changes
Troubleshooting Common Issues
Can't Access Reasons Page
Verify you have Reasons permission under Additional Permissions
Contact your system administrator for access
Can't Save Reason Codes
Ensure reason name and code are both provided
Check that the short code is unique (no duplicates)
Verify the short code is 8 characters or less
Check for special characters in the code field
Reasons not visible on Creating or Editing Leaves
Confirm reasons are enabled for that pass/leave type
Verify that the reason codes haven’t been deleted
Check that the reasons are assigned to your staff role
If a pass requires a specific reason but the user doesn't have access to it:
Default reason is pre-populated - The system automatically fills in a default reason for the pass
Reason field appears grayed out - Users can see the reason but cannot change or edit it
Pass submission still works - Users can complete and submit the pass normally with the default reason
No error or blocking - The system doesn't prevent pass creation, ensuring smooth workflows
Reason Codes Not Visible on Roll Edit
Verify that the reason codes haven’t been deleted.
Check that the reasons are assigned to your staff role.
☝🏽 Note: Reason assignments don’t affect taking roll calls — only the role code does. However, when editing roll records, reason assignments are required.
SIS Integration Issues
Verify SIS integration is properly configured
Check that reason code mappings are correct
Review SIS sync logs for mapping errors
Contact technical support for integration issues
The Reasons page provides centralized management of attendance reason codes, ensuring consistent categorization across all attendance tracking activities. With proper setup and regular maintenance, reason codes will streamline your attendance management and provide valuable insights into student attendance patterns.
Hope this was helpful. If you have any further questions, email us at support@orah.com or just click the blue chat icon at the bottom right corner of this page, we will help you navigate through it.