William Chrisman High School opened in 1918 at the southeast corner of Union and Maple. The land was sold to the school district in 1917 by Margaret Chrisman Swope for $1 in exchange for naming the school after her father. William Chrisman had served as a member of the first school board and was a prominent lawyer and banker in Independence. 

The school moved to its current site in 1956 when a major addition was added to Ott Elementary School and the building was converted into the high school. The main wing of the building was opened in 1956 with the remainder of the building was built in stages. Since that time the building has undergone numerous renovations and additions.

Today, William Chrisman is home to approximately 1450 students over 100 faculty and staff members.

We are committed to creating and maintaining a positive learning and teaching environment for all our students and staff. With a positive environment, we can help all students be successful in their learning activities. In order to provide the best educational experience possible, distractions must be kept to a minimum. The Independence School District believes in promoting professional and positive use of personal technology such as cell phones, tablets, laptops, etc. Students, teachers and administrators have researched and discussed the impact of cell phone usage during the school day. In order to create the best learning environment for all students, the following guidelines have been established:

• Students will be required to keep their cell phones/electronic devices/listening devices including headphones, ear pods and ear buds put away during class time.
• Cell phones/electronic devices/listening devices including headphones, ear pods and ear buds may be used by students at the following times:
  • Prior to the start of the school day
  • During a student's assigned lunch shift and only in the cafeteria
  • After school

If a student has their device out during the school day during class or during passing time without permission, the student will be directed by staff to the front office. There, the office will put the device in a secure Yondr pouch and return it to the student. When the final bell rings, the student may have the office UnYondr it. After the fifth Yondr, and after each continued violation of the policy, a parent and/or guardian will need to pick up the device(s) from the office. Students who are in detention and/or ISS will have their device(s) placed in a Yondr when they enter the class room. The school is not responsible for lost or stolen cell phones, tablets, laptops, or other personal technology devices. If a student needs to make an emergency call during the day, they should receive permission from their classroom teacher and come to the office to make the call.

The Board of Education believes that regular attendance is essential to achieving success in school. Education is a total process based upon continual communication and shared responsibilities among parents/guardians, students, teachers and school. As students mature and progress through the educational system, they should increasingly assume responsibility for regular attendance. However, parents/guardians have a legal and moral responsibility to require regular attendance at school.   

Attendance is essential for learning.  By law, all children must attend school from the age of 7 until the age of 17.  Parents/guardians are accountable for the attendance of their child. The District will inform parents/guardians of their student’s absence and support families when attendance becomes a concern. It is the responsibility of the student to make up work due to an absence. The administration makes the final determination regarding whether an absence is excused or unexcused.     

According to MSHSAA bylaws, if a student misses one or more classes without being excused by an administrator, the student shall not be considered eligible on that date. Further, the student cannot be certified eligible to participate on any subsequent date until the student attends a full day of classes without an unexcused absence. Excessive absences may affect your grades and will be addressed by school administrators, family school liaisons, and/or School Resource Officers. 

Procedures for Reporting an Absence

Students who stay home from school are required to have a parent/guardian call the school attendance office for each day they are absent. Please call the school at 816-521-5355 to report absences.

Parents/guardians of students who did not call the school will be contacted by the District to notify them of the student's absence and request absence verification. Students who arrive late or check out early must sign in/out in the office. Only persons listed on the data sheet or Power School will be permitted to check students out from school.  ID’s will be checked. 

High School Credit Recovery:

Once a student has missed at least seven (7) days in one or more classes during the semester and will be denied credit for any class that has an NG on the grade card. 

Students may be denied credit in one or more classes unless documentation of absences is submitted to the attendance office or time is recouped. Denial of credit can impact MSHSAA eligibility and progress toward graduation. Students were provided daily and weekly opportunities to make up hours for their absences.  The following absences are exempt from the 7-day limit:   

• Hospitalization with documentation
• Doctor/dentist appointments with documentation
• Counselor and office visits 
• OSS (less than 10 days per incident)
• Death in the Family with documentation
• Mandatory court dates with documentation
• College visits (1 for juniors and 2 for seniors)
• Sent home by school nurse.   

Students may appeal the denial of credit to the attendance review team. Students may only appeal classes they are passing. An appeal form must be completed and returned to the building administration by the designated date/time communicated by building administration. Appeal forms may be picked up in the Front Office or Counseling Center. Each appeal has 3 possible outcomes:

• Credit awarded
• Credit denied
• Student is placed on probation with credit pending 90% or better attendance during the following semester, not to include make-up seat time. 

If a student elects NOT to submit an appeal form, then they will automatically be placed on attendance probation for the following semester and 90% attendance for the following semester will need to be achieved in order to remove the NG's. 

For additional information about the ISD attendance policies, please reference the ISD Student Handbook or reach out to Dr Keith Adams at William Chrisman Chrisman High School.