Schedule

School day - 7:55 a.m. to 2:50 p.m. School doors will be opened at 7:30 a.m. Children are to go immediately to the gym. They will be supervised until 7:45 and then they are escorted to the classrooms. Recess - All children are expected to go outside for noon recess, weather permitting. Children should be dressed properly for outdoor recess. Children will play in the designated area. No rough play is permitted. If a parent wishes his/her child to be excused from noon recess, the request must be made in writing and state the reason the child is to be kept indoors. Since no child should be in the classroom by himself/herself, the child will stay in the office until it is time to return to the classroom.

Phone Calls

At certain times it will be necessary for you to speak with your child’s teacher, and we encourage this. ALL MESSAGES FOR TEACHERS WILL BE HANDLED THROUGH THE SCHOOL OFFICE.

Students will not be taken out of class to talk to parents on the phone. Messages will be relayed to the student at an appropriate time.

No calls will be allowed to see if “Johnny” or “Jane” may go to someone’s house after school. No calls will be allowed to obtain forgotten items when the child has had previous knowledge that the item is needed. Our goal is to teach responsibility; this policy is not intended as a punishment. In case of a forgotten lunch, provision will be made for the student in the cafeteria or parents may bring a lunch to the office.

Please avoid calling school at dismissal, 2:40-3:10. There is a lot of activity at this time.

Visiting the School & Picking Your Child Up From School

ALL VISITORS AND PARENTS ARE REQUIRED TO STOP AT THE OFFICE AND SIGN IN UPON ENTERING THE SCHOOL BUILDING.

If your child must leave school early, please send a note of explanation to the teacher. Parents must come to the office and the child will be called to the office. No child will be released to a relative or friend without parental permission. Parents are not permitted unannounced visits to their child’s classroom during the day.

Cafeteria Policy & Procedures

St. James of the Valley School participates in the U.S.D.A.’s hot lunch program and offers a Class A Hot Lunch. Cafeteria Menus are sent home every month in the Wednesday envelope system and also put on the school web site. Milk, juice, and snacks are also available to students who pack their lunch. Soft drinks/carbonated drinks (in any container) and fast food are not permitted in the cafeteria. Birthday treats will be distributed in the lassroom.

Free and reduced price lunches are available to families who qualify. Application forms are sent home at the beginning of each school year and are available upon request throughout the year. All information supplied on the application is kept strictly confidential.

Information and prepaid lunch options are sent home in the beginning of the school year. If necessary an increase in cost may be established by the Food Service Manager. Written notification will be given.

The cafeteria manager may require cash or a money order if checks are returned for non-payment due to insufficient funds.

Students owing cafeteria fees will not be given a report card.

There is to be no eating or drinking during school hours except in the cafeteria unless permission is granted by the principal for a special occasion.

Parties

Classroom parties are permitted for special occasions in grades K thru 8 at the discretion of the homeroom teacher.

Gift exchanges among students are not permitted. Private party invitations should be mailed from home or must include the entire class.

Weekly Wednesday Envelope System

In an effort to simplify communication between you and the school, we have instituted a weekly envelope system. All letters/flyers from the school or the community will be distributed on Wednesdays in a large envelope that will come home with the youngest child from each family. An exception to the Wednesday schedule may occur at the beginning of the school year or in the event of long vacations or breaks. You are asked to return it as soon as possible with your communications to us enclosed. If the Wednesday envelope is lost, there is a replacement fee. Individual letters or communications may be sent out to individual students or grade levels only in special situations. We will try to keep these occasions to a minimum.
Child Protection Policy

Any adult who works with students is required to participate in the Archdiocesan Child Protection Training. This training is provided through parishes and at school. Contact the Coordinator of Religious Education to schedule.

Ohio Law Regarding Missing Children

Sec. 3313.672. A pupil at the time of his/her arrival into a public or nonpublic school shall present to the person in charge of admission ANY RECORDS GIVEN HIM/HER BY THE ELEMENTARY OR SECONDARY SCHOOL HE/SHE MOST RECENTLY ATTENDED AND A CERTIFICATION OF BIRTH ISSUED PURSUANT TO SECTION 3705.05 OF THE REVISED CODE OR A COMPARABLE CERTIFICATE OR CERTIFICATION ISSUED PURSUANT TO THE STATUTES OF ANOTHER STATE, TERRITORY, POSSESSION, OR NATION. WITHIN TWENTY-FOUR HOURS OF THE PUPIL’S ENTRY INTO SCHOOL, A SCHOOL OFFICIAL SHALL REQUEST THE PUPIL’S OFFICIAL RECORDS FROM THE ELEMENTARY OR SECONDARY SCHOOL HE MOST RECENTLY ATTENDED. IF THE SCHOOL THE PUPIL CLAIMS TO HAVE MOST RECENTLY ATTENDED INDICATES THAT IT HAS NO RECORDS OF THE PUPIL’S ATTENDANCE OR THE RECORDS ARE NOT RECEIVED WITHIN FOURTEEN DAYS OF THE DATE OF REQUEST, OR IF THE PUPIL DOES NOT PRESENT A CERTIFICATION OF BIRTH OR POSSESSION, OR NATION, the principal or chief administrative officer of the school shall notify the law enforcement agency having JURISDICTION in the area where the pupil resides of this fact and of the possibility that the pupil may be a missing child, as this term is defined in Section 2901.30 of the Revised Code.

For the purpose of this section, records mean Vital Statistics information such as name, address, place and date of birth, gender, and grade placement. It is not required that grades or credits be sent if, for some reason, they should be withheld. The purpose of sending the official record is to verify that the pupil was previously enrolled.

St. James of the Valley School will also implement the following:

Child Abuse Policy

Approved by Archdiocesan Commission on Education 3/31/03

All St. James of the Valley School faculty members, personnel, and volunteers MUST adhere to the Decree on Child Protection.

AIDS: Guidelines and Procedures

Archdiocesan policy stipulates that each instance of AIDS involving a student or an employee shall be treated as a strictly confidential and an individual matter. Decisions regarding such occurrences shall take into account Christian concern and compassion, community health and well being, and individual privacy and needs.

The Archdiocesan-suggested, administrative procedure for admitting or retaining students or hiring employees with AIDS has been adopted by the Education Commission.