When classes resume on Monday, January 3, St. Mary's daily car line will be on hiatus. We are suspending daily afternoon carline and welcoming all parents back into the school when classes resume in January!
Even though we will not be dismissing students in car line on a daily basis, please keep your family's car line signs. We will be dismissing students using the car line on Noon Dismissal Days once a month and on other days if need dictates.
Since we have not dismissed students from classroom doors since March 2020, please review and follow these guidelines:
- School dismisses at 3:10 p.m. each afternoon. School doors at the front entrance and preschool entrance will release each afternoon at 3:05 p.m. to allow parents to enter the school. Please do not ring the bell to be let into the school before 3:05 p.m. unless you are picking your child up before 3:10 p.m. dismissal for an appointment. If you are picking up your child early for an appointment, he or she will be waiting for you in the school office.
- As a reminder, teachers will dismiss students to parents from their classroom doors after the 3:10 p.m. bell rings, or when the class is ready to be dismissed. We ask that parents wait quietly and patiently outside the classroom doors and not enter the classroom.
- If your child is not picked up from his or her classroom door by 3:20 p.m., he or she will be walked down the hallway and checked into After School Care in the Commons.
- Please park and exit the parking lot with care, including at a slow speed. Please make sure that you are aware of your child/children at all times, keeping young children very close so they are holding hands/walking next to you.
For your convenience, the Arrival and Dismissal Procedures are found below for your review, they can also be found on pages 12 and 13 of the St. Mary's Family Handbook. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to stop by the school office or give us a call, we are happy to help you in any way that we are able.
ARRIVAL & DISMISSAL PROCEDURES
Arrival and dismissal times are hectic times of the day for families, and we ask all parents to please follow the following procedures to ensure the safety of our school community. If you do not transport your child/children to school, please ensure the person bringing them to school and/or picking them up from school receives the following information.
A. Arrival
1. Students arriving to school between 7:30-8:00 a.m. will go to Early Morning Care.
2. Preschool students will report to their classroom for Early Morning Care and elementary students will report to the Commons.
3. Preschool students (Early Learners, Advanced Learners, Pre-K) must be walked into the school and checked in at his or her classroom door by the parent/guardian.
B. School Doors
During the school day, all doors to the school are locked for our school community’s safety. Please buzz to enter the school through the main entrance during school hours. Please help us ensure the safety of our school by not propping doors open or asking students to open locked doors.
C. Dismissal
Parents (or their designees) of all students (Early Learners-5th grade) will pick their child up at his or her classroom door between 3:10 and 3:20 p.m. each school day (11:00 a.m. for half-day Preschool students). Students not picked up by 3:20 p.m. will be accompanied by their classroom teacher to the After School Care program.
It is possible during the school year that students may be dismissed from the carline system. Parents with last names starting with A-M will pick their child up from the Main Entrance doors following 3:10 p.m. dismissal, parents with last names starting with N-Z will pick their child up from the parking lot located to the east of St. Mary’s Church. Parents (or their designees) must have their care line name sign in their windshield of their car in order for children to be released to them.
Parents (or their designees) who are unable to pick up their child should let the school know well in advance who the designated adult will be. Parents should inform teachers with a written note or with a phone call to the school office of carpool arrangements and/or any deviations from the normal schedule. It is the parent’s or guardian’s responsibility to advise the school of any changes to authorization forms from moves or other changes in family circumstances.
D. Early Dismissal
Whenever possible, professional appointments should be scheduled outside of the school day. However, occasions do arise when a doctor or dentist appointment must be scheduled during school time. On these occasions, the parents should contact the school office by email or written note notifying the school of the appointment and early dismissal time. At the time of dismissal, a parent must sign the child out at the school office and be given authorization for release from the classroom. Teachers may not release a student from class without authorization from the office. This regulation is necessary to protect both the pupil and the school. Children will not be sent to an outside door to wait for a ride as a protective measure.
