November Principal Update:
On Time Policy
By: John Burkholder
As we sit here today with just one day left in the first quarter of the school year, you might be led to believe that all schooling routines are well-rehearsed, fully in place, and that we are back to the efficiencies that we enjoyed in the before-days of the pandemic. While our building is filled daily with a teeming mass of exuberant, engaged, and largely joyful young adults, I must dissuade you from any notion that students have reclaimed all form and function of yesteryear. Keep in mind that this current state was anticipated and expected. We know that our work to Reconnect our students to the in-person schooling experience will take well into the 21-22 school year, so we approach this work with patience and understanding. For the better part of the prior school year students could come and go from any class at any time in their virtual learning environment, yet appear to be present with their camera and mic turned off. Thus, we are working with our students on essential habits of schooling, and the focus of learning this week has been being on time for each and every class.
Yesterday, our Hamilton Advisory teachers presented our On Time Policy to students. Students will mostly know the constructs of this new plan as our Tardy Policy. I say "new", but it is really a return largely to what was in place prior to the pandemic. In a nutshell, students have four minutes between every class to transition to their next class. To help students on their way, we have a warning bell that rings three minutes into the passing time. If a student arrives to any class tardy after the four minute transition period has elapsed, they will enter their name and date on the appropriate document in the classroom. If a student has a fourth tardy in a class for a quarter, then the teacher and student complete a fix-it plan, which is then shared with the family. Subsequent tardies in the same class in the same quarter for the same student result in calls to Mobile Response and are entered into the student's behavior record as a Level 2 violation of the district's Behavior Education Plan (BEP). At some point these Level 2 violations, if accumulated in greater numbers, can progress to Level 3. Rest assured, there are prizes and incentives for students in all classes to be on time.
When students are in class they are not allowed to request a pass for the first and last 10 minutes of the period for restroom, water, general time to go check-in with others, or to run errands. Teachers can issue academic or health related passes (i.e., to go to the library or nurse) at any time during the period, including during the first and last 10 minutes. But wait, there's more! Hall passes that are issued at student request that are related to things like going to the restroom or a locker, getting water, etc. are limited to four per quarter in each class. Note that accommodations will always be made for students who have extenuating needs.
The overall Tardy Policy was rolled out to students in Advisory classes on Wednesday this week, and the remaining days of this week have been devoted to practice and reminders. The official beginning of the policy will be on Monday, November 1, meaning that all students start the quarter with a clean slate and a full cache of available hallpasses in each class. I encourage you to ask your child about the Tardy Policy and to of course support on time arrival to all classes.
Thank you for supporting our students in reacclimating to attending school in-person with 700+ fellow students! Now, about that cell phone policy coming your way.....
