Tomorrow’s the Day!
School classes, ECLC, and aftercare all start tomorrow. Students should not arrive before 7:10. K-8 students should enter the northwest doors (2W) where a staff member will let them into the building. Bus riders enter the front doors (1N). Students should proceed to their homerooms.
Please follow the drop off and dismissal procedures outlined below and with the linked map. Be careful in the parking lot and the streets. A minute saved by speeding through the parking lot or multi-tasking while driving can quickly become a lifelong tragedy.
School Times
PS-8 classes begin on Monday, August 25th. K-8 classes are 7:25-2:40.
Preschool class time:
4/5 YO am PS: 7:25-10:25
4/5 YO pm PS: 11:40-2:40
3 YO PS: 7:25-9:55
ECLC/wraparound care: 7:00-5:30
- We do still have some wraparound spots available. Additional paperwork is required to register. I’d also like to remind families that PT wraparound care is less than 20 hours per week. A child in a morning preschool class cannot be picked up with an older K-8 sibling at 2:40 every day without exceeding the 20 hour limit.
Aftercare: 2:40-5:30
- Additional registration and paperwork is required as aftercare is considered to be “childcare” and licensed separately from education.
PS Through Age 12 Aftercare and Wraparound Care
After school care and wrap around care are licensed by the Department of Health & Human Services and provide supervised activities for students who have not yet turned thirteen. The preschool wrap around rate is included in your tuition bill for either full-time (20 hours or more) or part-time care (less than 20 hours). There is an hourly rate for K through age 12. A childcare registration form is required for each student. Below are the links to the forms needed:
Preschool Wraparound Care forms
Students cannot attend aftercare or wrap around care without the DHHS program paper/pencil forms complete.
Bus Times Take Some Time to Really Develop a Pattern
It always takes a little time for the bus company to smooth things out at the beginning of the school year. Employees of JFK can work as liaisons, but we have no control over busing. Please be patient with the bus company as well.
Grade Level Parent Meetings Begin on Tuesday
“We just met the teacher, do I really need to go to a parent meeting?” Yes. You, indeed, just met the teacher. Now, you’ll receive specific and more detailed information.
“Do I need to go to each of my child’s grade level meetings?” Yes. Your children are in more than one grade level. Information is specific for the grade level.
“Do I need to go to the 2nd grade meeting, if I’ve already had a second grader go through JFK?” Yes. There may be new/different information for your child who is NOW in 2nd grade.
Aug 26: K, 5:45-6:30 and 1st, 6:30-7:15
Aug 27: 2nd, 5:45-6:30 and 3rd, 6:30-7:15
Aug 28: 7th, 5:45-6:30 and 8th, 6:30-7:15
Sept 2: 4th, 5:45-6:30 and 5th, 6:30-7:15
Sept 4: 6th, 6:30-7:15
Please enter through the front doors on 42nd Street. The location for all of these meetings says cafeteria on the website calendar. However, this is just a “holding place” on the calendar. Please look for the specific location to be made available from your child’s homeroom teacher. Some may be in the cafeteria, but many will be in specific classrooms.
Principal’s Posts
Principal’s Posts are written each weekend and posted on our website, available off the front page. I also send a link via email and post it to the school’s Facebook accounts in the late afternoon or early evening on Sundays. I use the Principal’s Post to reach the whole school community and sometimes highlight happenings in particular grades. You will also receive numerous email communications from teachers. Email is probably the number one form of communication in schools.
We also utilize our main JFK Facebook page, a JFK preschool Facebook page, and a closed Facebook group, JFK Moms & Dads, where people can post to others in the group. JFK’s Facebook page can be accessed from the front page of our website. If you’d like to be a member of the JFK Moms & Dads group, please let Angie Hillebrand, in the school office know via a Facebook request or even via email.
Social media is not the best venue for voicing a concern, and posts that appear to do so will be removed while we try to reach out to address the concern through a better means. Social media, including our Facebook pages, are great ways to share your photos and connect with other JFK families. Photos from an event are often posted to these pages by families before we can even get photos taken by staff posted. Please remember, however, that not all parents are comfortable with photos of their children being on social media.
Give Thanks for Our Blessings at Mass
The beginning of a new school year and new schedules is the perfect time to renew and/or adjust your weekend Mass attendance schedule. OLV has four weekend Masses: 4:30 on Saturdays and 7:00 a.m., 9:00 a.m., and 11:00 a.m. on Sundays.
PS-8 Immunization Records
Preschoolers, kindergartners and other students new to JFK need to provide evidence of immunizations prior to school beginning. There are also two boosters, TDaP and meningococcal conjugate vaccine, required for 7th graders prior to school beginning. We can accept faxed or emailed copies. Iowa law says that students cannot be enrolled without up-to-date immunization information provided to the school, and schools must exclude students without proper immunizations. Although minimal in number, there are exceptions. Those interested in religious exemptions should note that because the Catholic Church does not object to immunizations, a religious exemption for Catholics should not be possible.
K-8 Home Language Survey
Kindergartners and other students new to JFK need to complete a Home Language Survey (HLS). Many kindergartners already submitted these in February.
Uniform Policy/Dress Code
Now is also a good time to review the dress code, especially for hair color. Some of those fun colors, Kool-Aid dyed tips, tinseling, etc. can be a real challenge to get out and may even require a haircut.
Other Policy Changes Highlighted
Below are some of the changes to the parent/student handbook I’d like to highlight today. The complete parent/student handbook can be found on our website.
- Cell Phones: Cell phones should be turned off and unavailable in a a student’s bookbag in their locker between 7:00 a.m. and until they leave the building. (Having to be in the bookbag is the new part.)
- Gym Clothes: Uniform gym shorts are meant to be loose-fitting. They should be purchased/worn in sizes accordingly. Shorts should be worn as intended around the waist.
- Detentions for grades 5-8: Not after school any more. They will be either Wednesday lunch recess detentions or both Wednesday lunch recess and lunch detentions. For the latter, students will eat in a supervised classroom out of the classroom.
Although not new, I’d also like to highlight the following policies:
- Parent Code of Conduct: Parents and guardians partner with the school to foster a respectful, supportive and faith-filled community. Through cooperation, positive communication, and productive work to resolve concerns while adhering to the school’s mission and values, families help ensure a safe and welcoming environment where all students can thrive. Gossip, misuse of social media, “flaming” e-mails, etc. are not productive.
- Probation: New students are on a one-year academic and behavioral probation. Returning students may be placed on probation at the principal’s discretion.
- Statement of Receipt and Agreement: Continued enrollment implies agreement to abide by all policies.
ALICE/Run-Hide-Fight Training for Kids
As part of our regular safety procedures, teachers talk to students about ALICE, which is an acronym used to help people remember what to do in the event of a violent situation in a school. We also use the Run-Hide-Fight phrasing. The materials we’ve used/developed over the years and the approaches we take are targeted for specific grade strands as what one says and does with three-year-olds in preschool is entirely different than with 13-year-olds in 8th grade. Our work with ALICE complements our other conversations and drills, such as those for fire or tornado/inclement weather.
Water Bottles Must Be Able to be Sealed/Closed
Students are encouraged to have appropriate water bottles throughout the day. Due to how often students move about the building and classrooms, as well as other issues that can arise, students’ water bottles must be able to be sealed/closed. Large mugs with straws sticking out are not water bottles and should be left home. We have four bottle filling stations throughout the building.
Approved Snack List
Snacks must be from the approved snack list. The list also shares some of the criteria used to determine the snack list.
PE Uniform
Fifth-8th graders wear their PE clothes rather than their school uniform on days when they have PE. The PE uniform must be purchased from the school identified vendor, Empowering Abilities (formerly known as Handicapped Development Center): http://handicappeddevelopment.org/jfk/
Middle School Mock Trial for 6th-8th Grades
Substitutes at JFK and SCCS
Substitutes are always needed for both long-term assignments (like maternity leaves) and short-term assignments (like when a teacher needs to stay home with his/her own sick child). Although a teaching degree is the most ideal qualification, you do not need one to work as a substitute. A bachelor’s/associate’s/60 hrs of college course work meets the educational qualifications. The process to become a substitute teacher includes completion of a 15-20 hour workshop, multiple background checks, and applications with the Iowa Board of Education Examiners and JFK/SCCS. The easiest way to progress toward the teaching authorization license is to take the self-paced online course.
Text Message Communications
If you would like to receive text messages from JFK, type “Y” or “Yes” to 67587. While we don’t use “bulk” text messages often, you don’t want to miss them for a snow day, for example. Families must opt in to receive text messages.
Parking Lot Traffic Patterns
It’s not too early to review the parking lot traffic patterns. A few reminders are below:
- Proceed SLOWLY and cautiously through every location. Little kids are hard to see by cars. What one makes up in time by speeding through the lot will matter little if someone is hit by a car!
- Be attentive to your driving. Talking on a cell phone, even handsfree, can be a distraction when one’s attention is needed most to watch for kids and pedestrians.
- Only use handicapped parking spots if qualified. Handicapped parking spots are reserved for those who need them throughout the entire day, including morning drop off, mid-day pre-school pick up and drop off, and pick up at the end of the day. We reserve one of our handicapped spots, in particular, for wheelchair access for a student.
- Accompany younger students to/from the barriers, if you park in the lot and are not using the drive-through lanes. Parents who are standing and waiting for their little ones should stand on the school side of the barriers. All children should be supervised. Pets should not be among the children.
- Students, even with their parents, should not be crossing 42nd Street. With buses, parked cars, and moving traffic, it is just too dangerous!
A photo of the parking lot patterns can be found using the following link: Parking lot traffic patterns
- Red arrows are the drop off/pick up zones. Note that the main one is at the north, but there is also one that can be used at the south.
- Blue arrows are the one-way pick-up lanes.
- Orange arrows are one-way lanes.
- Green arrows indicate where traffic goes in both directions.
- Note that in some areas there are two lanes going in the same direction: one lane is just driving through (orange arrows) and the other lane is the pick up lane leading to the drop off/pick up zone (blue and red arrows).
Home & School Events
There are several Home & School sponsored events coming up:
- Chalk the Walk
- August 24th, weather permitting
- 4:00-5:00 p.m. at the school
- Bring your own chalk and inspirational ideas to fill the school’s sidewalks with positivity, color, and school spirit
- Adults only – so it’s a surprise for the kids on Monday morning
- JFK Pride on the Drive and Yard Sign Fundraiser
- Option #1: Have a JFK logo painted on your driveway
- Option #2: JFK yard sign
- Cost: $25 each
- Orders accepted through September 7th
- Order form
Calendars
Multiple calendars are available on our website, www.olvjfk.com. On the school side of the website, a one-page summary calendar is on the front page. Detailed calendars can also be reached by clicking on the calendars heading toward the upper right corner of the website. Use these detailed calendars, for example, to check when your child’s K-8 parent meeting is scheduled. Those parent meetings begin as early as August 26th. Anything underlined on the calendar can be clicked on, and more details will open for you.
Highlighted Events
Please see the website calendar(s) for more complete information. Below are a few highlighted events:
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Aug 29: JFK Spirit Wear/Green/White Day. Students can be out of uniform if wearing JFK spirit wear and/or green/white. Out of uniform dress guidelines apply. (There are four parts to our dress code. Scroll for each of them.)
- Sept 1: Labor Day. No classes. ECLC closed.
- Sept 4: Youth & Family Engagement Mtg
- Sept 8: 5th grade band parent mtg
- Sept 11: Skate night
Chad
