Marblehead
Public Schools
Elementary
School Handbook
The Marblehead School Committee meets on the
first and
third Thursday of each month during the school year. The Committee sets
policy
for the school district, works with the Superintendent to develop,
implement,
and monitor a Strategic Plan, and develops a budget to present to Town
Meeting
in May. School Committee meetings are held every other week at
Amy
Drinker, Chairman
Robert
Dana, Vice
Chairman
Patricia
Blackmer, Secretary
James
Dearborn
Jonathan Lederman,
Superintendent
Dr. Philip Devaux, is appointed by the School Committee and acts as its
Executive Officer in the operation of the schools. He has the
responsibility
for the appointment of all staff upon the recommendation of building
principals
for assignment to their schools. In addition, he oversees the total
operation
of all programs at each of the Marblehead Public Schools (
The administrative team both leads and
manages the
elementary schools. The principal’s name and telephone number for each
elementary school is as follows:
Coffin/Gerry Schools:
Sean
Satterfield, Principal
Glover/Eveleth
Schools:
Mary Devlin, Principal
(781)
639-3159
Danielle
Cherry, Assistant Principal
(781) 639-3159
SITE BASED MANAGEMENT TEAM
As mandated by the Massachusetts Education
Reform Act
of 1993, each school must have a Site Based Management Team (SBMT) with
representatives in place. This representative group is comprised of the
principal, teachers, one non-teaching school staff member, parents with
children in the schools, and a member of the community who does not
have
children in the schools. It is an advisory
group to the principal. He/She has
the building authority and responsibility of identifying the
educational needs
of the students, developing educational goals for the school,
formulating a
school improvement plan, and reviewing the annual school budget. All
meetings
are open to the public. Copies of the school improvement plan are
available at
your school office.
II. GENERAL POLICIES AND PRACTICES:
PARENT RESOURCE GUIDE
ATTENDANCE
If your child will be absent or tardy from
school,
please call the school prior to
Coffin School
639-3183
Eveleth School
639-3195
Gerry School
639-3183
Glover School
639-3190
Parents should state the child's name and reason
for
absence or tardiness. If absence is not reported, we will call home
after
Many students will ride their bicycles to school. Please review the "rules of the road" with your children and see to it that they are provided with a bicycle safety helmet. Students who ride bicycles to school (or use a skateboard, etc.) must wear a helmet. Students are to leave their bicycles at the bike rack upon arrival at school. The riding of skateboards, in-line skates, or scooters on school property is prohibited before, during, or after school. Skateboards and/or skate are to be carried when on school property. Heelies are not to be used on school property.
The school makes every effort to provide students with the supplies and materials they need for learning in school, such as textbooks, reading books, library books, calculators, science kits, math materials, etc. Materials that are damaged through abuse or misuse will need to be replaced by the student or students responsible.
COMPLAINT GUIDELINES
In the event a complaint is made about a teacher to the building principal or assistant principal, he/she will determine the appropriate method of investigation. The teacher will be advised of the nature of the complaint with reasonable promptness (usually within the next two school days). A meeting of the teacher and complainant will be suggested and encouraged by the principal. It is recognized that many complaints may have their foundation in misunderstood facts and therefore such a meeting may prove to be quite helpful in resolving the matter. The principal shall note the date the complaint is received, the complainant’s name, and the nature of the complaint. The complainant shall also be advised that the complaint will be brought to the teacher's attention (from Article XXIII of the Professional Negotiations Agreement).
CONFERENCES
Parent-teacher conferences are scheduled after
the end of
the first marking period. Early release dates have been scheduled for
this
purpose. Please refer to the school
calendar for the exact dates. Parents
will be contacted by the teacher to schedule an appointment. There will
be
CONFIDENTIALITY
The MPS elementary schools comply
with all federal and state laws and regulations pertaining to
confidentiality
of student/family information and the maintenance and confidentiality
of
student records information.
COUNSELING
SERVICES
The goal of the counseling program is to ensure
a
successful school experience for students, one in which they develop a
positive
self-image, the skills to interact productively with others and the
maturity to
make wise decisions. The counselor works cooperatively with parents,
teachers,
administrators and other specialists to provide needed support for
students.
Direct support services for children may involve individual and/or
group
counseling on a weekly, short-term, or crisis intervention basis.
Parental
knowledge and permission is required for any student involved in
regular
counseling, however, the counselor may see children without permission
on a crisis
intervention basis. Referrals to the program are made by classroom
teachers,
parents and children themselves. The counselor also devotes a great
deal of
time to consultation with parents, teachers, specialists and
administrators.
Parents are encouraged to utilize the counselor to discuss concerns and
plan an
appropriate course of action. The counselor is familiar with outside
resources
available in the
DELIVERY OF ARTICLES/MESSAGES
TO YOUR
CHILD DURING SCHOOL
Parents
often ask the
school office to relay messages to children during the school day. We
strongly
discourage this practice. In an emergency, we will do whatever possible
to
help. Once school is in session, however, we ask parents not to
interrupt the
class or teacher with messages for their children unless absolutely
necessary.
If you need to deliver a forgotten lunch or message to your child,
please leave
it at the main office. We will deliver it at an appropriate
time. Our
goal is to keep class time free from interruptions and distractions.
DISABILITY SCREENING OF
THREE
The Marblehead Public Schools conduct
disability
screenings for three and four year olds on the fourth Wednesday of each
month.
Screenings are done in the areas of speech and language, fine and gross
motor
skills, and developmental skills. Appointments are required. Requests
for
screenings must be made in writing to Nancy Charest, Preschool
Coordinator, at
DISCIPLINE
POLICY
BEHAVIORAL
EXPECTATIONS AND CONSEQUENCES
As adopted by the Marblehead School Committee
I.
LEVEL ONE BEHAVIORS (Highest)
Intentional physical harm; racial slurs,
religious
slurs, personal slurs or other forms of harassment; hazing; leaving
school
property without permission; destroying property; possession of
weapons,
controlled substances, alcohol, and/or other dangerous materials or
devices;
fighting; threatening to cause physical harm to another; physical
assault or
battery of another.
CONSEQUENCES
FOR LEVEL ONE BEHAVIORS
Consequences may include but shall
not be limited to:
Conference
with the parent, child and principal; loss of privileges; in-school
suspension,
out-of-school suspension; expulsion; notification to the Marblehead
Police
Department.
II. LEVEL
TWO BEHAVIORS
Dishonesty; out of control behavior;
stealing; temper
tantrums; verbal abuse, i.e. back talk, profanity, gestures, putdowns,
bullying; willfully disrupting class.
CONSEQUENCES
FOR LEVEL TWO BEHAVIORS
Consequences
may include but shall not be limited to:
After school with teacher; child
writes/dictates note
home; conference with parent, teacher, child; in-school suspension;
loss of
privileges; natural/ logical consequences; notify parents (note and/or
phone
call); removal from learning environment.
III.
LEVEL THREE BEHAVIORS
Wearing caps/hats in class; gum chewing;
littering;
personal stereos; playing with food; random throwing of snowballs,
sticks,
rocks, etc.; rollerblading, biking, skate boarding on grounds; running
or noisy
in halls; toy weapons; wasting supplies.
CONSEQUENCES
FOR LEVEL THREE BEHAVIORS
Consequences
may include but shall not be limited to:
Verbal warnings; written warnings; other natural/logical consequences. Repeat offenses at any level will result in consequences for higher-level behaviors.
DISCIPLINARY PROCESS
1. Short Term
Disciplinary Sanctions: Prior to the
imposition of any disciplinary
sanction that might result in the child’s out-of-school suspension for
less
than ten (10) consecutive school days, the child will be given oral
notice of
the offense with which he/she is charged and an opportunity to respond. In the event that the principal determines
that the child will be suspended from school, the child’s parent(s)
will be
notified by telephone and in writing.
2. Long Term Disciplinary Sanctions: Prior to the imposition of any disciplinary sanction that might result in the child’s out-of-school suspension for more than ten (10) consecutive school days or expulsion, the parent(s) will be given written notice of a hearing at which they may be represented by an attorney and may examine and present witnesses and documentary evidence. Following this hearing, the decision maker (principal/superintendent) will issue a formal decision. Depending on the circumstances, the parent(s) will have the right to appeal this decision within five (5) to ten (10) days to the superintendent of schools or to a court of competent jurisdiction. Pending the outcome of any such appeal, the disciplinary sanction imposed shall remain in effect. M.G.L. c. 76 §17, M.G.L. c. 71 §37H, M.G.L. c. 71 §37H1/2.
3.
Students with Disabilities:
Children who have been
identified as students with disabilities in accordance with the
Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation
Act or who
the school has reason to believe might be eligible for such services
are
entitled to additional procedural protections when a disciplinary
exclusion is
contemplated. For additional information
regarding the rights of students with disabilities in the context of
school
discipline please contact Robert J. Bellucci, Director of Student
Services and Program Accountability at
781-639-3148.
DISMISSALS
Changes
in your child’s regular dismissal should be put in writing to the
teacher. If the child is dismissed to
someone other
than a parent or guardian, it is critical for the safety of the
children that
school personnel be notified in writing before
DRESS
CODE
Students
are expected to come to school dressed in neat and appropriate clothing. Extreme forms of dress that may be
distracting to students’ learning are not allowed. Parents are asked to
review
clothing selection with their children, especially during cold weather,
i.e. socks,
raincoats, hats, boots, etc. Shirts or
clothing which display violence or obscene or harassing language should
not be
worn to schools. Students will be required to wear such shirts inside
out or
to change clothes. Students are not allowed to wear hats in the
building.
VILLAGE SCHOOL DRESS CODE
In
addition to the dress code mentioned above, the following are required
standards of dress for the
·
With
the
exception of head coverings worn for religious purposes, hats and other
head
coverings must come off upon entering the building, put in the
students’
locker, and not put on again until after exiting the building
·
Coats,
jackets,
and sweatshirts cannot be worn from
·
Short-shorts
and
very short skirts will not be allowed.
The acceptable length will be at the discretion of the school
administration.
·
Footwear
laces
will be tied.
·
Torn
and cut clothing
will not be allowed.
·
Clothing
will be neat
and appropriately buttoned or zipped at all times.
·
Tube,
halter,
camisole tops and bare midriffs are unacceptable.
·
Chain
wallets and
other clothing with chains are not allowed.
·
Underwear
may not
show at all.
·
Pajamas
are not
allowed.
DRUG AND
ALCOHOL POLICY
The school works to promote, enhance, and
maintain a
drug free school and student body. Together with parents and the
community at
large it shares responsibility for helping students remain drug free.
Possession,
use, transfer, or distribution of controlled substances or alcohol will
result in disciplinary action and in
a report being
made to local law enforcement personnel, in accordance with the
Memorandum of
Understanding signed January 1993.
EARLY RELEASE
DAYS
These times are periodically scheduled to
provide for
two important functions, parent conferences and staff development. The
school
calendar notes early-release days and dismissal times.
ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL REGISTRATION
Parents
should register their children at their district elementary school when
they
move into
When a child transfers into or newly
registers in the
Marblehead Public Schools, state law requires that the school receive
complete
student records prior to the student beginning school.
For health, safety and legal reasons, MPS
enforces this requirement.
EMERGENCY
CARDS
Each parent must complete and sign an
Emergency Information Card sent home at the beginning of the school
year. The
card informs the school how to reach parents in the case of a child’s
accident
or illness, and it provides permission for the school to administer
first-aid
or refer a child to a medical facility. Parents must notify the school
office
of changes in the emergency information, including addresses, phone
numbers,
and emergency contacts. We MUST be able
to contact you if a need arises.
EMERGENCY
EVACUATION PLAN
In the event of a crisis such as loss of heat
or
electricity, fire or explosion, air quality issues, natural disaster
(hurricane, blizzard), or other grave event, the following steps will
be taken:
In arriving at the decision to consider
evacuation,
the principal or his/her designee can seek the advice of the school
nurse or
other faculty members. This consultation will be swift and timely. If
the
situation cannot be contained by ordinary actions within the school,
the
principal or his/her designee will contact the following people:
1. Superintendent of Schools: Dr. Philip
Devaux:
639-3141.
2.
The Fire Chief will decide what additional
offices
need to be contacted and involved to render assistance.
In the event of a Town natural disaster, the
Town’s
Civil Defense Protocol will be followed.
If the principal is not in the building and
cannot be
contacted, his/her designee will act accordingly. If there is any
question as
to who is in charge, the Superintendent will be contacted directly.
The basic decision regarding evacuation rests
with
this question: Should a room, a wing or the building be evacuated
for the
safety of the children and staff? The choices are to move the
children to
another room, to another wing, or to move all of the students and staff
to
another school. The principal, his/her designee, or the superintendent
or
assistant superintendent will make those decisions.
If there is consideration of evacuating the
children to other school buildings, the school will contact the central
administration office to get bus assistance. Additional transportation
is
available through the Council on Aging and the Recreation and Park
Department.
EXCESSIVE
ABSENCES
Consistent with Marblehead School Committee
Policy, a
pupil may be excused temporarily from school for illness or quarantine,
bereavement or serious illness in the family, weather so inclement as
to
endanger the health of the child, and observance of major religious
holidays.
Absence for the purpose of family trips and vacations will be
discouraged since
the child is missing valuable school time. Frequent or prolonged
absences or
repeated tardiness without satisfactory explanation shall be grounds
for
disciplinary action and may be reported to state and/or local
authorities.
FIELD
TRIPS
A field trip is defined as any outing away
from the
school premises that requires transportation and/or extends into the
time
normally scheduled for other classes. Field trips of significant
educational
value shall be encouraged and, when necessary, conducted at a low cost
to
students. All trips shall be carefully planned with due consideration
for
curriculum relevance, the safety of children, and proper conduct on the
bus and
at places visited. Whenever possible, trips shall be taken in school
buses.
Parents will be informed in writing of any
field trip,
no later than one (1) week before it is to occur (except in unexpected
circumstances).
The written notification shall include, but not be limited to, the
following
details: date, location(s), and relevance to curriculum, cost (if any),
driver
information, and request for parental permission. Students may not
participate
in field trips without prior parent consent. Staff members supervise
students
during out-of-school activities. Parents are often asked to help
supervise
during field trips.
When using school buses for field trips, we
expect
students to behave in accordance with the following rules, drawn from
the
School Bus Driver Instructional Manual issued by the
§
Get
on and off
the bus without pushing. Always listen
to the bus driver. He or she is
responsible and concerned for your safety at all times.
§
Don’t
do anything
to distract the driver. This means that you should remain in your seat,
keep
reasonably quiet, avoid roughhousing and keep your hands to yourself. You must not lean or throw items out of the
window. This may hurt someone or cause
an accident.
§
Please
also
review the Student School Bus Behavior found elsewhere in this handbook.
§
CORI
Checks-
Volunteers: It is the policy of the School Committee that the result of
a CORI
(Criminal Offender Records Information) check be on file with the
Superintendent for volunteers designated as Volunteers
with Status. Volunteers with Status serve
as follows:
·
In
place of
School Department Staff during the normal school day;
·
As
supervisors of
students during the regular school day independent of other school
employees:
·
As
chaperones for
students involved in overnight field trips.
Discretion
may be exercised for Casual Volunteers.
Casual
Volunteers serve under the
direct observation and supervision of school employees and do not act
independent of school personnel..
Examples of services provided
by a Casual Volunteer are:
·
Support school employees as a
supervisor at lunch,
recess, and in classroom activities;
·
Support school employees on day
trips
·
Support school employees in
group activities
·
Other activities in which
regular school employees
are present and the Casual Volunteer
is not required to act independent of outside direct collaboration with
a
school employee.
HARASSMENT POLICY
Marblehead Public Schools is committed to the
principle of
diversity in its community and seeks to create an environment in which
all
people can thrive. This means that students, staff, administration,
parents,
and any other members of the community have the collective
responsibility to
treat each other with respect, tolerance, and sensitivity.
In this spirit, it is essential that all
individuals recognize certain guidelines for appropriate behavior --
that which
allows each person the freedom to learn and work without fear of
intimidation
or humiliation. Behavior that disregards
the rights and self-esteem of others is unacceptable and the person
engaging in
such behavior will be subject to disciplinary action.
In addition, anyone who retaliates against an
individual who has brought a complaint of harassment to the attention
of the
school or who has cooperated in an investigation of a complaint of
harassment
will also be subject to disciplinary action.
An individual, who believes he/she has been
harassed
or who has witnessed or learned of the harassment of another person in
the
school environment, should inform the school principal or other
administrator
as soon as possible. If the individual
does not wish to speak to the principal or if the principal or
administrator
does not address the problem in an effective manner, the individual
should
inform the district harassment officer at
The Marblehead Public Schools will promptly
investigate
complaints of harassment.
Confidentiality will be maintained to the extent consistent with
the
school district’s obligations under law and under applicable collective
bargaining agreements. The school
district will comply with legal requirements governing the reporting of
suspected cases of child abuse and will report suspected criminal
activity to
the appropriate authorities.
When an investigation has been completed, school
personnel
will inform the complainant of the results and will file a report with
the
district’s appropriate compliance officer.
HAZING
In accordance with state and federal
regulations, the
practice of "hazing" in all its forms is prohibited at the school. As
defined in Chapter 269 §17 of the Massachusetts General Laws, the
term
"hazing" means: Any conduct
or method of initiation into any student organization, whether on
public
or private property, which willfully or recklessly endangers the
physical or
mental health of any student or other person. Such conduct shall
include
whipping, beating, branding, forced calisthenics, exposure to the
weather,
forced consumption of any food, liquor, beverage, drug, or other
substance, or
any other brutal treatment or forced physical activity which is likely
to
adversely affect the physical health or safety of any such student or
other
person, or which subjects such student or other person to extreme
mental stress,
including extended deprivation of sleep, rest or extended isolation. M.G.L.
c.269 §17.
Hazing is strictly prohibited
in the
Marblehead Public Schools, at school sponsored events, or during school
related
activities. Students who engage in
hazing will be subject to disciplinary action.
Individuals who observe acts of hazing are required by law to
report
such conduct to law enforcement authorities. M.G.L. c.269 §18.
HEALTH INFORMATION
Each school district is assigned a
full time school nurse. If you have any questions regarding the
policies and
procedures outlined below, please contact your school nurse at your
school’s
health office. Health forms are available at the school or online at www.marblehead.com/schools/nurse
Requirements for school entry for
kindergarten:
·
Physical
exam
within 6 months prior to school entry (Please discuss any insurance restrictions with your school nurse or
health care provider.)
·
4
doses polio
·
5
doses DPT
(diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus)
·
2
doses MMR
(measles, mumps, rubella)
·
3
doses Hepatitis
B
·
1
dose Varicella
Vaccine or M.D. documentation of disease (chicken pox)
·
Date
and result
of lead test
Absence
If your child is absent due to
illness, please notify the school daily. We need to be kept informed so
that we
can alert other parents of infectious conditions. If your child is
contagious,
please keep him/her at home until your doctor has cleared him/her for
return to
school. Additionally, the school nurse asks that you follow these
guidelines
for sending students to school:
·
Students
being
treated for strep throat must be kept home a minimum of 24 hours after
treatment begins.
·
Students
who
vomit in the night or in the morning before school should not be sent
to school
that day.
·
Students
with a
febrile illness should be free of fever for 24 hours before returning
to
school.
For personal safety reasons, please
call the school to report absences or anticipated tardiness early in
the
morning.
First Aid/Illness/Dismissal
Assessment and treatment are provided
for minor injuries or illnesses during the school day. If a student
becomes ill
or is seriously injured his/her parent or guardian is notified
immediately. If
a parent cannot be reached in an emergency, the child will be
transported to
the appropriate medical facility. The nurse will dismiss any child who
is too
ill to be in school, requires further assessment or treatment for an
illness or
injury, or is considered to be contagious or susceptible to disease.
Timely
health bulletins will be sent home to inform parents of any public
health
issues.