| 2008-2009 Student Handbook |
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Attendance — It is very important that students be in class on time every day. If an absence occurs, parents are to call 973-8502 to report the absence to the attendance clerk. If parents are unable to call they should write a note explaining the absence. Voice mail will accept absence calls from 4:00 PM to 7:30 AM. Please keep in mind that the State of Kansas requires schools to report unexcused, chronic absences of three (3) days in a row per semester, five (5) days out of a semester, or seven (7) days out of a year. By state law, a note from a doctor is required if an illness keeps you home longer than three days. “Excused Absences and Excused Lates” are defined as:
Late? — Students arriving in class after 8:00 AM will be recorded as late. Three (3) “free” morning “lates” are allowed each grade term. Detentions will be assigned for students who are late in the morning more than three (3) each grade term. Classroom teachers will assign consequences for being late during the day. Make-up Work — Parents may request make up class assignments when students are absent for three (3) or more days. Please notify the attendance clerk when reporting absences that you want make-up work collected. The work will be available at 3:10 PM the day after the request is made and will be placed in the homework basket in the main office. Counselor — Ms. Grassino counsels students as needed for educational, personal and social issues. Your teacher has a request to see counselor pass that you can fill out to see Ms. Grassino. Beginning of the Day — If you arrive at school before 7:55 AM, you are to wait outside, weather permitting, for the bell to ring at 7:55 AM. At 7:40 AM, students who wish to eat breakfast will be allowed to go directly to the cafeteria via the east entrance only and must remain there until 7:55 AM. Students are to be out of the building and off the school grounds by 3:30 PM unless previous arrangements have been made between the parent and the principal or the student is participating in a school-sponsored activity. Students waiting for rides are to be on the main entrance porch for supervision from the office. If the student is participating in a school-sponsored activity, s/he is to be at the location of the activity no later than 3:15 PM. Mead Mustang Dress Code — Know the dress code before you buy school clothes! Standardized dress will be implemented this year. Please contact the office for this information. Student Property Issues — Every school year, reports are made about lost or stolen property. Mead Middle School will not be held responsible for banned property that is lost or stolen at school. The best way to keep track of your property is to keep it at home! Items approved for use in school should be secured in your locker. Skateboards, scooters, and bicycles are not to be ridden on sidewalks leading up to the building, porches, parking lots, bus loading zones, or in the building itself. Riders are encouraged to exercise courtesy and safety practices. BOE Policy 1464 bans student possession of electronic communication devices such as radios, pagers, or cell phones at school, during school-sponsored activities, or on buses. Other prohibited items include: stereos, jam/boom boxes, DVD/CD or mp3 players, video games, toys, cards of any type, candy from home, sunflower seeds, inhalants, “white-out”, aerosols (hairspray and antiperspirant/deodorant (solid sticks are ok)), evaporative markers with obvious fumes (non-toxic label is allowed), etc. Students that choose to disregard these rules or create a disruption, will have these items confiscated and a parent conference will be required to get them back. Otherwise, they may not be returned! Physical Education Uniforms — PE Uniform: White T-shirt and athletic shorts!The Wichita Public Schools require a specific dress code for Physical Education Classes. Negative consequences will be assigned for not suiting up everyday. GIRLS: Athletic shorts required. The student’s name is to be written on the leg of the shorts. BOE adopted PE uniforms available at local retail outlets is always acceptable. Solid white T-shirt, or BOE adopted T-shirt. The student’s name is to be written on the upper left side of the shirt. Sweatpants are allowed on cold days. BOYS: Athletic shorts required. The student’s name is to be written on the leg of the shorts. BOE adopted PE uniform available at local retail outlets is always acceptable. Solid white T-shirt, or BOE adopted T-shirt. Student’s name is to be written across the chest. Sweatpants are allowed on cold days. Mustang Cafeteria and Recess Rules — Good food and good times in the Mustang Café! Our mission is to maintain a clean and peaceful environment for everyone during breakfast and lunch. Students who wish to eat breakfast, (juice, milk, or roll) may come directly to the cafeteria via the east entrance only at 7:40 AM and will remain in the cafeteria until 7:55 AM. BREAKFAST IS NOT AN EXCUSE FOR BEING LATE TO CLASS.
Recess is a privilege; therefore, earn that privilege by staying within the recess area and asking for permission to enter the building for restroom breaks. Consequences for violating cafeteria or recess rules may include:
Visitor Policy and Transfers to Schools — Parents are always welcome to visit their child’s classrooms during the day. We require parents or guests of the school to report to the office before going to the classroom. Former students wishing to visit teachers will need to wait until after the 3:10 PM dismissal. Children who are not enrolled at Mead Middle School are not allowed to “shadow” friends for liability reasons. Teachers welcome parent conferences during scheduled team time. Parents should call ahead to arrange a visit with their child’s team of teachers. A parent should notify the office prior to the student’s last day of attendance. The pupil will carry or have carried a transfer or withdrawal card and sign out with each teacher, the librarian, and counselor. Textbooks are to be returned to teachers, lockers are to be emptied, and any outstanding obligations with the librarian and secretary must be cleared to complete the transfer process. Textbook Rental Information — Report textbook damage to your teacher early!Each student is to look through his/her book and report defacements and missing and/or torn pages to their teacher. If the defacement or torn pages can be erased or mended, do so. If pages are missing, the students should list the page near their name. The teacher should initial the book and issue another book. Defective textbooks should be sent to the team leader for final disposition. The office will collect fees for all rental textbooks and fees.
Lockers — Keep your combination SECRET! Lockers are assigned to Mead students according to the location of their academic team in the building. This is done to assure that a student’s locker is close to their language arts, math, and science/social studies classrooms. The locker number and combination is printed in the upper right-hand corner of the student’s class schedule sheet. Students may go to their lockers at the scheduled “passing periods” determined by their team of teachers. Locker combinations are kept securely in the office. Students should not give their combination to anyone else! Do not share your locker with anyone else. Locker sharing will result in the loss of locker privileges. Locker combinations are changed every summer and each locker is checked to make sure the combination works. If you experience problems with your locker, you may seek help from the counselor, a custodian, or the assistant principal. Please be aware that your locker is “rented” to you for the school year. Therefore, it should be returned clean and in good condition when you “move out” at the end of the school year. For safety and health reasons, regular locker “clean-outs” will be scheduled throughout the year. Your teacher and/or the assistant principal will check lockers occasionally to assure they are kept free of food or any other prohibited items. The physical education teachers will assign gym lockers and combination locks to students in the first few days of class. Lock your locker! Mead is not responsible for items lost or stolen from lockers! Telephone Use and Messages to Students — The office telephone is a business line and should not be used by students except for emergencies. Teachers are allowed to grant the use of classroom telephones for students to contact parents. Unauthorized use of a classroom phone by a student results in negative consequences. Parents may leave messages for students by calling 973-8500. Non-emergency messages will be written down and delivered to students in classrooms by student office assistants (proctors). Disruption to classrooms should be minimized; therefore, phone calls cannot be forwarded to classrooms. Only in EXTREME emergency situations, with principal approval, will students be summoned to the office for phone calls. Internet Access and Computer Use — Computer access is a privilege, not a right. Use it wisely! The Wichita Public Schools require a Student Access Contract, signed at enrollment, for students to use computers. Regardless of any “technology protection measure” implemented by the District as may be required by the Children’s Internet Protection Act, students are responsible for good behavior on computers, networks, the Internet, or other online services just as they are in a classroom or a school hallway. General school rules for behavior and communications apply. Network storage areas will be treated like school lockers. Network administrators, teachers, and other appropriate district staff may review student files and student communications from time to time to prevent misuse and to ensure students are using the system responsibly and in compliance with laws and district policies. Communications on the network are often public in nature; students should not expect that files stored on district servers will be private. Access is a privilege, not a right, and inappropriate use will result in, among other disciplinary measures, the cancellation of those privileges. Mead Disciplinary Consequences — When everyone treats others with courtesy and respect, there are positive results for positive behavior. However, when we violate laws, school rules and policies, or impinge on the rights of others we face negative consequences: * Some of the consequences listed may, at the prerogative of the principals, be turned over to “Student Court” for peer sentencing and morality lesson...
Tops are to have straps greater than two (2) inches wide and cannot expose the torso under the arms. Tops cannot be so short that the stomach or abdomen shows; shorts must be longer than three (3) inches below the buttocks.
Administrative discretion may be used. Suspensions may range from one (1) to ten (10) school days. Bus riders may be suspended from bus for any of the listed infractions if occurring in transit or at the bus stop. BOE Search and Seizure Policies state: “When a suspicion arises that a pupil is involved in illegal, illicit, or disruptive behavior, the principal has the authority to conduct a search and confiscate items considered illegal, illicit, disruptive, or a general nuisance to the educational process.”
MEAD MIDDLE SCHOOL VALUE STATEMENTS
CLASSROOM, BUILDING, DISTRICT, and STATE
As a PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITY, we, the staff at Mead Middle IMPROVEMENT through:
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