Student/ Parent Handbook

See the BALDWIN COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION PARENT AND STUDENT HANDBOOK & STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT located on our school website for more information.

Every child between the ages of 7 and 16 years of age is required by law to attend school. The Baldwin County Board of Education believes that students should be in attendance and on time for school.

• Excused Absences: A written note from parents or guardians will excuse absences for up to, but not exceeding, nine (9) absences. After an absence, the parent/student has three (3) days to turn in an excuse to the teacher or office. Future absences beyond 9 days for illness will require a doctor’s note in order to be excused. The following absences shall be considered excused absences, provided that in each instance parental confirmation of the reason for the absence has been received: student illness; illness or death in the immediate family; inclement weather which would be dangerous to the life or health of the pupil if he/she attended school; legal quarantine or emergency condition as determined by the superintendent or principal; permission of the principal and consent of parent (i.e., absence to observe traditional religious holiday). Parents are required to explain in writing all absences. An excused absence permits work to be made up.
   
• Unexcused Absences: A student may not exceed nine (9) unexcused absences per class per academic year. If a student misses more than half of a school day, a full absence will be accumulated.  A student and a student’s parent/guardian shall be given written notice when a student’s unexcused absences exceed two (2) days. The student can be retained if unexcused absences exceed nine (9) unexcused absences per year. If the maximum number of unexcused absences is exceeded, the student and parent/guardian may petition the Attendance Committee for review of the reasons for the absences. Petition for review by the Attendance Committee at the school can be filled-out at any time after notification, but in any event, no later than 20 calendar days before the final day of the academic year. The Attendance Committee shall review the student’s entire attendance record and documented excuses to determine whether to allow the student to pass.
   
• Tardies: Students arriving after 7:50 a.m. must check in through the office and receive a late pass. Tardy students must be accompanied to the office by a parent/guardian for check-in. Parents should not be overly concerned with tardies in the opening weeks of school as traffic pattern schedules develop. On severe weather mornings, the principal will use discretion in determining if tardies will be taken.
   
• Early Dismissal: Students who leave school for any reason must check out through the school office. Parents must send a written note of permission for any student to leave school for any reason except when sudden illness, accident, or similar incident occurs. If a student checks out of school before 11:30 a.m., he/she will be considered absent for the day. Photo ID is required for individuals checking out a student. Without written parental consent and verification, a child will not be released to anyone whose name is not on the student’s enrollment information.
   
• Check-ins: If a student checks in after 11:30 a.m. he/she will be considered absent for the day. 

Parents are invited and encouraged to visit the school.  However, visits during classroom instructional time must be cleared with the principal or the principal’s designee.  Visitors must obtain a visitor’s pass from the office.  The pass is to be displayed prominently at all times while in the building or on school grounds.  If you are on school grounds without a visitor pass, you will be asked to report to the office immediately.  Unauthorized persons on school property are trespassers and will be subject to legal prosecution.  There are to be no deliveries of flowers, balloons, or food items to students during school time.  There are proper Belforest Elementary procedures in place that follow board policy for student birthdays or other special occasions.

ALL visitors should enter the building through the front door located by the main office.  Visitors should press the call button to enter and must present a picture identification.  Office staff will activate the door to allow visitors to enter.  A School Resource Officer (SRO) is assigned by the Baldwin County Sheriff’s department to Belforest Elementary School.  The SRO’s primary responsibility is to keep our students safe at all times.  The SRO keeps regular daily hours to assist students, parents, and the community.

The “BF Service Window” is available to the right of our main front office entrance.  The service window was developed with safety, convenience, and efficiency in mind. The BF Service Window may be used to sign in late students, check students out, drop/retrieve items off, etc.  You do not have to access the building or sign-in if only using the service window.

Morning and afternoon arrival and dismissal are very important times.  Please note that we cannot accept any transportation changes over the telephone. 
As a school, we use the dismissal change program PikMyKid.  Changes in dismissal should be made in PikMyKid. If you do not have an account with PikMyKid, the setup instructions can be found here:

PikMyKid Parent App User Guide

Communicating dismissal changes in writing with a teacher or given to the office is also advised.  We only have the safety of your children in mind.  Because of these intentions, we ask everyone to follow certain rules:

Morning Carline Procedures: At the beginning of the year, car line may open as early as 7:00 a.m. to accommodate traffic flow in the opening days. 

Generally, the car line begins in the morning at 7:15 a.m. Staff members are not in place to properly supervise students before this time. 

Students should not be dropped off on campus prior to 7:15 a.m.  Children being brought to school by car should be dropped off only in the loading/unloading zone on the EAST side of campus.  Children should not exit their car anywhere else during the morning car rider time. 

Students should arrive by 7:45 a.m. The school day begins at 7:50 a.m. Students are considered tardy if they are not in their room by 7:50 a.m.  

For cars arriving minutes before or after 7:50 a.m, staff will still allow access into the building, but students may be asked to get a tardy pass from the office to be admitted to class.  Car line will close at 7:51 a.m. 

Cones will be placed in the car line that closes the three queuing lanes. These cones will remain up through the school day to not allow cars to drive down the lanes where students could be enjoying the outdoors. Once the cones are placed that close the car line, parents will need to park and sign their child in through the SERVICE WINDOW located just to the right of the Front Office entrance. The Service Window saves time for students to check in efficiently, without parents having to enter the building.

Cars that arrive early, prior to 7:15 a.m. may line up in the three designated lanes by the loading/unloading canopy. Cars should be placed in park with their engines off when waiting for children to be allowed to unload. At 7:15 a.m., a signal will be given for all children to unload. All three queued lanes will unload. Children should be ready with their items for the day (backpack, lunch, etc.). Staff will supervise all children while unloading. Cars will continue to unload in three queued lanes unless the supervising staff member moves the car line to single lane due to weather or traffic conditions

Single-lane car line drop-off will consist of a singular car line along the loading and unloading awning. For the carline to run smoothly, please have your child ready to get out of your vehicle when you come to a complete stop in the loading/unloading zone. When your car comes to a complete stop in the loading/unloading zone, students may exit the vehicle. Students should exit their vehicle from the passenger side of the vehicle so that students may walk directly to the sidewalk without crossing in front or behind the vehicle. No cell phones are to be used in car line for safety reasons. We are a smoke-free campus, and we ask that you refrain from smoking or vaping in car line. Please observe our rules with the goal of student safety first and efficient traffic flow second. 

After students safely exit the car, traffic flow should continue. 

When students exit their vehicle, ALL students will enter the building by walking down the breezeway beside the GYM. Upon entering the building, there will be staff members present to guide them to classrooms, the cafeteria, or assist with their needs. Depending upon the grade level, students will report to their classrooms and sit outside their room or report to the gym. For breakfast services, students should immediately report to the cafeteria prior to their classroom or gym. Faculty and staff will be assigned throughout the building to monitor and supervise children at all times.

Afternoon Carline Procedures: Our primary focus for afternoon dismissal is safety first and efficiency second. EVERY parent should download the app PikMyKid. PikMyKid pairs each child with a personal transportation identification number, allowing users to manage their child’s dismissal, change their child’s dismissal method, and receive push notifications regarding the status and whereabouts of their child. Any questions regarding PikMyKid should be directed to the “Help” section of PikMyKid. 

Afternoon car line begins at 2:50p.m. Once the line is effectively managed, the car line should conclude at 3:20 p.m. Cars should enter campus from County Road 54 East. Please “ANNOUNCE” through the PikMyKid app once you arrive on campus. For those picking up students that may not have the PikMyKid app on their phone, a traditional PikMyKid transportation ID number tag will be provided to parents. The parent can provide the transportation information to a relative or other designees to allow for student pick up. The safest and most efficient way is to create “Designess” through PikMyKid.

Cars should fill the three lanes along the awning. As children are dismissed from their classroom, they will exit the East end of the hallways and go to the car awning to sit in benches in designated areas. Under the awning there is a loading/caution line. Children will be taught to follow or stay behind the line and wait before loading. Cars will load approximately 10 at a time at the front of each line. Once children have safely loaded, the line will be dismissed to exit.

No cell phones are to be used in car line for safety reasons.  We are a smoke-free campus, and we ask that you refrain from smoking or vaping in car line.

BOOKBAGS/BACKPACKS

Students are not permitted to use rolling book bags. 

The decision to promote a student is based on the student's performance during the school year. The decision is a professional one and is the responsibility of the teacher and the principal or the principal’s designee. Parent-teacher conferences are highly recommended for students with academic deficiencies.  Progress reports and report cards are sent home to parents quarterly.  

We train and ask all of our teachers and staff to have professional communications at all times with the families we serve. We ask that you have professional communication with us as well. Please refrain from using profanity or belittling our faculty and staff in any form of communication. You may contact teachers by calling the school, emailing, or using ParentSquare. Some teachers also communicate routinely through other applications, such as Google Classroom or Class Dojo.

We ask that our teachers respond to parent email communications within 24 hours, excluding the weekend. Teachers are also mothers, fathers, neighbors, and have personal family responsibilities as well. Please try and limit contact with teachers during the evening and on the weekends or holidays with family. They are trying to rejuvenate too, to give their best during school hours. Please do not personally text staff or use ParentSquare repeatedly, particularly when staff are not working. You may certainly always email your teacher any time. 

We encourage all parents to meet and conference with their child’s teacher concerning his/her academic progress. Conferences must be scheduled in advance by contacting the teacher. Teachers are at school from 7:40 a.m. until 3:10 p.m. Most teachers prefer email communication. Teachers will be glad to meet after school hours or during their 30 minutes of planning time. We ask that all parent conferences conclude by 4:30 p.m. No instructional time will be altered, detained, or delayed for a parent/teacher conference. 

Severe Weather and Fire Drills are conducted periodically in the school. Students are taught within the first three weeks of school the procedures to follow if the fire alert or the severe weather alert sounds. Fire drills are generally conducted monthly throughout the year and severe weather drills are conducted seasonally. Parents are requested not to check students out when the school is under emergency weather warning conditions unless instructed to do so. Standard emergency procedures will be followed. Parents should not call the school during emergency situations or inclement weather, as the telephone lines must remain clear. Information for parents will be communicated via public broadcast or notification systems.

The Baldwin County Public Schools offer a food service program meeting the requirements of the USDA Type A meal program; that is, a meal that provides one-third of the daily nutritional requirements for a student. 

For the school year, breakfast and lunch are free for all students

Staff/Adult Meal Prices: Breakfast-$3.15; Lunch-$4.85

State regulations under The Child Nutrition Act of Alabama regulate “Healthy Kids Choices.” The guidelines stipulate no soft drinks, candy, or excessive sugar and high fat products during school hours (7:40 a.m.-3:05 p.m.)

There are no Free/Reduced Lunch applications to complete this year. 

Regulations also stipulate no outside food may be brought into the cafeteria except those packed AS A LUNCH FROM HOME. Please follow state guidelines for healthy meals and snacking. Students are not to bring soft drinks, sport drinks, caffeinated beverages, or foods high in sugar and fats to school. Parents may not bring in fast food and high glycemic foods to the school cafeteria during lunch.

We have very limited space in our cafetorium for lunch.  Parents may begin eating lunch with their child after Labor Day so that routines are established and children are familiar with schedules for the school year. Parents are invited to come and eat with their children on their birthday or during their birthday week.

Parents can choose ONE day, Monday through Friday, during the week of their child's birthday. For children who have summer, including August, or holiday break birthdays, parents can work with the classroom teacher(s) to determine a week and ONE day during that week that would work best for a birthday lunch. Parents, please be aware of communication with your child's classroom teacher regarding this lunch opportunity.  Additional visits to attend lunch with your child must be approved by the principal or principal designee. 
 

The Alabama State Board of Education passed sweeping changes directed at improving the health and well being of the students in our schools in an effort to stem the incidence of childhood obesity and obesity-related health problems.  These changes will impact all areas of school where food is sold, brought from home, or served during the school day. 

The Baldwin County Board of Education developed a system-wide wellness policy to help comply with regulations.  Guidelines for parties/special snacks are at the discretion of the principal or that person’s designee.  Healthy snacks are encouraged and will be recommended.  With the principal or principal’s designee approval, special/celebratory snacks may be available for the student to have during break.  Students may bring money from home for special snack opportunities when made available. 

Please send the correct change. 
 

Ice cream may be purchased on a day-to-day basis for $1.00. Money will be turned in to your student's teacher.

State nutritional and health regulations stipulate no outside food may be brought to school.  This means cupcakes, cookies, candy, and other food items may not be brought in for children’s birthdays.  We understand that children’s birthdays are very special.  We have developed two birthday options that you may choose from to celebrate your child's birthday.  These options were developed so your child's birthday can still be a special time at school!

PACKAGE A 
|If you would like to provide your child’s class with a special snack to be delivered on the date of your child’s birthday, you may purchase a special ice cream snack for the class from our snack bar at a discounted rate of $25.00.  (Ice cream meets state nutritional guidelines.). If you are interested, please complete your order and pay for the special class ice cream snack using MySchoolBucks at least one week in advance so that we can be sure to have enough ice cream in stock. Money will not be accepted in the classroom for this birthday snack offer, but through MySchoolBucks.

PACKAGE B 
Package B consists of the special ice cream snack in Package A, as well as having a special Happy Birthday message scrolling on our Belforest road sign along County Road 64!  The announcement will run the week of your child’s birthday, so it’s CRITICAL you purchase this package at least one week prior to your child’s birthday!  This rate is $35.00 and also available through MySchoolBucks. Money will not be accepted in the classroom for this birthday snack offer, but through MySchoolBucks.

IF YOU PURCHASE THIS PACKAGE, YOU CAN CONTACT _____ TO VERIFY YOUR CHILD'S NAME AND THE DATE OF THEIR BIRTHDAY FOR THE DIGITAL SIGN.

Your child's class will receive their special birthday snack during their snack/recess time. Remember, no balloons, gifts, or other deliveries may be brought to school on your child's birthday.

Again, please communicate and make orders through MySchoolBucks one week prior to your child’s birthday so that we can prepare ice cream and, if necessary, our digital sign.

There are two class parties scheduled each year: Christmas and the End of the Year. 

Teachers/room parents may choose to arrange a special snack for the following occasions: Halloween, Thanksgiving, 100th Day of School, Grandparents, Mother’s, or Father’s Day, Valentines Day, Mardi Gras, Honors Day. Many times, food items are used as educational opportunities to learn about others’ cultures, heritage, etc.  These items are not considered a special snack.

No homemade items are allowed as special snacks.  Due to many restrictions and allergies, all special snacks should be store-bought, and if possible, individually wrapped. 
 

In an effort to protect instructional time and promote student responsibility and organization, a school representative will call home only if students are sick, have no lunch, need medicine, or at the principal’s or principal designee’s discretion. 

Students are not allowed to call home for reasons such as forgotten items, money for snacks, alternative transportation home, homework, etc. 

If items (jacket, folder, etc.) are dropped off in the office, an email saying that the item is in the office will be sent to the teacher.  If it is a child’s lunch, the office will notify the classroom. 

It is school board policy for flowers, balloons, etc. not to be delivered to students at school in honor of birthdays or any other special occasion.

Field trips serve as an invaluable learning experience and provide learning enrichment to our program. You will always be notified in advance of the date a trip will be taken, the cost of the trip and the deadline for payment. Often, this deadline is several weeks before the actual date of the trip because, for most events, reservations and payments are necessary.

1. The permission form and money must be sent in by the deadline in order for your child to participate.**NO money or permission forms will be accepted on the day of the field trip.
    
2. In most cases, the student permission form will be digitally included with the online payment with MySchoolBucks. Please fill out items in their entirety. In the event you receive a paper student permission form, it has two portions. The top portion gives the field trip details.  The bottom portion gives your permission for your child to attend.  Return the bottom portion of the permission form and your payment to your child’s teacher. Monies for field trips are nonrefundable. The principal or principal’s designee has discretion to refund monies under extenuating circumstances.  Keep the top portion of the permission form so that you will know the date of the trip and what your child needs for the trip (snack, sack lunch, drink, etc.)
    
3. Please use MySchoolBucks to pay for field trips. If you are having trouble accessing your MySchoolBucks account, you may call our Bookkeeper, Jill Yawn, for assistance at jyawn@bcbe.org or by calling the office at 251-607-5624. If you do not have a MySchoolBucks account, you can pay through our kiosk in the front office quickly and easily with a credit or debit card. 
    
4. Chaperone Guidelines: When chaperoning a trip, younger or older brothers or sisters cannot attend. Please take this opportunity to be with your school-age child. Chaperones are expected to be with students at all times, including transportation by bus, unless there are conditions known and approved by the principal or principal's designee. Chaperones are also expected to adhere to Baldwin County Public Schools’ policies for drug-free, smoke-free and weapons-free campuses. Field trips are designed and planned for school-age students in a particular class or group.  Adults (other than the approved chaperones) or children outside that class or group may not be transported or participate in field trip activities. 
    
5. Field trips are viewed as a privilege as well as an enrichment. For the safety and security of your child, we may enforce discipline guidelines while on each trip. If a child misbehaves on a field trip, we reserve the right to allow the child to remain at school with another class when future trips are taken. 

Students and parents should be especially aware of the following:

• Any student that receives a discipline referral to the office ten days (two school weeks) before a field trip/event may be denied participation in that field trip/event as a disciplinary measure.

• The dress code applies to field trips as well as the school campus. Please have children dressed appropriately for field trips.

• Students should not be removed from a field trip at any point during the trip by parents or others unless a letter is on file in the school office and approved by the principal or the principal’s designee prior to leaving the school. Parents choosing to accompany a field trip, but not ride the bus as a chaperone, must request permission in writing from the principal or the principal’s designee prior to the trip. Parents attending a field trip but driving their own vehicle will meet the group at the field trip destination.  Cars are prohibited from following behind buses as it poses a safety threat.

Please make sure that your child’s name is on their jacket/sweatshirt, book bag, lunch box and any other property that he/she brings to school. 

All clothes, especially sweaters and jackets, should be marked with their name. 

Valuable jewelry or large amounts of cash should not be brought to school. 

The school maintains a lost and found area.  Please check with the school office if you would like to visit the lost and found area.  Throughout the year, reminders will be sent to encourage students and parents to look for items in our Lost and Found.  Items not claimed by the final day of school will be donated to a charitable organization or used to stock our clothes closet.

The school’s nurse provides several opportunities throughout the school year to educate, screen, and evaluate the students in Baldwin County. 

These programs include, but are not limited to, control of communicable disease, hand washing, dental screening, and health and hygiene classes.

When a student becomes ill, he/she is sent to the Nurse’s Office.  If a student has a temperature, the parent is called and asked to take the student home.  Needless to say, a student with a temperature should not be in contact with other students. 

Students may not remain in the Nurse’s Office for a long period of time.  School personnel are not allowed to give medication to students (this includes aspirin or similar medicines).  The school will have a health card on each child, so if your child has some special problem, please be sure we know--especially if a child has diabetes, epilepsy, heart condition, asthma, or other similar health conditions.

Parents who have children diagnosed with food allergies should contact the school nurse so that proper preventative measures can be discussed and put in place.

Medications given at school require a medication authorization form to be completed by the physician and the parent(s) for prescription medications.  Parents will be notified when refills are needed.  Over-the-counter medications must be signed-in by the parent and cleared by the RN.

All over-the-counter medications left at school must be in a new and unopened bottle. Non-prescription drugs should have written permission, time, and proper dosage for your child.  All medications must be delivered to the school by a parent/guardian, and must be in the original container with clear, current instructions.  The parent/guardian shall pick up the student's medication at the end of the school year.  All medications not picked up will be destroyed.

When it becomes necessary for a child not to participate in P. E. for a period of time due to injury or illness, the parent must provide a note from a physician to that effect to be filed in the school office.  If a student is injured off-campus and requires crutches, a wheelchair, or other medical equipment, please contact the nurse’s office.

If a student is sent home from school with a fever of 100.4 or above, the student must remain home for 48 hours. The student must remain fever free without the use of fever-reducing medication.

• All parents should review the Student Handbook with their child. 
• The Student Handbook can be found HERE or in the school office. 
• The handbook provides detailed information concerning student discipline procedures.

Envision Payment Solutions is Baldwin County Public Schools’ check service provider.

Please be aware that if your check is returned, it may be represented electronically. Also, in presenting a check for payment, you authorize service charges and processing fees to be debited from the same account should the check be dishonored. Each dishonored item is subject to the applicable state returned check fees.

Per Alabama Code, the service fee for returned checks is $30, and the fee structure will change according to any amendments made to AL law.

Jubilee Elementary School is a “Leader in Me” School. 

Our faculty and staff have been trained in Stephen Covey’s 8 Habits of Highly Effective People. 

The Habits include: Be Proactive, Begin with the End in Mind, Put First Things First, Think Win-Win, Seek First to Understand, then be Understood, Synergize, Sharpen the Saw, and Find Your Voice. 

Staff and children are taught these habits to promote character.  These habits are the foundation of how we make decisions to benefit our own lives and the lives of those around us.