Student Handbook

Your child's attendance is extremely important to their success at MES. Our goal for them is to be at school, ALL DAY - EVERY DAY. Students will track their attendance as part of their Leadership Notebook. Please see the attendance/retention policy in the TCBOE Code of Conduct. Perfect attendance will be rewarded weekly and every 9 weeks. If your child is absent, an excuse should be sent and turned in to their homeroom teacher within 3 school days. Parents are allowed 7 parent excuses per year. Unexcused absences are tracked on the 1st, 3rd, 5th, and 7th unexcused absence.

Our goal is to help instill leadership, independence, and responsibility in all of our students. Minor concerns are handled through the classroom teacher's classroom management plan. Major concerns are handled through the school office.

Students are provided with multiple opportunities throughout the year to hold leadership roles through classroom jobs, school-wide jobs, and extracurricular teams.

Procedures

• Please contact your child’s teacher with any concerns.
• You may also contact school administration with questions or concerns at 256-315-5250.

Conferences

Parent conferences with the teacher or the administration should be scheduled in advance. Every attempt will be made to schedule a conference within 3 days of the request. Emergency visits will be worked in as the administrator’s schedules allow after 8:30 each day. (Call ahead when possible.)

Parents and Guardians

Only the parent of record, legal guardian, or parent with court approved custody shall be recognized and considered to be the legally authorized person in all school related matters pertaining to an individual student.

All students will receive free breakfast and lunch this year. Two parents or guardians will be able to eat lunch with their student on Family First Fridays; these dates will be posted on the monthly newsletters.

Mornings

• The car rider line will begin at 7:30 a.m. and end at 7:50 a.m. Parents will make a single line that will split into two lines in front of the school for morning drop-off.
• During morning drop-off, all parents should use the designated car line. Please do not park and walk across with your child unless you have a scheduled meeting.
• Please do not allow your children to exit your vehicle without a faculty member present.
• If your child cannot safely exit the vehicle without assistance, please have your flashers on to notify the faculty.
• Please do not block the crosswalk providing handicapped access at the front of the building. Other than this location, please pull all the way forward to avoid leaving space between cars.

Afternoons

• Please do not enter the campus to start the car rider line until 2:30 each day.
• The car rider line will begin at 2:50 p.m. and end at 3:10 p.m. Parents will make two lines in front of the school during dismissal time.
• No individual will be permitted to pick up a student without a car tag. If you do not have your tag, please plan to park and come inside with ID to get your child.
• All adults should remain in their vehicles during car rider pick-up. Staff members are present outside to assist with loading.
• If your child needs help buckling their seat belt or car seat harness, please pull into the parking lot after your child has loaded and the car rider line starts moving.
• Please do not block the crosswalk providing handicapped access at the front of the building. Other than this location, please pull all the way forward to avoid leaving space between cars.
• The use of tobacco or vaping is prohibited on school property at all times.
• Car riders conclude each day at 3:10 p.m. If you are not in line by this time, you will need to park and come inside with your ID to pick up your child.

Safety is our top priority. Please, be at your stop 10 min. early (AM & PM). Be prepared to load the bus when the driver stops. Adults should never enter a school bus. Buses will only load & unload when safe & parents are not in close proximity to the bus. Bus behavior is important to the safety of all students. Students must follow all bus rules.

All school personnel have participated in safety training to help prepare us to handle a variety of threats to our school. We are fortunate to have a school resource officer, Officer Martin, who maintains regular office hours at MES. Access to our school is only available through the front door entry. We will utilize the outdoor speaker to handle as much as possible to help keep our school secure. Please be prepared to present your photo ID anytime you come on our school campus.

Our campus will be open many times throughout the year for structured parent opportunities this year including:
-PTA
-Parent Volunteer Program
-Family Nights
-Family First Fridays

Because of the importance of working together for the success of your child, we will be in consistent communication throughout the year in the following ways:
-Monthly School Calendars/Newsletters
-Weekly Class Newsletters
-Weekly & as needed SchoolCast Calls
-Weekly folders/Leadership Binders
-Class DoJo
-Website: mes.tcboe.org
-Facebook Page/Twitter

The following are not permitted for students in K-12:
-Anything that draws undue attention to oneself that may disrupt the educational process
-Sunglasses or head coverings in the building
-Halters, cropped tops, backless dresses, muscle/tank tops, or sleeveless shirts
-Garments that are too big, too tight, or too short.
-See-through clothing 
-Crocs, bubbleshoes, open-toed, cleated, spurred, bedroom, or roller skate shoes
-Shorts, skirts, skorts, jumpers, and dresses should be hemmed and no more than 3 inches above the knee
-Cell phones and smart watches are not permitted in elementary school
-Only clear or mesh backpacks are permitted.
 ***(The complete Dress Code Policy is available on the TCBOE website.)