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                                                       Guidelines and Policies               

 

ATTENDANCE
The outstanding attendance records of most of St. Brigid Religious Education students reflect the fact that YOU are making Religious Education a priority! Keep up the excellent work! If your child is ill or otherwise unable to attend class, please call the office to report his/her absence. Your child will then be marked "Absent, Excused" for that class. You can also request that his/her work be sent home with a neighbor or sibling.
Attendance awards are given at the end of the year for Perfect Attendance. Perfect Attendance means No Absences, excused or otherwise. Due to the ever-increasing number of students, "Excellent Attendance" certificates are not awarded during the closing ceremony, but please know that we note and appreciate all of your efforts to attend classes regularly.


SNOW DAYS AND OTHER EMERGENCIES
St. Brigid Religious Education Program follows the Dublin City School schedule.  If school is canceled for the day due to a weather emergency, St. Brigid will NOT hold Religious Education classes that day.  If the weather turns bad during the day, or if there is a building emergency, cancellations will be announced on the radio and television stations used by the schools: RADIO: WBNS, WMNI/WBZX, WNCI, WSNY, WTVNAVLVQ, and WXMXAVRVF. TV: WBNS/10, WCMH/4, and WSYX/6.


SAFETY FIRST!
Please observe the signs posted at the driveways: ENTER using the North entrance (the one closer to Avery Park) marked ENTER ONLY, and EXIT using the South entrance marked EXIT ONLY. ABSOLUTELY NO PARKING IN THE FIRE LANE in front of the building! PLEASE EXERCISE EXTREME CAUTION WHEN DRIVING THROUGH THE PARKING LOT! THE SAFETY OF ALL OUR CHILDREN IS OUR FIRST PRIORITY!


DISMISSAL PROCEDURE
As in previous years, PLEASE COME INSIDE TO PICK UP YOUR CHILDREN.
Again this year, we are asking everyone entering to pick up children to use the Preschool/Kindergarten entrance. Parents of children in Preschool through grade 4 are asked to pick up the children at the classroom. If you are driving a car pool, please check with the parents to be sure of the grade of all children you are to pick up. Our Open House should assist with this information!
All parents and children are to exit through the cafeteria to keep the flow of "traffic" moving smoothly. Students in grades five through eight will be dismissed to the cafeteria/commons area and are to remain with their teacher/teacher aide until their parents or other designated adults pick them up. Older siblings will not be permitted to pick up younger siblings and take them to the cafeteria.
Parents, please do not ask your children to break this pattern. It has been designed to insure the safety of everyone and to assure that children go home with the right person.
When entering the building for the 6:00 classes, please do so through the Preschool/Kindergarten entrance. Again, this will help the "traffic flow" and avoid confusion in the cafeteria.  If you are going to be late picking up your children, please call the office if possible. We will stay with your children in the cafeteria until you are able to come for them. Please do not ask your children to wait outside for you or to meet you at your car. They will not be permitted to do so, and this will cause them anxiety, wanting to please you and still follow the rules.


WALKING
Each year several requests come to the office asking that the children be allowed to walk home. First of all, parents assume full responsibility for the safety of their children on their way home. Secondly, requests must be made in writing and presented to the Religious Education Office prior to the first dismissal. Parents and children need to bring the written request to the Religious Education Director in person. Children who are walking home need to check with the Director at the door of the cafeteria/commons area each time before leaving the building.


CLASS TIMES
Preschool and Kindergarten Classes meet during the Sunday 9:00 and 10:45 Masses. Please bring your children to class before Mass begins.
Kindergarten classes will also meet Mondays and Tuesdays at 4:30.
Classes for grades one through eight are offered at 4:30 and 6:00 p.m. on Monday and
Tuesday. In addition, this year we are offering one class each for grades 6, 7, and 8, from 7:30-8:30 p.m. on Monday evenings. Sacraments Class, for those students beyond second grade who are preparing for Baptism and/or the Eucharist, will meet Tuesday at 6:00 p.m.
Students are to remain in the classroom under teacher supervision for the full period of one hour. Early dismissals are not the prerogative of the teacher. Please bring your children and pick them up on time. If an emergency arises, please notify the office as soon as possible. Students may not leave the assigned class meeting area or be dismissed early without prior written permission.


DISCIPLINE
Classes meet for only one hour per week. To enable everyone to experience the best possible Religious Education during that time, the following procedure for dealing with inappropriate behavior has been established.
1. When a student misbehaves, the teacher informs him/her that such behavior is not acceptable.
2. If the student continues to misbehave, the teacher informs the student he/she will be sent from the room.
3. If the student must be sent from the room, he/she and the coordinator will discuss his/her behavior in the office and reach a conclusion about appropriate behavior during Religious Education classes. A notice of this incident will be placed in the student's file. The student will then be returned to class.
4. The second time a student is sent from class, the coordinator will call the parents and inform them of the situation and set up a meeting with them to discuss the student's behavior. Both the event and the parent meeting will also be noted in the student's file. The student will then be returned to class.
5. The third time a student is sent from class, step four will be repeated except that the student will not be re-admitted to class without a parent accompanying him/her until the teacher, the parents and the coordinator deem that the situation has been resolved and the student has continued to display appropriate behavior.
In all of the years since we initiated this policy, only two students have reached step five and that was shortly after the policy was begun. I expect that this year, no one will even reach step three. Our students, teachers, and parents all have the same goal: to have a great experience knowing and sharing the truths of our faith!


CLASSROOM SNACKS AND PARTIES
In order to maintain an atmosphere conducive to learning and faith development and to accommodate the large number of people using St. Brigid Parish Educational Center each day and night, no food or drink of any kind will be allowed at any time in any classroom. NO EXCEPTIONS. For special occasions, e.g. Thanksgiving, celebration of First Communion or Confirmation, when a celebration with food is appropriate, such events can be scheduled in advance to be held in the cafeteria. In the interest of fairness, however, all classes of that particular grade level will be included in the celebration.


COMMUNICATION
We continue to explore ways to maintain effective communication between the office and your home. You are holding in your hands at this moment one of the key tools of communication. Please make a habit of picking up a Parish Bulletin each week from Church and of checking the parish Web Site, www.stbrigidofldldarc.org, weekly. All activities and meetings are listed there each week.