FORES Family Handbook

Dear Families,

Welcome to Fair Oaks Ranch Elementary and to the 2024-2025 school year. We look forward to the opportunity of making this school year a very positive experience for you and your child. We are confident that the partnership between the Fair Oaks Ranch staff and parents will be a successful combination in ensuring a wonderful school year for your child.

This handbook is designed to help both new and experienced parents understand the school’s procedures that enable our children to get the most out of their years at Fair Oaks Ranch Elementary School. It is a working document that will be added to throughout the year as needed. It will also stay linked at the bottom of my "Mustang Weekly Corral" family newsletter. We ask that you please review this informational handbook and the Boerne ISD student handbook carefully. We are always available to answer any questions you may have to best serve your needs. We believe you will find Fair Oaks Ranch Elementary School to be a school that strives to provide a safe and productive learning environment for all children. This year, we are excited to a have the camp theme, "Deep in the Heart of FORES!". I look forward to a great year!

Sincerely,

Jessica Shults, Principal

The mission of Fair Oaks Ranch Elementary is to nurture the intellectual, emotional, social, creative, and physical growth of all children. Parents, educators, and community members will work together with students to create a developmentally appropriate educational environment that will prepare students for success in school and to be lifelong learners and responsible citizens.

Jessica Shults, Principal - jessica.shults@boerneisd.net

Kimberly Stewart, Assistant Principal - ashley.collins@boerneisd.net

Ashley Collins, Counselor - christie.lobello@boerneisd.net

Nicole Liebau, Instructional Coach - nicole.liebau@boerneisd.net

7:00 am - Cafeteria Doors Open to all students

7:15 am - First Bell - Students walk to classrooms

7:35 am - Tardy Bell - Students not in class will be marked tardy

3:00 pm - Dismissal Bell

3:15 pm - Students not picked up will wait in the front office

All information regarding drop off and pick up procedures are designed to ensure the safest environment for our students, staff, and families. Please adhere to these procedures so we can continue working together to provide the best school experiences for your child.

Our campus has two sides available to parents for morning drop-off and afternoon pick-up. Please designate to your child’s teacher which side you will be using this year. The front entrance by the office is called “The Chartwell Side”. The back entrance on the gym side is called “The Ralph Fair Side”.

Below are procedures in place on both sides due to safety precautions:

• No cell phone usage –This is a law not a school procedure.
• Both sides require a car sign that will be given to you at Howdy Night. Each sign is color coded by grade level. Please write your child’s name in big bold letters and place the teacher’s name on the bottom. This will help us see you from a distance to make the dismissal process more efficient.
• Dismissal is at 3:00 for all BISD elementary schools. Please do not arrive prior to 2:45 to start lining up to pick up students.
• Older siblings need to remain in their designated spots at dismissal with their grade level. When they go looking for their siblings, we have more students up and moving around. We will call everyone together when we see the names on the visor. Please do not ask your older child to go find their younger sibling.
• All parent pick up will continue to be by vehicle only like this past year. For the safety of our students, parent walk up-pick will not be offered.
• FORPD will be monitoring traffic for speeding, turning the wrong way, and cell phones.

Your child may arrive at school by walking, riding a bike, riding in a car, by car pool, or on a BISD bus depending upon the location of your home. You will be asked to notify your child’s teacher regarding his/her usual method of getting to and from school. Children often become frightened or confused when parents are late or make frequent changes in pick-up plans. If you need to make a change in how your child will get home, please send a written note to your child’s teacher, email or contact the front office before 2:00 p.m. In the event of an emergency, call the school office so that the teacher and student can be notified before the end of the day. If a students is checked out after 2:45, please know there may be a delay due to end of day procedures beginning. Unless notified, the teacher will follow the normal routine for your child. Officers are frequently out clocking traffic.

• Our cafeteria will open at 7:00 am for all students. Students not purchasing breakfast will sit at tables until being released to classrooms beginning at 7:15.
• DO NOT DROP OFF STUDENTS PRIOR TO 7:00. THIS IS NOT SAFE. Student remain in your vehicle until 7:00 when a staff member is present.
• Students arriving after 7:35 will report to the office for a tardy slip. 7:05-7:15 is a great time to drop off as there is minimal traffic at this time in the community.
• Both sides will operate using a single lane during morning drop off.
• Follow the lane and pull as far to the front as possible to ensure multiple vehicles can stop at once to drop off students.
• Drop students off on the curbside. Do not get out of your vehicle. Older students can get out on their own and staff will be available to help with younger students if needed. In a few weeks, our 5th grade Safety Patrols will also be out to help.
• Do not pass other vehicles to cut through the parking lot.

Families are encouraged to use BISD bus transportation if eligible and/or car pool to assist us with traffic. We will continue to grow in population and traffic will be around daily. If dropping off your child, please be kind and patient. As with any year, staff and families will get into a rhythm after the first few weeks.

Chartwell Side

• At dismissal, Chartwell will become a double lane for loading students. Safety Patrols will load the first lane and a staff member will load students in the second lane. Family members should never exit their vehicle while in the pickup lane.
• Pull as far forward as possible so multiple cars can be loaded at once.
• Put your vehicle in park until it is signaled to move forward.
• Once your child has been loaded, you may pull into the parking lot if you need to buckle your child or we will buckle them if able. Many of our students are able to buckle on their own, so it will help to practice with those that are not able to. Adults should not exit the vehicle at any time.
• For the safety of our students, there will be no parent walk up pick at dismissal.

Ralph Fair Side

• Ralph Fair Side remains a single lane for pick up. Safety Patrols and staff members will load students into their vehicles. Family members should never exit their vehicle while in the pickup lane.
• Pull as far forward as possible so multiple cars can be loaded at once.
• Put your vehicle in park until it is signaled to move forward.
• When exiting, Ralph Fair is a right turn only. This is in place to avoid accidents. FORPD monitors this.
• Once your child has been loaded, you may pull into the parking lot if you need to buckle your child or we will buckle them if able to. Many of our students are able to buckle on their own, so it will help to practice with those that are not able to. Adults should not exit the vehicle at any time.
• For the safety of our students, there will be no parent walk up pick at dismissal.

• Golf carts may use the golf cart lane to pick up and drop off. Please be mindful of other vehicles.
• Students must use a crosswalk in the morning.
• In the afternoon, a staff member will bring your child to you in the golf cart lane.
• At dismissal, wait to be waved forward to leave to ensure other vehicles are still parked.
• Walkers will be dismissed from the Chartwell side only. They may walk along the sidewalk to the FORPD stationed on Dietz Elkhorn.
• If it rains, please let your child’s teacher know of an alternate way they will go home.

School bus services are made available to students who live two or more miles from the assigned school as measured by the shortest route that may be traveled on public roads from the student’s home to his/ her school. This is a state regulation and school district policy. Students must also reside in the district and in the attendance area of the school. If you have any questions as to whether your child is eligible for bus transportation or about a bus route, please contact the BISD Transportation Department (830) 357-2970.

From BISD Transportation:

We will not be able to support “ride-along” on the buses anymore. This is when parents call wanting their student to ride a bus with a friend.

Bus stop information will be available online starting on August 2nd in the afternoon. Please direct parents to our website, call the office at (830)357-2970, or email at transportation@boerneisd.net.

Students are counted tardy if they are not in their class by 7:35a.m. Parents are required to bring the student into the office to check them in. Chronic tardiness will be addressed by administration. It is vital that students arrive to school on time. This time is important to helping develop social skills, organization skills, and learning to begin the day prepared. Students that arrive after 7:35 often come in behind the rest of the class, causing anxiety and stress on the student. Always allow time for traffic delays due to weather conditions and the first few weeks of school.

After school care is provided on-site for a fee by YMCA. The school does not handle any of this organization’s information or questions. Please contact them directly at (830) 815-1040.

There are other after school options in the area that provide transportation to and from school such as Apple Tree, Children's Lighthouse and LaPetite. Please all those organizations to inquire about transportation and fees.

During times of inclement weather, decisions about school closings or delays will be made as early as prudently possible. Announcements will follow via a number of communication channels such as BISD website, Facebook, Twitter and email/telephone message blast. The decision to close schools is determined by the ability for buses to navigate roads and safely distribute students throughout the district.

Our campus goal this year is 97% school-wide attendance. Regular attendance is extremely important. If your child is absent from school, please call or email your child's homeroom teacher and our Attendance Secretary as soon as you know they will not be attending school that day. Please include the reason for the absence. Excused absences are illness, medical appointments, or death in the family. Notes, calls, or emails must be received within 3 school days of the child returning. Unexcused absences may results in your child being placed on an attendance plan, prevent your child from being promoted to the next grade level and may result in truancy charges being filed. Attendance is taken each day at 10:00 a.m. A student must be on campus at that time to be counted present.

Students entering the school after 7:35 a.m., must be signed in through the office by a parent. Do not drop your child off after the a.m. school day has begun. They must enter the classroom with a pass from the office. Parents are discouraged from picking up their child early from school because they miss valuable last minute teaching instructions and it is a disruption to the classroom.

If a student is temporarily absent due to a documented appointment with a health care professional, a document such as a note from the health care professional is required upon the return to school.

Children who need to leave school early for appointments must be signed out by a parent in the office. At that time, the student will be called to the office. Teachers are not allowed to release students at their classroom doors or send students up to wait. Parents may be asked to show proper identification anytime they wish to sign their child out of school. For the welfare of our students, teachers cannot release students to anyone without office authorization. Office authorization will be given out only to parents and other adults listed in Skyward. It is the parent’s responsibility to update this information with our registrar as changes occur.

All visitors and volunteers must sign in at the front office before entering the campus. Our Raptor system requires an ID for all first time visitors. Each year this is reset. Visitors will be unable to enter the campus if they have not signed in with proper ID, even if the FORES team knows you. Parents are welcome to visit at lunch time during your student's grade level lunch time. We will continue to have indoor and outdoor seating.

No delivery food for students will be accepted by someone other than a family member for the safety of our students. This includes but is not limited to Chick-fil-a, Uber Eats, Grubhub, etc.

If a family member is dropping off lunch, please be sure it is received before the student's lunch time.

Birthday treats must be store bought with a nutrition label. This is a BISD procedure that has been in place since 2018. Treats from bakery's must also include nutrition labels.

Please view the BISD Severe Food Allergy Management Plan for more information at https://www.boerneisd.net/Page/8985.

Page 13 states: All foods brought to campus for special occasions such as birthday parties, holiday parties, any special occasion MUST have an FDA approved label with ingredients and allergens legibly listed.

Birthday treats may be dropped off in the front office. Visitors will not go to classrooms. Teachers will celebrate the last 15 minutes of the day, prior to dismissal. Flowers and balloons are not to be sent to school for delivery for any student.

Teachers or students may not pass out invitations to select children in a homeroom class. Either all the class must receive one or all the boys or all the girls must receive one. This is done for good reason - it is never pleasant to be the one who is not invited.

Karen Cluck

Clinic Hours: 7:15-3:15

karen.cluck@boreneisd.net

(830) 357-4809

1. If you received an email and/or a phone call from Nurse Cluck regarding your child’s immunization status, please get your child’s immunizations updated and email or bring in the updated records by the 1st day of school to the office or clinic.
2. Please inform Nurse Cluck if your child has any medical concerns/special needs/procedures or will be taking medication at school. You can go onto the main Boerne I.S.D. website and click on the Health Services site for general information/policies and printable medical/medication forms.
3. MD orders and instructions are required for all medications and procedures to be given/performed.
4. Parents must bring in all medications to the clinic, not the students.
5. Students are not allowed to carry any medications in their backpacks or lunch boxes.
6. Only in a special circumstance will a student be able to carry their own medication. This will require MD orders and parental permission.

• All medications brought on campus must be kept in the clinic.
• For any student who must take a prescription or over-the-counter/non-prescription medication during the school day, the parent must bring a written request signed by both the physician and the parent.
• The prescription medication must be in its original container and given to the school nurse by the parent. Each over the counter medication must be in its original sealed container.
• The medication will be dispensed at the proper times in the school clinic.
• Narcotic pain medication will be administered at school at the school nurse’s discretion.
• Anabolic steroids, herbals, home remedies, vitamins, and daily supplements of any type will not be administered at school.
• Medications from outside the United States will not be administered as well as medications prescribed by out of state physicians.
• Changes in directions for administering a medication can be received via telephone from the prescribing provider, but must be confirmed in writing within 3 days of the change.

Any student who suffers from food allergies should contact the school nurse, the classroom teacher, and the cafeteria manager.

At FORES, there are several students and some staff members who have various food allergies. Certain classrooms may be designated as a "peanut free" classroom or other food allergy. Signs will be posted on the classroom doors to warn about the potential for anaphylaxis of a student. We will also send classroom letters home to inform parents that a student in the class has this known allergy. If your class is designated as a free zone for certain food, please do not send that item in as a snack item. Thank you for helping us keep our students safe.

For the protection of all students the following will be followed. A child will be sent home with:

1. Fever 100 degrees or over

2. Suspected contagious disease

3. Vomiting

4. Diarrhea

5. Feels too bad to remain at school
   
   

• If your child has any of the above symptoms in the morning before coming to school, please keep your child at home.
• Your child should be fever free for 24 hours prior to returning to school. This is for their safety as well as the other students.
• We have limited facilities for putting your child to bed at school, but only until arrangements can be made for he/she to go home.
• Any routine procedures that involves bodily fluids, will be performed in the clinic.

Parent conference are not required for all students. Parents are encouraged to ask for conferences throughout the school year as questions or concerns arise. A parent or teacher may request conferences any time during the school year, however, these conferences must be pre-scheduled. The teacher will not stop instruction of their class when a parent happens to come by unexpectedly. Also, faculty meetings, PLC meetings, and team leader meetings are scheduled on Tuesdays after school and it is very important that the full staff attend. If you drop by, you may find that the teacher cannot speak with you at that time. Conferences are preferred to be face to face when discipline or behavior problems are persistent or of a serious nature. It is to everyone’s advantage that you discuss concerns with the teacher before calling an administrator. If the matter cannot be resolved at that level, please call the Assistant Principal.

• Each week, the principal will send out a weekly newsletter to parents on the last day of the school week.
• Homeroom teachers will send out newsletters, emails, make phone calls and visit with parents in person throughout the school year.
• Our campus will also post important information on our website and FORES Facebook page.
• Our PTO will also post important information on their website and Facebook page.
• Links are below.

Parents are encouraged to first reach out to their child's teacher if they have a question or a concern. You may contact your child’s teacher by sending a note, email or phone call. Teachers listen to their voice mail or check their email during their conference period or at the end of the school day. They will not be able to respond to you immediately as they are busy with instruction. They are expected to return your communication with 24 hours (of a school day). Teachers are discouraged from working on weekends and in the evenings as this time is important for them to be with their families. If it is an emergency situation, please call the office.

A “Lost and Found” is located in the black storage closet when entering the cafeteria. Parents are welcome to check in and search this area periodically. To help avoid lost items, please label with Sharpie all lunches, book bags, notebooks, balls, removable clothing (caps, jackets, sweaters, gloves, etc.) and supplies which personally belong to your child for easy identification. Valuable and small items are kept in the office. If your child is missing an item and cannot locate it in the lost and found, please have them check in the office. Every effort is made to return found items to the student. Prior to long breaks such as Thanksgiving, Christmas and Spring Break all unclaimed items are donated to Family Services or other organizations.

Toys and elctronics need to be left at home. Please check your child's pockets and backpacks periodically for such items. Teachers will communicate with parents on special occassions.

We understand that some students may have a need to carry a cell phone or other device to communicate with parents before or after school for several reasons. As a standard practice across our district, student cell phones should be off / silent and be put away during the instructional school day.

The Student Code of Conduct has further details on disciplinary procedures.

Our goal at FORES is to teach our students appropriate digital citizenship, treat and allow them to be self directed by giving them ownership of their actions. It is important students know the when and how to use devices as well as for all to remain engaged and focused in each of their classes.

The campus will continue to follow the BISD Student Code of Conduct for disciplinary measures. Our campuses uses a restorative approach and often involves the Assistant Principal, Counselor and SRO working together to help our students learn from their mistakes.

Website: www.boerneisd.net/FORES
Location: 29085 Ralph Fair Road, Fair Oaks Ranch, TX, USA
Phone: 830-357-4800
Facebook: www.facebook.com/FairOaksRanchES
Twitter: @FairOaksRanchES