From the Principal

Thank you to all the parents who daily follow the arrival and drop-off/pick-up procedures. I am posting on the Blog this week a friendly reminder to please follow the pick-up and drop-off procedures. It is critical to follow these procedures. If someone does not line up correctly, this typically results in a delay or back up for all the cars and buses. By staying along the fence and following the painted arrows more cars can be in the line and it can move faster. Also, please do not text while in line and pay attention to the car in front of your vehicle in order that the line can continuously move and not leave big gaps. I have been notified of an incident where an adult left the pick-up line and walked students to the door. This slows down the line for everyone and is a safety concern. The school hours are a set policy determined by the school committee and teacher duty times are determined by contractual obligations with the school committee. If someone is late for a meeting and as a result cuts the line, drops off a student at an unspecified alternate location such as the bus drop-off point, or prior to the arrival time, this creates a serious safety concern. The policies outlined in the handbook below were developed in cooperation with the Burlington Police. The Burlington Police and I have a responsibility to ensure the safety of all children at Pine Glen.


From the Pine Glen School Handbook

ARRIVAL
Pine Glen School doors open for students at 8:20 AM. For safety reasons, it is important that children are never dropped off before 8:20 A.M. If children travel to school by bus, they enter through the front door. If transported by car, children enter through the door at the end of the academic wing. Upon arrival, all students should report to their classrooms where they are greeted by their teachers. Our school day officially begins at 8:35 A.M., when students should be in their classrooms. To ensure optimum learning and maximum teaching time, students need to be present and on time every day.


PICK-UP AND DROP-OFF POLICY
Student safety is priority number one at the Pine Glen School. The Burlington Police Safety Officer has been instrumental in the development of our dismissal policy.

From Safety Officer:
• DO NOT PASS VEHICLES IN FRONT OF YOU
• DO NOT PASS SCHOOL BUSES WHILE THEY ARE DISCHARGING STUDENTS
• BY STATE LAW, BUSES MAY NEVER BE PASSED IF THEIR LIGHTS ARE FLASHING

When dropping children off in the morning or picking them up at dismissal time, all vehicles must enter the first entryway into the parking lot and drive in a clockwise path through the parking lot to the horseshoe path in front of the side academic wing of the building. Cars must stay in a single file line as they wait their turn to pull up for student exit or entry from the vehicle.

No one is to drive a car in the driveway in front of the building during pick-up and dismissal.

Parents leaving their vehicles and walking into the building to take students at pick-up time or escort them to by-pass this procedure will kindly be asked to return to their vehicles and proceed to the pick-up/drop-off line.

If you need to enter the school with your child in the morning or afternoon during dismissal or pick-up for a related educational reason (to carry in a special project, provide medicine to the nurse, etc.), you must park in the parking lot and enter the school through the FRONT door. Under no circumstances should children be crossing the traffic line between the lot and the school without an adult.

For the safety of everyone – children, parents, and staff members – please follow these very important guidelines