Policies
Absences
***Please limit your students’ absences and prioritize on-time arrival. It is very important to us at Junipero Serra that we optimize your child’s instruction time!
Please keep us informed of absences by reporting them as soon as possible. Call 650-877-8853 or email Mrs. Kim [email protected] and Mrs. dela Cruz [email protected] before 8:30am on the day of your child’s absence. Please provide the following information:
- Student’s full name
- Grade of student
- Teacher, Room Number
- Reason for student’s absence
- Please send a doctor’s note on day of return (if applicable)
If the school has not been notified of an absence, a call will be made to the families of absent children. Occasionally students may arrive after attendance has been sent to the office. In this case you may receive a call even though your child is at school. Please do not be alarmed. We try to avoid this kind of situation, but it does sometimes happen. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation.
Attendance
- Students must work twice as hard the next day to catch up on missed instruction and missed assignments including homework.
- Teachers lose class time by having to repeat lessons for students who were absent.
- Schools lose funding from the State of California when students are absent from school. This includes all absences, even those related to illness, medical, or dental appointments.
- A loss of funding can lead to the loss of programs such as music, technology, summer school, etc.
- Creating a contract with your child;
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Discussing problems your child may have at school and informing teachers about anything serious;
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Reinforcing the importance of punctuality;
- Setting regular bedtime schedules;
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Incorporating regular exercise in your child's daily activities.
Behavior
Health
- Teach children to wash their hands properly, especially after using the restroom, and frequently throughout the day.
- Provide healthy, nutritious food and a good breakfast everyday. Reduce the consumption of soda and foods with processed sugar, while increasing daily intake of fruits and vegetables.
- Designate regular and consistent bedtimes for children, so they can receive 8 hours of sleep each night.
- Cough into the elbow to reduce the spread of germs.
Punctuality
Student Pick-Up and Drop-Off
Tardiness
Truancy
Students who have been identified as truant (5 or more unexcused absences and/or 10 tardies) will be presented with an attendance contract or attendance improvement plan.
Regular truancy meetings will be held with students and their parents/guardians to improve the student's attendance rate. Our schoolwide average daily attendance (ADA) goal is 98%.
Uniform and Dress Code
Junipero Serra Elementary School has a strict, color-specific dress code.
- ACCEPTABLE SCHOOL UNIFORM
- Junipero Serra Spirit Wear: Junipero Serra Logo sweatshirt or T-shirt, sold by PTA only.
- Polo Shirts/Blouses/Turtlenecks: plain solid white or navy blue with collar. Shirts and blouses may have long or short sleeves. Only Junipero Serra Logo allowed on shirts.
- Pants: Plain solid khaki or navy blue that fit at the waist. Must be hemmed buttoned & zipped.
- Jumper/Skirts/Shorts/Dresses: plain, solid navy blue. Must be hemmed, buttoned and zipped and fall to the knee. Please make sure skirts are an appropriate length if they’re not being worn with leggings.
- Belts: plain, solid black or brown only. Must be proper size fitted to waist.
- Footwear/Boots: plain, solid black, brown, beige or white, must be flat-heeled and closed-toe or have heel straps. Shoes with laces must be tied properly.
- Socks/Tights: plain, solid white or navy
- Leggings: plain, solid white or navy. Must be worn with skirt, pants or shorts.
- Sweaters: plain, solid navy blue or white.
- Sweatshirts/Hooded Sweatshirts: plain, solid navy blue. Only Junipero Serra logo allowed on sweatshirts. **Note: plain, solid navy blue hooded sweatshirts are part of the school uniform and considered different from outerwear and jackets.
- Outerwear Jackets: Navy blue preferred. No logos or writing of any kind. No Sport Team jackets allowed.
- Grooming: Students must be clean and neatly groomed with shirts tucked in. No exaggerated or distracting hairstyles or hair color.
- UNACCEPTABLE
- Hats and caps of any kind are not allowed in the classrooms. Students will be allowed to wear hats when outside for warmth or protection from the sun. Students will not be allowed to wear hats in the buildings.
- No patterns, prints or colors other than blue, white and official Junipero Serra plaid.
- No Jeans/No Leggings
- No oversized clothing allowed (no sagging).
- No ragged or torn clothing of any kind is permitted.
- No spandex fabric for pants or shorts is allowed.
- No short shorts, short skirts, short dresses, low necklines or backless, bare midriffs, mesh-type garments, or tank tops are permitted.
- No high heel shoes or sandals.
- No make-up, lipstick, or nail polish.
- No jewelry can be seen except for very small stud earrings. No hoops or dangles. No rings. No bracelets.
Please note: Students not in compliance with the uniform policy will receive a Uniform Citation. Please sign this form and return it to school the next school day.
If you have questions regarding non-compliance concerns please contact the office.