I



Delaware School for the Deaf 630 E. Chestnut Hill Road Newark, 19713 center27414 Student Life Handbook 2019-2020 (302) 454-2301 Main Office (302) 454-3493 Fax Dr. Eva Hartmann, Dean of Students Daphne Werner, School Leader K-12 Curriculum & Instruction Courtney Cooper, School Leader FACES-12 Daily Operations Laurie Kettle-Rivera, Director This Student Life Handbook is designed to provide practical information for parents and students about your child’s residential program. The content in this handbook is in no way intended to supersede or to amend Christina School District policy, including but not limited to, the Student Manual. STUDENT LIFE MISSION STATEMENTThe mission of the Delaware School for the Deaf Student Life Program (Residence Hall, Extended Day Program for K – 12 and Athletics) is to provide quality, language-rich programs for our deaf and hard of hearing students which will address the 5 domains of development – Social, Physical, Intellectual, Communicative/Language, and Emotional development (‘SPICE’) – through access to language models, role models, and information in a safe and supportive learning environment. WHO TO CALL IN AN EMERGENCYFrom 2:00pm to 8:30pmDean of Students (302) 294-0754From 8:30pm to 11:00pmLead Residential Advisor (302) 297-9689Dean of StudentsFrom 11:00pm to 8:30am3rd Shift Residential Advisor (302) 297-9689 Dean of StudentsAdministrators on call (7:00am to 9:00am)For Medical Concerns: Nurse on callStudent Life Team HoursAfter School Secondary Staff 1:00 pm – 10:30 pmAfter School Elementary Staff2:00 pm – 11:30 pmOvernight Resident Advisor10:00 pm – 8:30 amOvernight Secondary Paras10:00 pm – 7:30 amOvernight Elementary Paras11:00 pm – 8:30 amDESCRIPTION OF THE PROGRAMThe Delaware School for the Deaf (DSD) Dorm Program serves downstate students who live below the canal. Room and board (breakfast and dinner) is provided for these students at DSD, Monday through Friday (dinner is not served on Fridays). This accommodation is enhanced by an after school program which provides students with opportunities in academic remediation and athletic, recreational, civic, and job-related experiences within the local community to afford the students opportunities to interact with other peers. Students in Kindergarten through twenty-one live together in four age and gender appropriate units, or apartments, each with a Student Life Team staff. This arrangement creates a homelike environment wherein physical, emotional, and psychosocial growth and development are encouraged. The Student Life Team works with every student with interpersonal and social skills, problem solving, self-discipline, effective communication, independent living skills and making other adjustments necessary to live in a community environment.ATTENDANCE Regular, on-time school attendance is a key factor in your child’s education. Parents are legally responsible for their child’s daily attendance at school. The student must bring a written excuse signed by a parent/guardian within five (5) days. Alternatively, parents may call, text (302-482-5381), or email the front office (Emily.Wise@christina.k12.de.us) to provide an excuse for their child’s absence. Parents are informed through a district letter regarding student unexcused absences at 3, 5, and 10 day intervals. The Christina School District Board of Education and State law require all students to attend school every day of the scheduled year and to be punctual for all assigned classes in order to benefit from the instructional program and to develop good habits through self-discipline and responsibility. Students who are absent from school all day are not permitted to stay overnight at the dorm on the same day. Students must attend school for at least two hours in order to stay in the dorm. Students must attend Student Life Program for at least two hours in order to stay in the dorm. Specific information regarding attendance and tardiness can be found in the Student Manual and on the district website at . ARRIVAL/DISMISSAL PROCEDURES If you are bringing your child to school, or picking up, please be sure to sign the student in/out at the front office or the dorm building. Students who need to leave campus for doctor’s appointment, etc., must have parent permission. The permission can be in the form of a phone call to school, text from parents, or a written note*. Students who need to go home must have parent permission. Students must let the DSD front office know by 12:00. That way, transportation can be arranged for the student to go home. The only exceptions are unexpected illness and out of school suspension. Parent permission can be phone call to the front office, a text from the parent, or a written note*. Parents who are dropping off items for their child at school can bring the items to dorm. Parents are encouraged not to stay for more than 15 minutes. *Note: verbal permission from the student is not acceptable, regardless of age. RELEASE OF STUDENT TO ADULTS OTHER THAN PARENTS District schools, including DSD, will not allow anyone other than a child’s custodial parents/guardians to take the child away from school/dorm. If you would like a relative, friend or care provider to pick up your child at school/dorm, you must give written permission or call the school. The individual must show identification before the school will release the student. AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS/ATHLETICSStudents who reside in the dorm are required to participate either in After School Programs (ASP) or Athletics. Students who are working or volunteering are exempt in participating either ASP or Athletics. Students will not be permitted to use their phone from 2:00 until they get back to their dorm building after dinner chores. Students who arrive to school or to the After School Program/Athletics and forgot something at the dorm, may not return to dorm. The only exception is when students need to go home at such short notice. They are permitted to stop at dorm to pack their essentials. APARTMENT LIVINGStudents who meet the criteria will be permitted to stay in Apartment 1 or 4. Students who reside in Apartment 1 or 4 will follow the Student Guest Agreement. The Residential Advisor who oversees the apartment will review the Student Guest Agreement with them. Students who violated the Student Manual or Student Guest Agreement will be either asked to return to the dorm or asked to leave the dorm MUNICATIONThe Resident Advisors are expected to be in regular contact with a student’s parents/guardians. This can be done by email and/or phone calls.If a parent contact number is not in working order, students will be sent home until a working number is provided. Log Documentation Student Life Team are required to maintain logs to document:Activities through the eveningBath/Shower time, documenting when the child gets in/outAny concerns regarding student behaviorAny communication with familiesTime when students go to bedDocumenting when students get up in the middle of the nightTime students wake up in the morningIllnessesAny other important information to share with Residential Hall staffSTUDENT LIFE PROGRESS REPORTIn additional to progress report, Residence Hall staff are require to write Student Life Progress Report twice a year; one in January and one in June. The report will be sent to parents, and a copy will be kept in the student’s file in the Dean of Student’s office.INCLEMENT WEATHERThe Student Life Team is expected to work on snow days only if Dorm building is open and when school is closed for early dismissal due to snow or inclement weather. Snow days and early dismissal days are part of our work obligations, with adjusted schedules. Each Student Life Team will decide the activities and the schedule that his/her area will follow. Meals will be provided and will be eaten at the normal time unless otherwise announced.If our Dorm building needs to be closed on Snow Days, parents will be notified by Parentlink, or phone call from school and all students will be sent home for the evening. BREAKFAST, LUNCH AND DINNER The Child’s Nutrition Program provides breakfast, lunch and dinner for all students who reside in the dorm. Please inform the school nurse and the main office if your child has any food allergies. Be prepared to provide documentation from your child’s doctor. BRINGING FOOD/SNACKSStudents may bring their food to store in dorm. Students are not permitted to store food in their bedroom to reduce pests in their bedroom. Students may eat their food in Great Room and store their food in assigned fridge and spaces. HEALTH AND WELLNESS DSD follows the Delaware Department of Education School Nurse’s Manual guidelines for health and wellness, as well as National School Nurses’ Association Guidelines. Please consider keeping your child home from school if he/she has symptoms that prevent him or her from participating in school such as: Excessive tiredness or lack of appetite Coughing or sneezing with mucus (i.e. productive coughing/sneezing) Headache, body aches, earache Sore throat Please remember that colds can be contagious for at least 48 hours. Returning to school too soon may slow the recovery process and expose others unnecessarily to illness. We have several medically fragile students here at DSD. Please be mindful of this when sending your child to school if it appears that they are not feeling well. Students will need to be picked up from school/dorm and/or need to be kept home: If there is no working number to contact parent/guardianIf they are sick with 100.1 or above feverIf they have a respiratory illness.If there is no relief after medication are given for asthmaIf they have diarrhea 3 times or more in one dayIf they have live liceIf they violated level 4 and up in the Student ManualIf they demonstrated unsafe behavior, harm to self, others, or destroy propertyIf they ran out of medicationIf students have ringworm, nits then students and parent will be given one week to make an appointment for a doctor. If one week passes, and no doctor has been seen, students will be sent home. Students may return to the residential hall with a doctor note.Students who has persistent bed bugs will be sent home. ** Parents/Guardian are responsible to arrange transportation to pick up their child.** Emergency illness/injuryIt is the responsibility of the Residential staff to aid an ill or injured student using emergency/first aid procedures until emergency action can be taken (ambulance or student transported in school vehicle). Residential staff may call an ambulance (911) or transport student to any Hospital Emergency Room. Parent will be contacted immediately and updated continually, as appropriate. Parent are required to meet their child at the hospital.***ABSOLUTELY NO MEDICATION SHOULD BE GIVEN******BRING THE STUDENT EMERGENCY FILE*** If a student is in the hospital overnight, they cannot return to school directly from the hospital and would need to go home for the day/night. A note from a doctor is required in order to return to school the next day and to list all necessary restrictions. If parent is not available, the nurse/Dean of Students will go down the list of emergency contacts. If no one is available for pick up and it is deemed necessary by the school nurse/Dean of Students, 911 will be called and the parents will have to meet their child at the emergency room. DSD sends students to AI DuPont emergency room for children under 18 years of age, and Christiana Hospital emergency room for students over the age of 18. It is the responsibility of parent/guardian to transport a student home from the hospital. If your number changes, let the school know to update your emergency contact and person to pick up student in case of emergency. When the parent/guardian arrives, he/she must sign the student out on the Sign IN/OUT log in school/dorm building. It is the parent/guardian responsibility to set up transportation to have their child return to school after an illness. This is in keeping with the exclusion policy in the School Nurses’ Manual, Section C, pages 2-3. For more information on the School Nurse’s Manual, please visit pter1%201-13-17.pdf) Please note that students with new diagnosis of asthma must bring an Asthma Action Plan signed by their doctor. It must be updated by their doctor at the beginning of each school year. Remember, any illness is considered an excused absence. Clinical assessment of students will be done by the school nurse for all students that report to the nurse’s office for illness. When the nurse deems it necessary for a student to be picked up and/or stay home until symptoms are resolved, please remember that it is the nurse’s job to monitor and advocate for the health of all students here at DSD. Out of Control Behavior/At Risk for SuicideIt is the responsibility of the Residential staff to aid the student who is at risk using emergency/first aid procedures until emergency action can be taken (police/mobile crisis unit). Parent will be contacted immediately and will be required to take students home/hospital or parent will meet their child at assigned location.Call the police (911) or Mobile Crisis Unit (302)-633-5128***BRING THE STUDENT EMERGENCY FILE***Leaving Residential ProgramStudents who demonstrate repeated unsafe behavior, harm to self, others, and damage property will be asked to leave the residential program. The school administration reserve the rights to ask student to leave residential program at any time. PRESCRIPTION MEDICATION All medications must be sent directly to the school nurse, with doctor’s authorization and instructions. All medications sent to school must be in their original container. Students may not, at any time, carry medications on their person without specific approval from the doctor, nurse, and school administrator (i.e. EpiPens and inhalers). Students may not, at any time, sell, share, or transfer their prescription or over-the-counter medications with other students. Failure to adhere to this policy shall result in a Student Manual code violation. Administering MedicationsResidence hall staff may not administer medications to students until the Dean of Students or the nurse on call gives approval.Parents may not extend this provision by signing a form granting permission for school personnel to administer medications.DRESS CODE Student dress may vary with the age of the student, instructional activity, and physical conditions in the school. The dress and grooming of students shall contribute to the health and safety of the individual and shall not disrupt the orderly educational process. Student clothing and accessories shall not endorse products and practices, which are prohibited by law or school district policy. Students will be required to change their clothing to comply with the school’s dress code. Schools have the responsibility of enacting school rules and best practices for the appropriate student dress for in school and all school related events, ceremonies and activities. STUDENT MANUALStudents who reside in the dorm are expected to follow Christina School District Student Manual. The In Dorm Suspension (IDS), will occur during the dorm hours, and the OSS means students will have to go home and not be able to stay in the dorm. Students are expected to follow the student manual regardless of age, and students are expected to abide their Residential Advisor and paraprofessional’s expectations/rules and complete chores as listed by their Residential Advisors and paraprofessionals. BULLYING POLICY The Christina School District’s intent is to foster human dignity in our schools. Bullying of any type will not be tolerated. Students have a right to learn in an environment free from bullying (physical, verbal, or emotional). There is a form for both parents and students to fill out to report bullying. The forms can be found on the district website or you may contact the main office to request a copy. CYBERBULLYING & SOCIAL MEDIA Social media refers to any electronic outlet for communicating with another person. The following social mediums where posting of speech will be presumed to be available to a broad audience within the school community, regardless of privacy settings or other limitations on those postings, shall include: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Snapchat, Instagram, Pinterest, or similar media applications. Students will be limited to one hour of social media on school computer/laptop as the primary use of computers/laptop is for schoolwork. This list is NOT considered exclusive and any social media outlet or electronic communication, such as email, texting, instant messaging, which allows for communications that may be viewed by the intended victim shall be considered as an electronic medium for the purposes of enforcing the electronic bullying aspect of the Christina School District Bully Prevention Policy. Internet sites or postings such as blogs or vlogs which may be created or used by individuals for the specific purpose of bullying as defined above shall also be treated in the same manner as other publicly accessible internet portals. ELECTRONIC DEVICES The use and/or misuse of any of the following on school premises from 2:00 until they return to dorm from dinner is prohibited: electronic communication devices, cellular phones, laser pointers, personal music devices (MP3 players, etc.), electronic games and other materials designated by staff as disruptive or potentially disruptive. Misuse includes, but is not limited to: texting, sexting, cyberbullying, verbal comments, graphic and symbolic communication, written communication via email, instant messaging, blogging, and posting on social networking sites. Elementary students are not permitted to have their own electronic devices in the dorm. Students are not permitted to bring their electronic devices to any bathrooms. Failure to give an electronic device to school personnel when asked will be considered as insubordination and consequences will be given per the Student Manual. Staff are not responsible for the loss or damage of any electronic devices. PROHIBITED DEVICES Hoverboards, Heely shoes, fidget spinners, and personal cell phones (for students below grade 5) have been identified as either a health/safety risk for students, or as a distraction in the classroom. If a student brings any of these items to school/class, they will be asked to release them to school personnel. Failure to comply with school personnel when asked will be considered as insubordination and consequences will be given per the Student Manual. This list is NOT considered exclusive and any item in a student’s possession which is deemed a health/safety risk or a distraction in the classroom, unless specifically allowed for in their IEP, will be removed by school personnel. SEXUAL HARRASSMENT POLICY No student shall be subjected to any type of sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is defined as unwanted and unwelcomed sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal, written or physical actions of a sexual nature. If harassed, students have the responsibility to inform/seek the advice of a teacher, advisor, or school administrator. RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION Students have the right and are permitted to practice religion on their own if it does not disrupt Student Life operations and the educational process. During free time at school or in the dormitory, a student can pray privately, read the Bible or other holy books, wear clothing that expresses their religious beliefs or talk about religion with their friends. While the school/Dormitory and students may not promote religion, they cannot violate other students’ rights. ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download