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School Policies


ATTENDANCE POLICIES


EARLY DISMISSAL

Please contact your child’s teacher if you plan on signing out your child before the regular dismissal time (3:45pm). When arriving at the school for early dismissal, parents should report to the main office to sign-out the student. Office staff will call your child to meet you in the main office. We are permitted to only release students to parents, guardians, or people officially listed on the emergency form (or other persons designated by the parent in writing).


ABSENCES


Parents should strive to ensure their students attend school on the days designated by Chicago Public Schools (CPS) as attendance days. A copy of the 2019-2020 CPS calendar can be found on the CPS website (​www.cps.edu​). The Hawthorne website also includes a calendar of events unique to Hawthorne (​Hawthornead​). Please contact (via email) your child’s teacher if your student is going to be absent. Parents may receive an automated message from CPS when their child is not indicated as present (attendance is typically submitted by 9:00 a.m. each day). If you believe you received this notification in error, please contact the main office. When the child returns to school, parents must send a note explaining the child’s absences. If a note is not sent upon return, the absence will be considered unexcused. CPS considers the following reasons to be excusable:


  • Student Illness
  • Observance of a religious holiday
  • Death in the immediate family
  • Family Emergency
  • Circumstances which cause reasonable concern to the parent for their child’s safety or health (approved by the principal)
  • Other situations beyond the control of the student (as determined by the principal) 


TARDINESS


A student is tardy if he or she arrives after 8:50a.m. Tardy students must stop at the security desk for a tardy slip. If the security desk is temporarily unattended, the child must proceed to the office. Do not take a tardy child directly to the classroom. Beginning the day with the class is important to student and school success. Please support your child by getting to school on time. Tardiness is tracked, and persistent tardiness will result in consequences as outlined in the CPS Student Code of Conduct.


Students who ride a CPS bus that arrives late will not be marked tardy, but should still report to the office upon arrival to ensure being marked present.



Cell Phone Policy:

While many students have personal cell phones, students are not allowed to use cell phones during school hours. All phone calls made by students must be done using a telephone in the main office. Students who choose to bring cell phones to school must have them turned off and put away (in a backpack, purse or pocket) before entering the building. Students who violate the cell phone policy during school hours--including at recess, on field trips and in the bathroom--will have their phone taken away by the supervising staff member. The student will receive their phone at the end of the day from that staff member or Security. The second time a phone is taken, parents will be notified by staff of the incident and will be required to come to the school to pick up the cell phone at a time that is agreed upon. Confiscated phones will not be returned directly to students after the second offense. Please note, the school is not responsible for lost or stolen cell phones. Students who violate the CPS Code of Conduct for improper cell phone usage may receive disciplinary actions.


Please do not call and ask the office to give your child a message except in an emergency. Please make after-school arrangements prior to the school day.


Promotion Policy:
Students in 3rd and 8th grade will be promoted to the next grade if they possess the knowledge and skills appropriate to their grade level. This will be determined by their academic performance, as stated by the Chicago Public Schools 8th grade benchmark graduation policy:

1. Final report card grades in Reading and Math of “C” or above for the academic year. A final grade of “C” shall, at a minimum, reflect satisfactory test scores and consistent completion of homework and assignments throughout the year.

2. District-Wide Assessment (DWA) scores in both reading and math at or above the 24th percentile. The district-wide assessment will be the Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) Measures of Academic Progress (using the highest score from the last two annual assessments) or other norm-referenced assessment administered by the district.