School Policy

All employees and volunteers who have contact with students undergo thorough screening, including background checks through the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation & Identification (BCI&I). For complete information on screening policies, see the revised Policy for the Safety of Children in Matters of Sexual Abuse, section 1.2 (p.3).

Parents and visitors are required to sign-in/sign-out at the school office if they need to see their child or visit the school during school hours. Class interruptions are not permitted without prior approval of the Principal.

All students should be on campus and prepared for the school day by 8:00 a.m. Students must be picked up promptly at 3:00 p.m. Pre-Kindergarten students who arrive after 8:15 a.m. must enter through the main office doors. K-8th grade students may be dropped off at school no earlier than 7:45 a.m. Students who are on campus after 3:10 p.m. will be taken to the Extended Day Program. Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish School will not take responsibility for any unsupervised child who is on campus before 7:45 a.m. or after 3:10 p.m.

Emergency School Closings
During inclement weather parents should listen to the radio or watch local television stations for school closing announcements. Our Lady of Mount Carmel School will be closed if you view any of the following on television:

• Our Lady of Mount Carmel – West (Cuyahoga)

• Cleveland Metropolitan School District

In case of an emergency closing of the school (e.g. water or gas leaks) the staff will contact the parents by telephone. NOTE: Please do not call the convent, rectory or faculty/staff at home about school closings.

Forgotten Items
Parents are not permitted to drop off homework, gym shoes, books or other items forgotten at home unless requested by the Principal. The office will only accept prescription medicine and house keys. PLEASE NOTE: Parents are not permitted to drop off lunches to school. Any child who forgets a home made lunch will be provided a school lunch and the parent will be billed accordingly.

Birthdays
Because of the different health issues and allergies developed in our students, no edibles are permitted to be sent to school to celebrate a child’s birthday.

Telephone Usage
Parents should instruct their child before he/she leaves for school in the morning as to what his/her program will be for the day. Parents are asked not to call the school to relay a message to them except in case of an emergency and no later than 1:15 p.m. Students are not permitted to use the office telephone or cell phone to ask for books, homework, shoes, permission, etc.

Cell Phone Policy The use of cell phones during school hours is not tolerated. We understand that students are given the use of cell phones for safety and to contact parents/guardians in case of an emergency when they are attending after school activities. Cell phones will be confiscated from any student who uses a cell phone between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. on school property. Text messaging is prohibited during school hours. Our Lady of Mount Carmel School will not be responsible for any misplaced or lost cell phones brought to school by students. It will be the responsibility of the parent/guardian to stop by the principal’s office at the end of the day to pick up the cell.

Volunteering and the Virtus Program
The concern over child sexual abuse is a serious matter. Part of the Cleveland Diocesan plan to prevent child abuse is a program called Virtus. This program teaches people how to recognize child sexual abusers. The Virtus, Protecting God’s Children program consists of many components. The education component helps prevent child sexual abuse by first making every employee and volunteer aware of the issues surrounding child sexual abuse. This awareness session also helps adults to recognize the warning signs of abuse, and shows them the appropriate way to respond to suspicious behavior. The awareness session empowers each person with five steps to help prevent child sexual abuse.

Every person wishing to work with children or young people as employees, coaches or volunteers must fill out a volunteer application, attend this seminar and undergo fingerprinting, background and reference checks. There is a small fee for fingerprinting. The fingerprinting and background check is designed to further assist our students in a safe and Christian atmosphere.

This requirement is a great opportunity for all parents to be more aware of how to protect your child regardless of age and also to know that at any school event your child is safe and protected not just by their function supervisor but also by other parents who are aware of suspicious behavior. Virtus sessions are scheduled periodically throughout the school year.

Volunteer parents (for any event especially field trips and classroom/school events) can not bring with them younger children. When younger siblings are involved the students are distracted, and parents have to take care of their own child. All volunteer parents that will be coming to school to help at any given event are to be approved by the principal before they proceed with the event.

Visitor Policy
We welcome visitors. However, we do ask that you come by the office and sign in. The main office is located on West 70th Street. We will give you a visitor’s badge that we expect you to wear to go into the classroom. Before you leave, please come back by the office to sign out and return the badge. We are working very hard to provide a safe environment for your child. We need your cooperation. We do reserve the right to screen visitors.
If a parent/guardian/visitor addresses any staff member with inappropriate language or behavior, he/she will be asked to leave the school building and cannot re-enter until an agreement has been made with the Principal. Until such agreement has been reached, that individual is an unauthorized visitor, and by virtue of the posted signs is considered trespassing if he/she refuses to leave or re-enters the building. Our Lady of Mount Carmel believes in student confidentiality, therefore, parents/guardians are not permitted to sit in the classroom to observe the class.

Special appointments
If a problem arises with your child, attempt to resolve it with the classroom teacher first before requesting an appointment with the Principal. Please send a note with your child to set up an appointment with the teacher or call the school office. Do not call the convent or the rectory. If you were not satisfied with your meeting with the teacher then make an appointment to talk to the Principal. Making an appointment gives the teacher and principal time to prepare and in the end will be advantageous to your child.