Good evening Daniel Hand High School students and parents/guardians:
Considering our return to the hybrid model and tomorrow is the beginning of trimester 2, I thought it would be helpful to send several reminders to the school community. The majority of this information was communicated at the start of the 2020-21 school year.
Covid-19 Safety Reminders and Policies
- Staff and students are required to wear a mask while on campus and while inside the building.
- When possible, practice social distancing of at least 6 feet
- Wash/sanitize hands regularly
- Staff and students must follow the traffic flow pattern as indicated by signage on the walls and floors of the building during the four minutes in between each class period
- The building, including the Library Media Center will be open to students from 2:00-3:00 p.m. each school day
- Clubs can meet in-person
- Masks and social distancing will of course still be required
- Students may seek support from teachers on any day but Tuesday
- When seeking support from teachers, students should make an appointment with the specific teacher(s) in advance to ensure our ability to social distance in the classroom
- Students who do not have a specific reason to stay after school will be required to exit the building at 2:00 p.m.
Transportation Information
During the hybrid model, juniors will be given the opportunity to drive to and from school this year. All juniors received a form at the beginning of the year that detailed the process and expectations of this option. Junior parking for each individual student, if approved, will cost $60.00 for the year. Please note that this option is for on-campus parking at Daniel Hand High School.
- If at some point in the school year 100% of the student body attends school full-time, juniors will no longer be allowed to park on-campus. This is due solely because of limited on-campus parking spaces.
- Students in any grade will be allowed to arrive to school late or leave early if they have period 1 or period 6 free in their schedules. Permission forms were sent home with students during the first week of school. All students seeking this option must have permission from their parents/guardians. Students who have permission to drive to and from school can of course provide their own transportation in this scenario. Underclassmen or any students who cannot provide their own transportation can only be transported by their parents/guardians. As an important reminder, students MUST be present for the start of Period 2 per State requirements for attendance purposes.
- Visitors are not allowed in the building. If you need to speak with any staff member, phone calls, email, and virtual meetings will be the platforms used over the course of the school year.
As a reminder, there are over 150 staff members at Daniel Hand and we anticipate that 250-300+ students will be driving to and from every school day. As a result, there will be a significant amount of traffic during arrival and dismissal times. To minimize traffic congestion in the parking lots and driveways, please review the following traffic pattern that must be followed when dropping children off before the school day.
A.M. Dropoff Traffic Pattern:
- Enter the campus from Green Hill Road via the Daniel Hand driveway.
- Take the first left available in the parking lot.
- Take the first immediate right.
- Take the second left.
- Proceed to the drop off area that is in front of the athletic storage shed.
- All students being dropped off should immediately proceed to the sidewalk and follow it to the main entrance to the building.
- Exit the campus via the Polson Middle School driveway.
P.M. Student Pickup:
Student pickup at the end of the school day is located in the back parking lot by the tiger door entrance. Please note that dismissal from school is at 2:00 p.m. and buses depart from the school before 2:10 p.m.
Finally, members of our guidance department are preparing for the typical rush of student requests to add or drop courses in their schedule. As defined on page 25 of The Handbook for Students and Parents, please see below for information pertaining to the drop/add process at Daniel Hand.
Trimester Two Course Information and Reminders
Course Drops/Adds: Student Appeal for a Change in Schedule
A student seeking to drop or add a course must see his/her guidance counselor and complete the Student Appeal for a Change in Schedule form found in the Guidance Office. Students must continue to attend all classes currently on their schedule while the request is being considered. Students are responsible for any make-up work missed as a result of adding a course.
Deadlines for ADDING a course:
- 1.50 credit courses must be added within the first 30 school days of the course.
- 1.00 credit courses must be added within the first 20 school days of the course.
- 0.50 credit courses must be added within the first 15 school days of the course.
*Requests to add a course after the deadline will be reviewed by the Guidance Program Coordinator and Principal.
Deadlines for DROPPING a course:
- 1.50 credit courses must be dropped by the Trimester 2 mid-point of the course.
- 1.00 credit courses must be dropped by the end of the first trimester of the course.
- 0.50 credit courses must be dropped by the mid-point of the course.
Please note if DROPPING a course:
- If a student drops a course prior to the withdrawal deadline above, the course will not appear on the student's transcript or permanent record.
- If a student drops a course after the withdrawal deadline above, the course will appear on the student's permanent record and transcript. "WP" will indicate the student was passing at the time of withdrawal, and a "WF" will indicate the student was failing at the time of withdrawal.
- A change in schedule may be made only if there is evidence of earnest and consistent effort on the part of the student to meet all expectations of the course and the terms for an override are met.
- No course drop will be considered unless the student schedule maintains the minimum enrollment requirements. (See Program of Studies Credit Requirements section).
- As a reference, copies of both the Student Appeal for a Change in Schedule form and the Override Request Application form can be found in the back of the Program of Studies.
Any add request that will negatively impact the balance of a class or classes and/or reduce the ability to social distance in a particular class or classes will be denied. This approach is being followed as the safety of our school community members is the highest priority.
Thank you for taking to time to read this lengthy message. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.
Stay healthy,
Mr. Salutari