School & Student Policies

STUDENT ATTENDANCE

Students are late after 9:00am. Students are expected to be at school and on time every day.

To minimize disruptions to instructional time, we ask all teachers to take attendance at 9:00am prior to the start of the instructional block. While we do our best to update the attendance in the main office for late arrivals, students who arrive more than 15 minutes tardy may at times be erroneously marked as absent if the absence is not changed to a tardy once the late student arrives.

Please notify the main office by calling us at 202-576-6226 or emailing Ms. Cruz evelin.bercian@k12.dc.gov if you receive an incorrect absence notification and we will update this.

As a reminder, student dismissal begins at 3:15pm and ends at 3:30pm. Students who are not registered for our afterschool programming must be picked up by 3:30pm.

Students who are being picked up for early dismissal must be picked up by 2:45pm. Students will not be dismissed between 2:45pm-3:15pm as they will be in transition.

ARRIVAL AND DISMISSAL REMINDERS

Student Arrival

Students may enter our building at 8:40am. All students will enter the building through our Farragut Street entrance and will be directed to their grade-level lines upon arrival. Students are late for school after 9:00am.

Car riders will utilize our “Kiss and Ride” drop-off line on Farragut Street. John Lewis staff will be on-hand to support unloading students from cars in the “Kiss and Ride” line and to assist with traffic. There is no parking allowed in front of our building on Farragut Street. This space is reserved for student drop-off only. Please review the enclosed map.

Student Dismissal

Student dismissal begins at 3:15pm and students will be dismissed from assigned exits, based on their grade-level.

Pre-K: Farragut Street Exit

K – 1st Grades: Farragut Street exit

2nd - 5th Grades: Gallatin Street exit

If a student has a younger sibling, they should meet at the pick-up location of their younger sibling. All students must be picked up by no later than 3:30pm.

Early Pick-Up of Students

Our school hours for students are 8:40am – 3:15pm, Monday through Friday. We understand that Doctor's appointments and unforeseen circumstances may sometimes require that students be picked up early from school. Students being dismissed early must be picked up by 2:45pm. Students will not be dismissed between 2:45pm-3:15pm as teachers and staff are completing end of day activities and preparing students for dismissal during this time.

IMPORTANT REMINDER: As you know, dismissal is one of our busiest times of day. To help our staff keep your child and their classmates safe, please remember the following procedures for dismissal:

1. The dismissal zones map outlines the areas around the school that are designated for parking, student loading, and no parking. Pay special attention to the area that is marked as “student loading”—if you are in this area you are expected to stay in your vehicle and only exit to help load your child into the car. Please review this map and share it with anyone else who regularly picks up your child from school. There is no parking allowed in front of our building on Farragut Street or Gallatin Street.
2. Under no circumstances, should you double park in front of the school building to allow your child to get loaded into your car. Farragut Street is narrow, and cars that are double parked, even for just a few minutes, prevent cars in our quick pick-up line from being able to exit and create space for other vehicles and can create unsafe conditions for students and families.

Thank you for doing your part to help keep all students in our JLES family safe!

STUDENT CELL PHONE POLICY

We recommend that students do not bring cell phones or other electronics (tablets, gaming devices) to school. We realize, however, that there may be instances in which a student needs to have his/her cell phone before or after school (for communicating with family, etc.). We have created a fair cell phone policy, and we ask families to respect this and reinforce it at home. We also ask that parents DO NOT call or text their students during the school day. If you need to reach your child or if there is an emergency, please contact the main office.

The usage of cell phones is prohibited during school hours. In all grades, students may activate their cell phones before entering the school building and after leaving the school building. However, cell phones should be powered off as soon as students enter the school building and placed in backpacks prior to entering the building.

Students who violate this policy will have their phones taken and a parent will be called. An administrator will return the phone at the end of the school day. Multiple violations of this policy will require a parent or guardian to pick up the phone.

TRANSPORTATION

All DCPS students are entitled to the Kids Ride Free program, which allows students to ride for free on Metrobus, the DC Circulator, and Metrorail within the District to get to school and school-related activities. The program uses an electronic Kids Ride Free pass that must be loaded onto students’ DC One Cards. Click here to sign up for a DC One Card or call the DC One Card Helpline at (202) 727-6030.