Welcome Guide for 2020-2021 - Early Childhood Development Center - St. James ...

!

        Welco me Gu i d e
                   for
Ea rly C hi l d h o od Develop ment C enter
                2020 -20 21

June 28, 2020

Dear Parents of New Students,

I hope all is well with you and your children this summer. As you prepare your child to enter a new
school, our faculty and staff are hard at work preparing for a safe reopening of St. James Day School and
Early Childhood Development Center. I hope you received our Head of School Bridget Henderson’s
June 25th email about our reopening plans. As discussed in her email, our priorities are to (1) to
maintain the number of our current instructional days; and (2) to minimize the number of days our entire
campus would engage in Distance Learning.

With these goals in mind, we have modified our calendar to start two days early on August 5th and to
include Make-up Days, which may be used to offset disruptions because of COVID-19. Additionally, in
the event of an extended building closure for the Day School, the Early Childhood Development Center
will reopen after a 14-day quarantine period.

We are reviewing guidelines from our state and local governments in addition to the CDC and the AAP,
and we have a COVID Task Force assembled to help shape our plans moving forward. While the
landscape may look a little different in the fall, we are confident we will still provide the same excellent
education for children in a warm and nurturing environment.

In the enclosed packet you will find information to help you start orienting. I’ve included a contact list
for the administration, Back to School information, uniform guides, parent communication protocols,
and volunteer opportunities. You will receive information more specific to your child’s class in July. We
look forward to seeing you and your adorable little ones for our Meet the Teacher Day on Wednesday,
August 5th. I also hope you will join us for a Virtual Back to School Breakfast with other St. James
families on Saturday, August 8th. More information on the times and details for these events are in the
enclosed packet.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me at 225-344-0805 x2253 or jspaht@stjameseds.org if you have any
additional questions. I’m looking forward to partnering with you to make this a successful transition for
your family. On behalf of the teachers, staff, and other families in our community, we are all thrilled
you are here.

Sincerely,

Julia Spaht
Director of Admissions

1. The Basics

School Mission:
St. James Episcopal Day School, a ministry of St. James Episcopal Church, is committed to developing
each child’s unique gifts by providing a strong foundation combining academic excellence and spiritual
formation within a warm, loving Christian community.

School Mascot:
The Pelican

Administrative Contact Information

Address                                               Director of Early Childhood Development
445 Convention Street                                 Center
Baton Rouge, LA 70802                                 Janine Borne (ext.2207)
Office Number: (225) 344-0805                         (225)344-0805
Fax Number: (225) 343-4873                            jborne@stjameseds.org

Rector                                                Director of Accounting
Chris Duncan                                          Amy Jackson
(225)387-5141 (ext. 1226)                             (225) 344-0805 (ext. 2236)
cduncan@stjameseds.org                                ajackson@stjameseds.org

Head of School                                        Director of Admissions
Bridget Henderson                                     Julia Spaht
(225) 344-0805 (ext. 2240)                            (225) 344-0805 (ext. 2253)
bhenderson@stjameseds.org                             jspaht@stjameseds.org

Assistant Head of School                              Director of Development
Donna Lamonte                                         Jennifer Whittington
(225) 344-0805 (ext. 2237)                            (225) 344-0805 (ext. 2246)
dlamonte@stjameseds.org                               jwhittington@stjameseds.org

                                                      Executive Assistant
                                                      Emily Cupit
                                                      (225)344-0805 (ext. 2235)
                                                      ecupit@stjameseds.org

2. Back to School

• Class Placements - You will be notified of your child’s teacher and receive a class list during the last
  week of July. Also be on the lookout for a special piece of mail from your child’s teacher.

• Meet the Teacher will take place in our Early Childhood Development Center on Wednesday, August
  5th from 8:00am to 3:00pm. You will be assigned a 30-minute time slot for you and your child to visit
  the teacher in the classroom. Your scheduled time and teacher’s name will be included on the postcard
  mailed to you mid July. More information on event specifics and safety protocols will be provided.

• Virtual Back-to-School Breakfasts for students in First Year through PreK-3 will take place on
  Sunday, August 9th. Please see the invitation included in your packet.

3. Uniforms and Supplies

Uniforms are required for all students. All regulation uniforms and St. James-specific items for First
Year through PreK-3 students should be purchased at Inka’s Uniforms on Sherwood Forest Court.
Inka’s also sells elastic waistband pants and shorts in toddler and youth sizes for our ECDC students.
Other basics such as leggings, shorts, socks, tights, and bloomers may be purchased elsewhere. Please
use the uniform guide below.

School Supplies
The school purchases all classroom supplies with the supply fee paid at the time of enrollment. For First
and Second Year students, we provide wipes but not diapers. The parents of each new student in the
ECDC will receive a St. James book bag at Meet the Teacher. This bag will go home daily, and students
will use it each year through Kindergarten.

Nap Mat Covers & Blankets
First Year students need to bring a crib sheet to cover their cots for nap time. Second Year and PreK-3
ECDC students need to buy nap mat covers from School Time or Inka’s. Your child should also bring a
blanket labeled with the child’s name for nap time.

4. Daily Schedule
*Pre-COVID procedures are listed below. Updated procedures will be communicated closer to the start
of school.

The school day begins at 8:10 a.m. and ends at 3:05 p.m. You will receive more information about your
child’s daily and weekly schedule at Meet the Teacher.

After 8:15 a.m., parents MUST accompany children to the front office in Werlein Hall to check in using
the School Check In computer system.

St. James offers Extended Care from 3:05pm until 5:30pm. We will send registration instructions for
Extended Care in mid-July.

5. ECDC Carpool

GENERAL PROCEDURES
• Siblings of ECDC students, will always use our carpool, even when the ECDC student is not at
  school. Keeping it the same for students and teachers is best practice.
• Please stay off your phone during carpool.

•   The route: From North Blvd. turn onto Fifth Street and then cross over Convention, staying on Fifth
    Street. Pull to the left in front of the St. James Early Childhood Development Center. We have 8
    spots, so please pull all the way up to the sign marked “Carpool Begins Here.”
•   The entire carpool route will be on Fifth Street. We will never be in the Convention Street carpool
    line.
•   Please have the blue carpool number visible in your window.
•   Please try to place car seats on driver side of vehicle for safer and easier entrance and exit.
•   If severe weather or any other reason delays or cancels carpool, you will be notified via email and
    text.

MORNING CARPOOL
• Early drop off is at 7:30. You can pull up to the ECDC and unload your early drop off students. We
  will have staff at the gate to help and open doors for you.
• Morning carpool will begin at 7:50 and end at 8:10. A staff member will exit the gate to signal
  carpool has started.
• Once you pull up to the curb, put your vehicle in park.
• Please wait patiently, while an ECDC staff member comes to your vehicle to get your student/
  students.
• Please pull away after the car in front of you pulls away. Please do not pull around the vehicle in
  front of you.
• If you arrive after 8:15, you will have to go to St. James main entrance on Convention Street and
  check in.

AFTERNOON CARPOOL
• Afternoon carpool will begin at 3:00 and end at 3:15. An ECDC staff member will exit the gate to
  signal carpool has begun.
• Once you pull up to the curb, put your vehicle in park and exit the vehicle.
• Once we see you exiting, we will get your student or students and guide them to your car.
• Once you have your student/students, you are responsible for buckling them in the proper restraints
  based on the Louisiana Car Seat Law.
• Once your student/students is secure you can get back into your car and pull away after the car in
  front of you. Please do not pull around the vehicles in front of you.
• If your student/students are not picked up by 3:20, they will be admitted to extended care and
  charged the fee.

6. Parent Communication
St. James Episcopal Day School has multiple avenues to help you to receive information and stay in the
loop!

Email: Occasional communications from the Head of School, other members of the administration, or
your child’s teacher may be sent via email.

The Scoop:
Our weekly email newsletter “the Scoop” is the primary means of communicating information that
parents need to know for the coming week. All new parents should be receiving the Scoop on Sundays at
this time. In the summer, the Scoop is sent every other week. Email Julia Spaht at
jspaht@stjameseds.org if you would like your email address added or want a grandparent or other friend
of the family to receive our school news.

St. James Website:
The St. James website, www.stjameseds.org, is a great resource for parents. The website contains the
school calendar, monthly lunch menu, special announcements, etc. Parents can often find the answers
to many questions there.

Himama & Seesaw:
ECDC Parents will receive daily reports after check out with a summary of information from the day on
the Himama app. They will also receive regular updates via the See Saw app.

Parent Alert:
Parent Alert is used in priority situations. This includes the electronic telephone message system, text
messages, and all-school emails.

Social Media:
Be sure to like us on Facebook (St. James Episcopal Day School) and follow us on Instagram
(stjames_episcopaldayschool)!

7. Parental Involvement

   •   VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES - Parents can participate in the school in many different
       ways. Parents serve as Room Representatives, Parent Ambassadors, and on committees
       throughout the year for various events, including the St. James Carnival. Contact Jennifer
       Whittington at jwhittington@stjameseds.org if you would like to volunteer.

   •   ANNUAL FUND - The St. James Annual Fund is a giving avenue for all parents, family, and
       faculty to directly impact the future of every St. James student and support our school’s mission.
       Gifts to our Annual Fund support academic enhancements, professional development
       opportunities for faculty, state-of-the-art technology, facility upgrades, and more, helping bridge
       the gap between tuition and the actual costs of educating a child at St. James. Stay tuned for
       more information this fall on how a gift to the Annual Fund of any size can support our school
       and provide an extraordinary education for young children. Email jwhittington@stjameseds.org
       for questions.

   •   CHURCH SERVICES - We look forward to welcoming parents to our weekly Chapel services
       once it is safe to resume them. Please stay tuned for more details.