OPERATING POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

Arrival and Departure Procedures

• For the safety of all children please drive slowly and with great care in our parking lots.
• Parents and children must hold hands when walking to and from their car and the school. 
• When dropping children off for school they must be escorted by an adult into the classroom.  Prior to leaving, please be sure that a staff member is aware that your child has arrived.
• Children should arrive to their class at their scheduled class time.  Arrival time is not to be earlier than 5 minutes before class time.
• If a different adult will be picking up your child, please make sure to notify the teacher or assistant teacher of the adult's name.  Arrangements with the school must be made in advance in order for another person to pick-up your child.
• Pickup is expected promptly at the end of the scheduled class time.  If a parent is consistently late for pickup the teacher will first remind them of the pickup time.  If this continues, the director will speak with the parent and if the problem is then not resolved the parent will receive a letter telling them that if they are late again their child will be withdrawn from the program.

Behavior Policy

• At St. James' Nursery School, each child is respected as an important and unique individual who has the right to learn in a supportive, risk-free environment. It is our goal to offer this environment for optimum achievement.  Our goal is to help our children learn to function in a social classroom environment and to help them develop self-discipline to control their impulses. Children need guidance, reinforcement and rules from the beginning in order to learn respect for their own and others health and safety. 
• Most children at our school readily adapt to the classroom environment. However, occasional unacceptable behaviors will manifest themselves in the classroom environment. This is natural and our teachers are extremely capable of handling most disruptions with minimal disturbance to the class.
• Although it is our desire for each child to have a successful experience at St. James' Nursery School, unacceptable behaviors may result in immediate expulsion.
• Behaviors which endanger other students such as, but not limited to, biting, spitting, hitting, pushing and kicking, require an administrative response in addition to an immediate disciplinary response on the teacher's part. When these behaviors occur teaching staff will begin documenting and will talk with the parent.  
• The parents of a child who is having problems may be asked to pay       the cost of an extra aide for their child's satisfactory adjustment to the      program.
• In the case of repeated disciplinary problems, the staff and teachers will meet with the parents to discuss strategies that can be implemented at home and school in order to improve the child's behavior.
• In cases of continued incidents following conferencing and working with parents, expulsion may become necessary to protect the other children and/or the classroom environment.

Allergy Statement

At St. James' Nursery School we endeavor to provide a safe environment for all children.  Each child must have on file a completed Student Allergy Information Sheet signed by the parent.  We will take all reasonable precautionary measures to ensure your child's well being.  In doing so, please be advised that for your child's health and safety protection, we post information concerning children's allergies in an area that is accessible to all staff. However, in the case of food allergies, you may be asked to provide your child's snack.  Medications can only be kept on school premises and administered by staff with an accompanying Medication Order Form completed by the parent. Parents are encouraged to speak to the Director and their child's teacher concerning special needs and allergies.

Nut-Free Facility

To ensure the safety of children with dangerous nut allergies, we make every effort to ensure that our classroom environments are free of nut products.  We do not use nut ingredients in cooking projects or in snacks.  We ask parents to avoid nut products and products containing nuts when bringing in special birthday, holiday and picnic treats.

Health Policy

• Our health policy is defined in order to protect the well child and promote the best environment for the sick child. Children in good health are expected to attend school each day. If a child shows obvious behavioral or dietary change or other symptoms which could precede an illness, please consider keeping the child at home.
• Should a child exhibit any of the following symptoms within 24 hours before school, the child MUST remain at home: Fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, undiagnosed rash, boil, on-going cough, congestion, non-clear runny nose, "pink-eye", head lice, or any of the contagious diseases. A child must also remain at home for 24 hours AFTER the symptoms subside.
• Teachers (with the approval of the Director) may refuse to accept children who exhibit any of the symptoms listed above.
• The school is to be informed at once if a child contracts a communicable disease.
• A child who, due to a temporary health condition, cannot play outside should remain at home or arrangements can be made with the teacher to pick up the child prior to outdoor time.
• Should a child become ill at school, a parent will be called. The decision to allow the child to remain will be made by the Director and teacher.

Incidents, Injury or Accidents

An Incident Report will be completed by staff on the day of an injury, incident or accident. Parents will be asked to sign the report at pick-up time.

Emergency Preparedness Plan

There are plans in place for both the Main Street and Annex locations.  Evacuation points are the Mt. Airy Baptist Church and the Mt. Olive Church Building, respectively. Plans are in place to handle emergencies such as tornados, thunderstorms, winter storms, etc. Drills are practiced monthly and staff review plans annually. Each classroom has a Ready-to-Go Kit that contains copies of children's emergency cards.

Medical Emergencies

• In the event of an accident, appropriate first aid procedures will be administered. If necessary, emergency medical services will be called, and if deemed necessary, the child will be transported to the hospital by ambulance. The parent will be notified as soon as possible.
• When an ambulance is called to the school to transport a child as a result of an injury or illness, the patient becomes the responsibility of the paramedics with the ambulance service upon their arrival at the scene. The Director or designate may assist the technician for the comfort of the patient. However, the Director or designate is no longer responsible for decision making or care of the patient.
• The Director or designate will accompany the child in the ambulance or follow by car.
• Parent will be notified that the child is being taken to the hospital; if the parent cannot be reached at the time, a child needing attention in an emergency situation will be sent to the hospital and the parent reached as soon as possible.
• Ambulance procedure is to transport the person to the nearest or most appropriate hospital. The particular unit is the decision of ambulance personnel.

Suspected Child Abuse or Neglect Procedures

State law requires staff members to report any suspected child abuse to Protective Services. Failure to report such an incident is against the law.

Smoke-Free Facility

St. James' Nursery School is a smoke-free facility.  Smoking is not permitted in the building or on the grounds of St. James Main Street and Annex locations.  This also applies to all St. James functions; including field trips.

Permission to Photograph, Videotape or Audiotape

Throughout the school year, St. James' Nursery School may use your child's photograph, video image, or voice for educational and informational purposes, with or without identification by name.  If you do not wish to have your child appear in a videotape or photograph or have his/her voice reproduced on tape, please notify the director in writing.  It is assumed that parents and guardians consent to their children being photographed, videotaped, or audio taped unless written notification is received.  If you do not wish to have your child's name or likeness published by the media, you should address your concerns directly to the director in writing.