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The physical appearance The physical appearance of the school building reflects the care and concern of those who work in and around it. A clean school exemplifies pride of ownership. In order to maintain the school’s appearance, all students, parents, and staff share the responsibility of keeping the school neat and clean. Students are expected to keep the grounds free of litter and debris.PETS AND TOYS For obvious reasons, dogs, cats, etc. create a real problem on the school grounds and cannot be tolerated. Please do not bring your pets to school. Similarly, toys create a distraction and sometimes even a hazard at school. Personal belongings should be limited to clothing worn at school, lunchboxes, and school supplies. If your child has show-and-tell, please instruct your child to leave the item in their backpack until requested to get it out by the teacher. Upon teacher request, your child should return the item to his/her backpack for the remainder of the day.Lost and Found Children should claim personal belongings daily in their classrooms. Parents are advised to write children’s names on lunchboxes, sweaters, coats, etc. Articles of clothing not claimed by the end of each month will be donated to a local Muslim charity. If your child is missing personal belongings, please have them check with the office to search the ”Lost and Found.“Inappropriate Language Any curse word, fowl language, profanity, or any word or phrase that a reasonable person finds offensive and ”off-color“ is subject to Zero Tolerance Policy. In addition, name calling, whether deliberate or jokingly, shall also be considered offensive and is subject to the Zero Tolerance Policy. Students shall be advised of this policy whenever a teacher, student, parent, staff, or visitor reports hearing any inappropriate language, whether it is in a bathroom, a hallway, on the playground, in a classroom, or at a location representing Valley Crescent School, and will be dealt with as any other Zero Tolerance Policy violation. When such a violation exists, the parent will be notified of the word, words, or phrases used and the context in which it was used.Zero Tolerance Zero Tolerance is defined as immediately suspending a student whenever he or she displays behavior that is deemed harassing, violent, destructive, or endangering to self, others or school property. This includes but is not limited to the following:
- The use profanity, inappropriate language, or name calling while at school, a school function or a school sponsored field trip, event, or activity. (PLEASE SEE ”SERIOUSNESS OF INAPPROPRIATE LANGUAGE“ ON NEXT PAGE.)
- Bullying or exclusion of a peer from group activity or play.
- Any physical altercation resulting in injury to self or another.
- Any physical activity that causes deliberate damage or destruction to property, regardless of ownership.
- Brining weapons (guns, knives, switchblades, swords, light sabers, numb chucks, etc.) of any type onto school grounds, weather concealed or displayed, real or toy, regardless of their use, care, or control. NEVER SEND WEAPONS, NOT EVEN TOY WEAPONS TO SCHOOL.
- Possession of any drug, weather prescription, over-the-counter, or illegal. (Please see section regarding illness and medications at school.)
Zero Tolerance violations will be handled in the following manner: - First Offense: The parents will be called immediately to inform them of the offense. School staff will complete a written report, including identification of any witnesses to the event. The student will be ”suspended“ from all school and school related activities for one (1) to five (5) days depending upon the administrations discretion of the seriousness of the event. Homework will be sent with or to the student and he or she will be allowed to make up the school work for the day(s) missed due to the suspension. The work will be due the first day the student returns. There will be no exceptions to this date. Failure to return the assigned work will result in an ”F“ for all assignments not turned in as specified. Upon return to school, the student will be required to make a formal public apology and write on an assigned topic relative to the behavior.
- Second Offense: The parents will be called immediately to inform them of the offense. School staff will complete a written report, including identification of any witnesses to the event. The student will again be ”suspended“ from all school and school related activities for one (1) to five (5) days depending upon the administrations discretion of the seriousness of the event. Homework will be sent with or to the student and he or she will be allowed to make up the school work for the day(s) missed due to the suspension. The work will be due the first day the student returns. There will be no exceptions to this date. Failure to return the assigned work will result in an ”F“ for all assignments not turned in as specified. Upon return to school, the student will again be required to make a formal public apology and write on an assigned topic relative to the behavior.
- Third Offense: If there is a third offense, the student will be sent home indefinitely pending a formal ”expulsion“ hearing with the School Board. The student is now at risk of expulsion from Valley Crescent School for a defined or indefinite period of time. Note that expulsion from Valley Crescent School releases the school from the ”Compulsory Attendance“ state law. The parents would then have to enroll their child in another officially recognized school to continue lawful conduct in regard to the compulsory education of their child. Valley Crescent School must report all students to the appropriate state entity if they become aware of any child not attending school.
Please note, the progressive steps above will be followed and escalated to the next level even if the multiple infractions of Zero Tolerance Policies are not the same types of violations. Saturday School Saturday School is assigned for students who have excessive tardies, or discipline issues. When behavior exceeds the limits of discipline or is of sever nature (such as harassment, injury, property damage, etc.) Saturday School will be implemented. Saturday School is served once a month, when necessary, form 8:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. The student must arrive promptly or he will be required to serve and additional Saturday School. During Saturday School, each student will have a work assignment. Students will be working for four (4) hours straight. They will have one 15-minute break, but will not be allowed to talk or visit with any other students who may be serving Saturday School. Any talking, horseplay, or non-compliance can result in further consequences.PROGRESSIVE DISCIPLINE The following five (5) step system will be implemented to correct unacceptable behavior. Please note the section which details our Zero Tolerance Policy and lists behaviors that will cause the school to skip over the five (5) step policy and take immediate actions. - Step One: The student receives a verbal warning. The staff is instructed to identify the unacceptable behavior and offer some suggestions on how that behavior can be avoided in the future.
- Step Two: The student receives counseling from the staff (teachers, supervisory staff, volunteers, or authorized personnel). The staff is instructed to identify the unacceptable behavior. There will be a meaningful dialogue in which the student will be asked to verbally state what the unacceptable behavior was and try to understand why it was said, done, or used in the particular circumstances. The student then will be involved in coming up with acceptable alternative behaviors that could be used if the situation were to come up again.
- Step Three: The student now has exhibited undesirable behavior or a lack of self-control. The student will again be counseled. In addition, the teacher or staff will call the parents and advise them of all of the behaviors identified in the process to-date. The student is assigned a one (1) hour detention.
- Step Four: The student has again shown a disregard for rules or lack of self-control. The student will again be counseled. In addition, the teacher or staff will refer the student to administration. The administrator or designee will call the parents and advise them of the situation. The student is placed under on-campus suspension and is removed from the class for 1-5 days, depending upon the circumstances, and will do independent study at school. The student is also assigned a one (1) hour detention.
- Step Five: The student who continues to demonstrate a disregard for rules or lack of self-control and continues to engage in unacceptable behavior will be referred to the administrator. The administrator or designee will contact the parents. The student will be suspended for one to five days, depending upon the circumstances. Independent Studies will be sent home during suspension. They are to be completed and returned the first day back in class. If the work is not turned in, the grade will be an ”F“ for all work not returned.
SCHOOL RULES AND POLICIES Valley Crescent School’s goal is for students to become responsible individuals who will contribute to the well-being and prosperity of Islamic Society and Society as a whole. In order to reach that goal, we believe that: TEACHERS HAVE A RIGHT TO TEACH AND STUDENTS HAVE A RIGHT TO LEARN
All students will:
- Be on time and ready to work.
- Behave in a manner that does not disrupt teaching and learning.
- Respect the safety, property, and rights of themselves and others.
- Be cooperative and courteous.
In addition respect the following Islamic rules:
- Girls, third grade and up will wear hijab.
- All boys will wear ties on Fridays.
- All students are to show respect of adults and give kindness to their peers and younger students.
- Bad language is completely prohibited anywhere on school grounds, inside or outside the classroom.
- Respect prayer time by having no side conversations or activities.
ILLNESS AND MEDICATIONS ILLNESS AND MEDICATIONS AT SCHOOL, Instructional time is important, however, if your child is legitimately ill and especially if you know he/she is contagious, PLEASE KEEP THEM HOME and report the absence as noted in the Attendance Policy above. By law, we cannot administer any over-the-counter medications at school. If our child has a prescription that must be administered at school, your child’s doctor must fill out a ”Medication at School“ form and medications will be kept with the administration staff unless doctor indicates self medication is appropriate, such is sometimes the case with asthma inhalers. We do not have a school nurse to assess illness. If your child becomes ill at school you will be called to pick him/her up.ATTENDANCE AND ABSENCE POLICY Valley Crescent School believes that children learn best in a consistent and least interrupted environment. Therefore, please make sure your children are well rested and come to school every day, ready to learn. Please note the school vacation schedule and plan family trips accordingly.
Students who are absent for any reason, must have their parent/guardian call the office by 9:00 a.m. to notify the school of their absence and the nature of the absence. Responsibility for verifying each child’s absence rests with parents as stated in the California Administrative Code Title 5, paragraph 306. An administrator or teacher may require a satisfactory explanation FROM THE PARENT OR GUARDIAN of the student’s absence, either in person or by a written note whenever the student is absent a part or all of the school day. A doctor’s note is required for ALL absences over three (3) consecutive days or three (3) days within a 30 day period.Absences are considered excused or unexcused. Excused absences are for illness or specific family emergencies. All other absences are considered unexcused. As per California Administrative Code, if more than five (5) unexcused absences accrue, a referral may be made to child protective services and/or the parents will be requested to have the issue reviewed by the School Board.If you are going out of town for other than a family emergency, please request an ”Independent Study“ for your child. Independent Study is not an absence when requested at least one week prior to the child being absent from school. LATE PICK-UP School will be dismissed, Monday thru Thursday, promptly at 3:15 p.m. and Fridays and during Ramadan, promptly at 2:00 p.m. For legal purposes, your child must be picked up within 15 minutes of the end of the school day. The school provides no supervision 15 minutes after school dismissal. If you do not pick up your child, you will be subject to the following:
- Charged $5.00 per child for every 15 minutes, or portion thereof, that you are late.
- A referral will be made to the Department of Social Services for child neglect.
The school cannot legally baby sit any child. Please DO NOT request staff to violate this state law.
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