Manual para padres y estudiantes 2022/2023

At Thompson, we believe that it is our responsibility to prepare students for any of the five doors waiting for them when they cross the stage at their highschool graduation; Four-year university, community college, trade school, military or the workforce.  When we say, “no excuses”, we mean that we will do whatever it takes to help students succeed.  We don’t want obstacles nor excuses to get in the way of your child’s success.  This means we hold high expectations for you and your child.  We will go above and beyond to give your child the skills they need to be critical thinkers, problem solvers and motivated to learn.  

What does this mean for parents? Parents are the most critical indicator of success for students. We NEED your active participation and support! Make sure your child is at school each day, ready to learn. You can expect to hear from your child’s teacher directly. Tell the teacher how best to contact you (phone, note, email). Each day, ask your child what they learned in school. Do NOT accept “I don’t know” or “Nothing”! Also, ask your child about their future. Start with which college they will attend. What will they study? What is the plan for their future? Are they interested in the military or a trade school? These small moments and conversations add up over time into a powerful message for your child’s path to college, trade school, military or the workforce and beyond. Remember, you are your child’s first teacher and we are proud to work alongside you for your child’s success.

School Office Information

School hours for the 2022-2023 school year are 9:20am to 3:50pm.  Doors open for breakfast at 9:05am down by the gym @ the iron gates.  Please do not drop off your child before 9:05am as there is no supervision until then.  Students are considered tardy if they are not in their seats by 9:20am.  

Office hours are from 8:30am - 4:30pm.  If you would like to contact a member of our staff outside of these hours please call the school at 253-800-5800 and leave a message for that person on the school answering machine.

Students will not be allowed to change their normal after school routine without a note or phone call from their parents or guardian before 3:00pm.  The end of the school day is often hectic and we cannot guarantee that the message will reach your child after that time.

If you need to contact your child’s teacher during the school day, the best way is by sending an email.  If you call the school, you will be transferred to the teacher’s voicemail.  This helps avoid disruptions to the learning environment.  Each teacher will ask you how best to contact you.  Please let them know.

Office Staff

• Secretary: Casey Wheeler can help with most questions regarding office, school procedures, and Bethel School District information  She can help arrange appointments with Ms.Ramirez and Mrs. Caamano.  

• Registrar: Cherryl Brundage is the first point of contact for the front office.  She is in charge of student records.  She enrolls/withdraws students.

• Health/Attendance Clerk: Maria Sandoval (se habla español)  helps students when they are ill or have minor injuries.  Maria is the person you would contact with attendance questions.

• Counselor: Debbie Schaprio supports the social and emotional needs of students at Thompson.  She supports families by connecting them to resources in the community (mental health, food, crisis services, housing).  In the event of family emergencies, she will reach out to families to offer support.  She is also the 504 and McKinney-Vento coordinator at Thompson.  She works with students in small groups or individually for a variety of reasons related to their social emotional growth.  She supports students through individual and group counseling. 

• Volunteer Coordinator: Patricia Donovan helps communicate school events, fundraisers and PTA information.  She is also the person you would contact to become a school volunteer.

To report and absence:

1. Call the attendance office at 253-800-5893
2. Send a note to the school when your child returns.
3. Log into ParentVue and submit an absence request.

Bethel School District Attendance Guidelines

Attendance is critical to the success of your child’s future.  Missing just two-days per month has a direct impact on graduation rates.  Students with high absenteeism and tardiness are more likely to drop out of school.  If we notice a pattern of absences and tardies, we will communicate with you at the following intervals:    

One Unexcused Absence – Phone call to parent to excuse absence. Parents have 3 days to respond with a note or phone call. 

Three Unexcused Absences – Conference letter mailed home. If no one shows for a conference absences will remain unexcused.

The 7^th Unexcused Absence in 1 month – A Stay truancy petition may be filed with the Pierce County Prosecutor’s office. 

The 10^th Unexcused Absence – A truancy petition will be filed with the Pierce County Prosecutor’s office. Family will be referred to the school truancy board. 

The 5^th Excused Absence in 1 month - conference scheduled with Admin. If no parent/ guardian attends the conference doctor’s notes may be required for future absences.  

The 10^th Excused Absence in a year – conference scheduled with Admin. If no parent/guardian attends the conference, doctor’s notes may be required for future absences. 

Board Docs Updated Attendance Policy - Excused and Unexcused Absences

*Note: Students who have been granted in-district or out-of-district transfers may risk having their transfers revoked based on poor attendance and tardy patterns.   

Students come to the health room for a variety of minor injuries or ailments. In the health room, students will be given ice packs, a bandage, or have their temperature taken when feeling ill. Office personnel staff the health room, with a school nurse on call if needed. Parents will be notified with a note/phone call as needed for injuries or concerns if the health nurse deems it necessary. Office staff members are not allowed to “treat” a student illness or diagnose illness in any manner. 

**** If your child has a life-threatening illness or allergy, medication and an emergency care plan from the school nurse must be on file BEFORE he or she can start school.****

Typical Health Room Concerns: 

• Covid symptoms/exposure- if a student is exhibiting any Covid symptoms or has been identified as a “close contact” or “exposed”, parents will be contacted immediately to pick up their child from school. The school nurse will follow up with the parent as to when that child may return and their next step(s). Students MUST be cleared by the school nurse to return to school following Covid symptoms or exposure.
• Fever - if a child has a temperature of 100.4 or higher they MUST be sent home. Temperature should be normal for 24 hours before returning to school.
• Vomiting - parents will be contacted and the child sent home if they vomit at school.
• Head Lice/Nits - Bethel School District has a “no nit policy”. This means that students with head lice or live nits will be sent home and will be checked before returning to class.
• Head Injuries - if your students has a head injury, you will receive a phone call from the health This is a precautionary step to inform you of the injury.
• Bathroom Accidents - the health room has a limited supply of clothing. If you think your child may have an accident at school please keep extra clothing in their backpack. Students that get wet from playing at recess will need to call home for a change of clothing.
• Medication - ALL medication is kept locked in the health room including over the counter medication such as cough drops or Chapstick. In order for a student to use medication at school the nurse must have an Authorization for medication at School form filled out by the doctor and parent. The medication must have the prescription label on it and it must match the medication order form that was submitted by the doctor.

https://www.bethelsd.org/health

Our goal is to keep children in school as much as possible.  Our protocol is to send students back to class if they are not showing any symptoms after a brief rest and observation.  Sometimes, we notice a pattern of health room visits from children who try to avoid classwork, if this becomes noticeable, we may contact you to discuss.