Parents not allowed in school

[Anonymous]

As previous posters have stated this is the climate we live in and school safety takes priority over open campuses to parents. Maybe there was an incident last year that prompted the change?( ex: a parent without parental rights shows up and sees their child, etc.).

Teacher emails at DCPS are [e-mail] . Just email even if the teacher didn't explicitly give the email address out.

[Anonymous]

depends on how shady the area is the school is in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We had countless meetings where parents tried to fix the communication issue. It never amounted to anything. And parents would see the teachers downstairs, not in the class. For some parents at the school, that is the only opportunity. I am sure that the communication issue will continue this year. DCPS central office had to come to the school to deal with the parental complaints last year for many reasons. We were told that there would be some meetings in the summer to improve these issues this school year and there were no meetings. Instead, this letter was sent home.

what kind of communications issues? are you expecting more than parent-teacher meetings, homework calendars, Bloom messages? My kid has an IEP and I barely had more than maybe 3 hr total personal communications with her (and that included IEP meetings). Of course I would have loved more, but I didn't feel entitled to it. she worked really hard for the class as a whole.

The issue is not non communication from teachers, that was not a problem for me. It was the lack of communication about things happening/ going on at the school as a whole. Therefore, you usually had to step in and ask someone. A perfect example would be getting a last minute call about an event or a couple parents would ask if you knew about an event happening at the school. You would go the the office and the office staff would say that they weren't aware of it. Then you would sometimes catch a staff member who could clarify. There were also some dangerous things that occurred last year and no letter would be sent home about it. You would hear it from your child or another parent. You would step in in the morning and catch the principal and ask her. I like to know what's going on in my child's school. Most parents tried to get information from the principal by email to no avail. Yes, we already had meetings at the school regarding this. This is not about hanging out or bothering teachers. My teachers communicated very well online.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We had countless meetings where parents tried to fix the communication issue. It never amounted to anything. And parents would see the teachers downstairs, not in the class. For some parents at the school, that is the only opportunity. I am sure that the communication issue will continue this year. DCPS central office had to come to the school to deal with the parental complaints last year for many reasons. We were told that there would be some meetings in the summer to improve these issues this school year and there were no meetings. Instead, this letter was sent home.

what kind of communications issues? are you expecting more than parent-teacher meetings, homework calendars, Bloom messages? My kid has an IEP and I barely had more than maybe 3 hr total personal communications with her (and that included IEP meetings). Of course I would have loved more, but I didn't feel entitled to it. she worked really hard for the class as a whole.

The issue is not non communication from teachers, that was not a problem for me. It was the lack of communication about things happening/ going on at the school as a whole. Therefore, you usually had to step in and ask someone. A perfect example would be getting a last minute call about an event or a couple parents would ask if you knew about an event happening at the school. You would go the the office and the office staff would say that they weren't aware of it. Then you would sometimes catch a staff member who could clarify. There were also some dangerous things that occurred last year and no letter would be sent home about it. You would hear it from your child or another parent. You would step in in the morning and catch the principal and ask her. I like to know what's going on in my child's school. Most parents tried to get information from the principal by email to no avail. Yes, we already had meetings at the school regarding this. This is not about hanging out or bothering teachers. My teachers communicated very well online.

NP here. That sounds incredibly irritating. Is this a Charter or DCPS? If DCPS, you can always go up the chain to the instructional superintendent. And there is a whole team of community engagement people who you could contact. This is actually a big deal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We had countless meetings where parents tried to fix the communication issue. It never amounted to anything. And parents would see the teachers downstairs, not in the class. For some parents at the school, that is the only opportunity. I am sure that the communication issue will continue this year. DCPS central office had to come to the school to deal with the parental complaints last year for many reasons. We were told that there would be some meetings in the summer to improve these issues this school year and there were no meetings. Instead, this letter was sent home.

what kind of communications issues? are you expecting more than parent-teacher meetings, homework calendars, Bloom messages? My kid has an IEP and I barely had more than maybe 3 hr total personal communications with her (and that included IEP meetings). Of course I would have loved more, but I didn't feel entitled to it. she worked really hard for the class as a whole.

The issue is not non communication from teachers, that was not a problem for me. It was the lack of communication about things happening/ going on at the school as a whole. Therefore, you usually had to step in and ask someone. A perfect example would be getting a last minute call about an event or a couple parents would ask if you knew about an event happening at the school. You would go the the office and the office staff would say that they weren't aware of it. Then you would sometimes catch a staff member who could clarify. There were also some dangerous things that occurred last year and no letter would be sent home about it. You would hear it from your child or another parent. You would step in in the morning and catch the principal and ask her. I like to know what's going on in my child's school. Most parents tried to get information from the principal by email to no avail. Yes, we already had meetings at the school regarding this. This is not about hanging out or bothering teachers. My teachers communicated very well online.

NP here. That sounds incredibly irritating. Is this a Charter or DCPS? If DCPS, you can always go up the chain to the instructional superintendent. And there is a whole team of community engagement people who you could contact. This is actually a big deal.

Not to prolong this topic, but it is a DCPS school. The school has a history of great academics, being very welcoming and even relying on parental volunteers. I am sure that anyone from this school knows the school that I am referring to. We approached the principal regularly with concerns and she would give non answers ( vague and with no follow-through) . Parents and staff started complaining to higher ups. They dealt with it by having these meetings set up with her and the parent body again with no answers or follow through, just gathering parents feedback and promising to address it at a later date. The dysfunction at the school is that parents and staff get their information from each other not from a website, newsletter, or anything else. We have had serious things occur at the school. Sometimes it's not serious but lack of information coupled with a new policy about parents not being able to enter the building gives me concern. I am sure that this is to prevent scrutiny of how the school is run. I just wanted to know if other parents dealt with this. I am seeing that they have . As far as the other part, I will just focus on my child's education and not worry about the chaos or transfer schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We had countless meetings where parents tried to fix the communication issue. It never amounted to anything. And parents would see the teachers downstairs, not in the class. For some parents at the school, that is the only opportunity. I am sure that the communication issue will continue this year. DCPS central office had to come to the school to deal with the parental complaints last year for many reasons. We were told that there would be some meetings in the summer to improve these issues this school year and there were no meetings. Instead, this letter was sent home.

what kind of communications issues? are you expecting more than parent-teacher meetings, homework calendars, Bloom messages? My kid has an IEP and I barely had more than maybe 3 hr total personal communications with her (and that included IEP meetings). Of course I would have loved more, but I didn't feel entitled to it. she worked really hard for the class as a whole.

The issue is not non communication from teachers, that was not a problem for me. It was the lack of communication about things happening/ going on at the school as a whole. Therefore, you usually had to step in and ask someone. A perfect example would be getting a last minute call about an event or a couple parents would ask if you knew about an event happening at the school. You would go the the office and the office staff would say that they weren't aware of it. Then you would sometimes catch a staff member who could clarify. There were also some dangerous things that occurred last year and no letter would be sent home about it. You would hear it from your child or another parent. You would step in in the morning and catch the principal and ask her. I like to know what's going on in my child's school. Most parents tried to get information from the principal by email to no avail. Yes, we already had meetings at the school regarding this. This is not about hanging out or bothering teachers. My teachers communicated very well online.

NP here. That sounds incredibly irritating. Is this a Charter or DCPS? If DCPS, you can always go up the chain to the instructional superintendent. And there is a whole team of community engagement people who you could contact. This is actually a big deal.

Not to prolong this topic, but it is a DCPS school. The school has a history of great academics, being very welcoming and even relying on parental volunteers. I am sure that anyone from this school knows the school that I am referring to. We approached the principal regularly with concerns and she would give non answers ( vague and with no follow-through) . Parents and staff started complaining to higher ups. They dealt with it by having these meetings set up with her and the parent body again with no answers or follow through, just gathering parents feedback and promising to address it at a later date. The dysfunction at the school is that parents and staff get their information from each other not from a website, newsletter, or anything else. We have had serious things occur at the school. Sometimes it's not serious but lack of information coupled with a new policy about parents not being able to enter the building gives me concern. I am sure that this is to prevent scrutiny of how the school is run. I just wanted to know if other parents dealt with this. I am seeing that they have . As far as the other part, I will just focus on my child's education and not worry about the chaos or transfer schools.

It does sound serious. But the issue is not access --it's communication. Seriously, call or email these people. https://dcps.dc.gov/page/family-engagement

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We had countless meetings where parents tried to fix the communication issue. It never amounted to anything. And parents would see the teachers downstairs, not in the class. For some parents at the school, that is the only opportunity. I am sure that the communication issue will continue this year. DCPS central office had to come to the school to deal with the parental complaints last year for many reasons. We were told that there would be some meetings in the summer to improve these issues this school year and there were no meetings. Instead, this letter was sent home.

what kind of communications issues? are you expecting more than parent-teacher meetings, homework calendars, Bloom messages? My kid has an IEP and I barely had more than maybe 3 hr total personal communications with her (and that included IEP meetings). Of course I would have loved more, but I didn't feel entitled to it. she worked really hard for the class as a whole.

The issue is not non communication from teachers, that was not a problem for me. It was the lack of communication about things happening/ going on at the school as a whole. Therefore, you usually had to step in and ask someone. A perfect example would be getting a last minute call about an event or a couple parents would ask if you knew about an event happening at the school. You would go the the office and the office staff would say that they weren't aware of it. Then you would sometimes catch a staff member who could clarify. There were also some dangerous things that occurred last year and no letter would be sent home about it. You would hear it from your child or another parent. You would step in in the morning and catch the principal and ask her. I like to know what's going on in my child's school. Most parents tried to get information from the principal by email to no avail. Yes, we already had meetings at the school regarding this. This is not about hanging out or bothering teachers. My teachers communicated very well online.

NP here. That sounds incredibly irritating. Is this a Charter or DCPS? If DCPS, you can always go up the chain to the instructional superintendent. And there is a whole team of community engagement people who you could contact. This is actually a big deal.

Not to prolong this topic, but it is a DCPS school. The school has a history of great academics, being very welcoming and even relying on parental volunteers. I am sure that anyone from this school knows the school that I am referring to. We approached the principal regularly with concerns and she would give non answers ( vague and with no follow-through) . Parents and staff started complaining to higher ups. They dealt with it by having these meetings set up with her and the parent body again with no answers or follow through, just gathering parents feedback and promising to address it at a later date. The dysfunction at the school is that parents and staff get their information from each other not from a website, newsletter, or anything else. We have had serious things occur at the school. Sometimes it's not serious but lack of information coupled with a new policy about parents not being able to enter the building gives me concern. I am sure that this is to prevent scrutiny of how the school is run. I just wanted to know if other parents dealt with this. I am seeing that they have . As far as the other part, I will just focus on my child's education and not worry about the chaos or transfer schools.

It does sound serious. But the issue is not access --it's communication. Seriously, call or email these people. https://dcps.dc.gov/page/family-engagement

More:
https://dcps.dc.gov/node/994252


"Regular and Positive Communications
As part of the FEP, teachers receive ongoing training and support to help them establish regular and positive communications with the families of students in their class. School staff learn how to build relationships with families and work with them to set high academic expectations, monitor their child’s progress, and encourage and support learning at home."

[Anonymous]

Parents drop off in the cafeteria, gym or upstairs corridor, depending on age of child.

At the end of the school year last year we had someone wander into the building. Following this, new rules were established and strictly adhered to for entry into school during regular school day and aftercare. Now 109% sign in required.

I appreciate this attention to details. Parents are still welcome, but same conditions apply to all. Checkin with front office, have scheduled meetings with teacher or support staff as needed. I volunteer regularly and have been welcomed always. Now I just sign in.

FWIW, after K, most kids want the independence- no parental escorts!!

[Anonymous]

Issue may more be parking and where you would park your helicopter. Likely that’s more the issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Issue may more be parking and where you would park your helicopter. Likely that’s more the issue.

Name the school if an issue with a lot of parents it wasn't personal, but you can't just have adults wandering around any building unaccounted for these days in any location with young people.

[Anonymous]

Can I buy a vowel?

[Anonymous]

It's normal. As a teacher, I prefer that policy. We have to get them in school mode pretty quickly in the morning. It throws off the routine when parents are around. They go from being "your baby" to a productive member of my team. Put your backpack and coat up, take out your journal, and get to writing. I'm going around collecting homework and getting my team in place. In walks..."her." The mom who has a "quick question" that is neither quick nor a question, but rather an indictment of something I've done. The kids are roaming free, I can't do what I need to do, chaos ensues, and the world explodes.

Save the world...drop your kid off at the door and send me an email.

[Anonymous]

Our school allowed parents into the classroom today, but otherwise kids are dropped off outside (each grade has a designated area for kids to line up). If you want in to the school, you have to sign in with security. The principal said it was for safety reasons--they want to know who is in the building. I think it also helps keep things calmer and more organized in the morning--it would be a bit of a madhouse otherwise.

[Anonymous]

At our DCPS, K kids can be walked in the first few weeks and then dropped at door to classroom by sep. 1-5th graders are dropped at front door of building. But honestly I don’t think they are crazy about enforcing it

[Anonymous]

The downside to this policy is that as a parent I don't get to meet my children's classmates and friends. This is part of the school experience we share as a family and I miss it. Not only do get to meet their friends, but they get to meet us as parents. Also, I don't get to meet other parents to make new school/class friends and plan outside-of-school events, and other activities with fellow classmates and parents...