News

Principal's Message

Dear Mustang Families,

It’s with great anticipation and excitement that I welcome you to the 2023-2024 school year! Our first day of school is Tuesday, August 15th. We are eagerly looking forward to meeting our new Mustangs, and reconnecting with our returning students. This is going to be a great year filled with endless opportunities for learning and fun school experiences. I hope this letter will provide you with essential information needed to start our school year. I will continue to keep our Monroe community updated with our “Weekly News” sent out via Parent Square throughout the year. The Monroe Office can be reached by phone at 559-585-3745 and is open to the public Monday- Friday, 7:30 am -4:30 pm, beginning Monday, August 7th.  

As we begin this new year, I would like to introduce you to a few new faces you will see on campus:

•    Amy Leslie, Transitional Kindergarten Teacher
•    Bethany Hanke, Kindergarten Teacher
•    Janna Hall, HESD 4th Grade Music Teacher
•    Adrian Jones, School Psychologist
•    Judith Nunez- Lara, Bilingual Clerk Typist
•    Leah Blanco, Paraprofessional

2023-2024 Daily Instructional Schedule
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday
•    Grades TK-K                 8:00-2:07
•    Grades 1st, 2nd and 3rd          8:00-2:27
•    Grades 4th, 5th and 6th            8:00-2:47

Wednesday (Minimum Day)
•    Grades TK-K                8:00-12:00
•    Grades 1st, 2nd and 3rd            8:00-12:10
•    Grades 4th, 5th and 6th            8:00-12:20

Morning Drop-Off
•    School gate opens at 7:15 am
•    Monroe office opens at 7:30 am  
•    All students can be dropped off at the front of the school, near the Monroe office.
o    Please use the designated drive-thru to drop off your student(s). If you chose to use the drive-thru, parents must remain in vehicle and students are encouraged to exit from the right side of the vehicle for safety purposes.
o    Parents that wish to walk their child up to the front of the school will need to park in the parking lot and use the cross walk when approaching the school.

End of the Day Dismissal/Pick-Up
•    Please arrange for your child to be picked up at their designated dismissal time.
•    All students can be picked up at the front of the school, near the Monroe office.
o    Please use the designated drive-thru to pick-up your student(s). If you chose to use the drive-thru, parents must remain in vehicle and students are encouraged to enter their vehicle from right side of the vehicle for safety purposes.
o    Parents that wish to pick-up their child at the school gate will need to park in the parking lot and use the cross walk when approaching the school.
•    Bus Transportation will be provided beginning the 1st day of school
o     Bus routes and times will be sent out via Parent Square, as well posted on the outside of the Monroe office. Copies will also be available inside the Monroe office.
o     If you have any questions regarding drop-off, pick-up or bus transportation, please call our school office.

Classroom & READY Rosters
•    Class rosters will be posted at 4:00 pm on Friday, August 11th on the Monroe office windows.
•    READY rosters will also be posted on the Monroe office windows at 4:00 pm on Friday, August 11th. All questions concerning READY rosters need to be directed to the District READY department at 559-585-3629.

Breakfast and Lunch
•    Breakfast and lunch will be served on campus daily.
•    Student meals are free for ALL students. Please send milk money with your child if they are cold lunch and want to purchase a milk (cost is $.30 each). Milk remains FREE for students who are hot lunch.
•    Breakfast is served daily between 7:20am -7:50 am. Students need to be present prior to 7:50 am to enjoy a breakfast.
•     Students that prefer to bring a cold lunch to school may do so. Additionally, students may bring a snack to eat during their morning recess.
•    Students are not allowed to share food items with peers. Please do not send large portions, intended for sharing with others.

School Supplies    
•    Our school provides all our students with needed materials such as notebooks, pencils, etc. We do ask that your child comes to school with a backpack. If you are needing assistance with getting your child a backpack, please give the Monroe office a call.


Dress and Grooming
•    Please see information below.  
TK , Kindergarten and Special Day Class Meet and Greet
•    On Monday, August 14th, from 3:00-4:00 pm, we will be holding a meet and greet event for all our TK, Kindergarten and Special Day Class students. Parents/guardians and students will be able to meet their TK, Kindergarten or Special Day Class teacher and walk through their classroom.

Parent Square System
•    All school communication will happen through our communication program, Parent Square. All parents of actively enrolled students are automatically enrolled in the Parent Square system. If you should update your phone number, please notify the school office, so we can ensure that you will receive Parent Square messages.

To maintain a safe and efficient first day of school, only parents/guardians of our TK, Kindergarten and Special Day Class students will be able to walk onto campus and assist their child to their classroom line. We are limiting this to 2 individuals (maximum) per child. Additional staff will be present on campus to assist our 1st-6th grade students to their classroom line.

If you have any questions regarding any information provided in this letter, please give our Monroe office a call at 559-585-3745.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Levinson
Principal
Monroe Elementary School
(559) 585-3745

jlevinson@hanfordesd.org

SIGN UP FOR TEXT MESSAGE REMINDERS

Dear Parents & Guardians,

We are excited to let you know that this year we'll be using ParentSquare to communicate with you!

ParentSquare provides a safe way for everyone at school to connect.

  • Receive all district, school and classroom communication via email, text, or app
  • View the school and classroom calendar and RSP for events
  • Easily sign-up to volunteer and/or bring items
  • Securely receive report cards, IEP's and other important student documents

Activate Your Account

If you haven't already activated your account you will soon receive an invitation email or text to join ParentSquare.  Please click the link to activate your account, it takes less than a minute.

You can use ParentSquare on any device.  You can download the free mobile app for iOS or Android or use the desktop version at www.parentsquare.com.  Our goal is for every family to join ParentSquare and engage with our school community.

Please feel free to contact Mrs. Baker, jbaker@hanfordesd.org if you do not get an invitation.

 

Monroe Bus Routes 2023-2024

Click to Download

Bus Route

Monroe Elementary Bus Routes 2023-2024

23-24 Bus Routes

 

Student Transportation

For optimal safety, security and most importantly, consistency for all students, please make sure your child knows how they will be getting home at the end of the day.  Any changes to your child's transportation after school will only be accepted until 9:00 am each day.  Exceptions will be made for extreme emergencies only.  Please help us keep your child safe and secure by adhering to this policy.

Kindergarten students will not be dropped off at their stop if there is not an adult present to take responsibility for the student and they will be returned to the school. 1st-6th grade students do not require an adult to be present at the bus stop. If your 1st-6th grade student requires assistance getting home from their bus stop, please ensure there's is an adult present to meet them, as no parent is required to be at the bus stop.

Student Pickup

Monroe Parking Lot:

  • Please only enter East entryway during your child's dismissal time.
    • Kinder: 2:07 pm
    • 1st-3rd: 2:27 pm
    • 4th-6th: 2:47 pm
  • If you arrive earlier than 5 minutes prior to your child's dismissal time, you will be asked to please park in the parking lot or you may circle around so that parents can pickup students who are already dismissed.
  • Kinder students will exit through the West gate near the cafeteria, all other students will exit through the East gate by the basketball courts.

Bus Area:

  • Only students riding the bus will be allowed to exit through the Cortner parking lot area.  

Cortner Gate:

  • For the safety of our students, all students will enter and exit through the front of the school. 
Monroe School Site Council & ELAC Meetings

Monroe School Site Council & ELAC Meetings

Monroe School Site Council Meetings and ELAC are on the following dates:  

SSC #1 -

SSC#2 - 

SSC#3 - 

SSC#4 - 

AGENDAS CAN BE FOUND ON IN THE PARENT DOWNLOADS https://monroe.hanfordesd.org/parent-downloads  

 

Learn from Home Resources

Learn from Home Resources are posted on our HESD website. You will notice that resources are organized by grade level spans: TK-2nd, 3rd-5th, and 6th-8th. Please check out the resources to support continued learning for your child!
Thank you for your support!

https://www.hanfordesd.org/.

Classroom Interruptions

Student instruction time is the most valuable resource offered by the school district. Schools shall make every reasonable effort to eliminate unnecessary interruptions and activities that result in the loss of academic learning time.

Most communication is done via email in order to preserve class time and minimize interruptions to class time.  If a situation arises in which a message needs to be passed along to your child, please notify the office by 9:00 am.  This gives the teacher the opportunity to check their email at lunch and pass the message along to the student.

Messages received after 9:00 am have no guarantee of making it to your child.

We appreciate your assistance and cooperation with this matter.

Foggy Day Information

Here are several resources for you to know whether we will be on a foggy day schedule:

You can reach the Hanford Elementary Foggy Day Line at (559) 585-3652

You can tune in to PBS Channel 18 (Comcast Channel 8, Direct TV Channel 18 and Dish Channel 18) or KMJ Radio 580

If we are on a foggy day schedule, we will be listed as HANFORD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DISTRICT

    Plan A: Buses are two hours delayed. Classes start on time.
    Plan B: Morning buses are canceled. Classes start on time.
    Plan C: Afternoon buses canceled

You can also sign up for our REMIND text alerts and reminders and you will receive a text if we are on a foggy day schedule.

To subscribe to this text messaging service:

Via text: @hesdmonroe to 81010. You can opt-out of messages at anytime by replying, '@leavehesdmonroe'.

Trouble using 81010? Try texting @hesdmonroe to (559) 422-5145 instead.

Student Supervision

Before School: There will be no adult supervision on campus before 7:15 am. If your children ride a school bus, adult supervision begins upon arrival of the first bus. If your children walk to school or you drive them, do not allow them to come onto campus before 7:15 am.

After School: Supervision on campus after students are dismissed is until 3:00 pm at the designated pick up area in the Monroe Circle. All other students must leave the campus immediately after school is dismissed.

Visitors on Campus

No one will be allowed open access to the campus.  In the afternoon, parents may wait for their child’s dismissal in the designated areas only.  We ask parents please wear a face mask while on school grounds.

 

HESD Mission

Everything we do must be for the expressed purpose of improving teaching and learning, therefore:

“Our mission is to provide an educational environment which reinforces basic cultural values, ethical behavior including respect for others, personal integrity, responsibility and accountability.  We will work together to provide students with a safe environment in which they can discover their potential and strengthen their motivation for living and learning.  As tomorrow’s leaders, students will be prepared to participate and function effectively in society.