News - Monroe Elementary

Principal's Message

Dear Mustang Families,

It’s with great anticipation and excitement that I welcome you to the 2022-2023 school year! Our first day of school is Tuesday, August 9^th. 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 would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. I am Jennifer Levinson and will be your new Monroe Elementary principal. Your beloved past principal, Julie Pulis, is heading to the District Office where she will serve the students and staff of Hanford Elementary in a new capacity as the Director of Curriculum and Instruction. My career with HESD began 13 years ago as a teacher at Monroe Elementary. After spending 5 years as the Learning Director at Simas Elementary, I am overjoyed to come “home” to Monroe and serve as your PROUD PRINCIPAL. Although I am eager to begin, I will be finishing maternity leave and enjoying time with my new daughter until mid-September. In the interim, Mrs. Pulis will be here to support the Monroe community. I look forward to meeting each of you soon!

Health and Safety Measures on Campus:

With COVID still around, HESD will continue to follow safety protocols. Students and staff are NOT required to wear masks but can wear one if they choose.

Safety measures that will continue to be in place:

· Student and Staff Health Screening Checklists to be implemented

· Students will be encouraged to sanitize their hands as they transition through the school day

· Frequent sanitation of high-touch areas will continue through-out the school day

The HESD READY afterschool continues to be an integral part of our school community. Monroe’s READY program is currently at full capacity, but we do have a waiting list that you can inquire about in the school office.

Extra-curricular activities, such as sports and will continue for our 4^th-6^th grade students. There will also be a band (5^th and 6^th), and some extra-curricular clubs. There will be more details on these activities coming soon.

Below are additional important details for the up-coming school year.

Daily instructional schedule:

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday

· Grades TK-K 8:00-2:07

· Grades 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd 8:00-2:27

· Grades 4^th, 5^th and 6^th 8:00-2:47

Wednesdays

· Grades TK-K 8:00-12:00

· Grades 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd 8:00-12:10

· Grades 4^th, 5^th and 6^th 8:00-12:20

For morning drop-off, the school gates will open at 7:15, and the Monroe office opens at 7:30. For morning drop-off, all grades, TK-6^th can be dropped off at the front of the school, near the Monroe office. Parents that wish to walk their child up to the front of the school will need to park in the parking lot. For campus safety, the sliding Corner gate will no longer be open for student drop-off.

For student pick-up, all students, TK-6^th grade will be picked up in the front Monroe parking-lot, through the drive through area. Parents that are walking up to gather their child at the end of the day, please park in the parking lot, then walk up. For student dismissal safety, the sliding Corner gate will not be open at the end of the day for student pick-up. We will be having bus transportation. Bus routes and times are attached with this letter, as well are posted on the outside of the Monroe office, or copies are available inside the Monroe office. If you have any questions regarding drop-off, pick-up or bus transportation, please call our school office at 559-585-3745. The Monroe office is open to the public Monday-Friday, 7:30-4:30.

Breakfast and Lunch:

Breakfast and lunch will be served on campus. All student meals are free for all students. Breakfast is served every day between 7:20 – 7:50. Students that prefer to bring a sack lunch to school may do so. Additionally, students may bring a snack to eat during their morning recess time.

For school supplies, we don’t send out a list of supplies to parents. 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:

As parents are gearing up for back-to-school shopping, please take this opportunity to review our Dress and Grooming Regulation Grid that I have provided along with this letter. According to the HESD Dress and Grooming Regulations, we will continue to not allow any shirts that are tube tops or mid-drifts.

*Please be cautious about girl’s shorts as they need to follow dress code procedures. Many of the girls’ athletic shorts, currently sold in stores, do not meet the dress code criteria. If you need further information or clarification, please don’t hesitate to contact our school office. A new conduct code and parent handbook will be sent home with all students on the first week of school.

Class Rosters:

Student class rosters have been posted on the Monroe office windows. Due to district balancing, there will be no changes to class rosters until after class balancing occurs. Balancing will take place the second week of school.

READY Rosters:

The READY class rosters are posted on the Monroe office windows. All questions concerning READY class rosters needs to be directed to the district office, 585-3629.

TK , Kindergarten and Special Day Class Meet and Greet:

On Monday, August 8^th, from 3:00-4:00, we will be holding a meet and greet event for all our TK, Kindergarten and Special Day Class students. Parents and students will be able to meet their TK, Kindergarten or Special Day Class teacher and walk through your student’s classroom.

This year we are no longer using the Remind communication system. All school communication will happen through our new communication program, Parent Square. All parents of actively enrolled students are automatically enrolled in the Parent Square system. Please make sure that if you update your phone number, notify the school office, so we can ensure that you will receive the Parent Square messages.

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

Sincerely,

Jennifer Levinson

Principal

Monroe Elementary School

(559) 585-3745

jlevinson@hanfordesd.org

Big Smiles - Dental Care

Hanford Elementary has partnered with Big Smiles to offer in-school dental care. Simply complete the permission form or go to www.myschooldentist.com to sign up your child.

There may be no cost to you if your child is insured with Medi-Cal. Private insurance and self-pay options are also available.

Our in-school dental program saves you time and provides a safe and comfortable place for your child to receive gentle dental care from licensed, local professionals. Dental care includes a complete dental exam, x-rays, cleaning, fluoride and sealants when necessary, and in some cases, restorative care such as fillings.

By having your child see the in-school dentist, you can help reduce the risk of:

Early tooth loss caused by dental decay
Gum disease
Heart disease
Impaired speech development

Taking care of your child's teeth is an important part of keeping them healthy.

Permission Form for service can be completed at www.myschooldentist.com

Monroe Bus Routes 2022-2023

Click to Download

	AM		PM			Minimum Day PM
	K-3	4-6	K	1-3	4-6	K	1-3	4-6
STOP	Route/Time	Route/Time	Route/Time	Route/Time	Route/Time	Route/Time	Route/Time	Route/Time
Cameron & Rodgers	2/ 6:54 AM	2/ 6:54 AM	2 / 2:18 PM	2 / 2:43 PM	2 / 3:08 PM	2 / 12:25 PM	2 / 12:46 PM	2 / 12:46 PM
Fargo & Fountain Plaza Dr.	2 / 7:04 AM	2 / 7:04 AM	2 / 2:12 PM	2 / 2:36 PM	2 / 2:59 PM	2 / 12:20 PM	2 / 12:39 PM	2 / 12:39 PM
Glacier Way & Cortner	2 / 7:00 AM	2 / 7:00 AM	2 / PM	2 / 2:33 PM	2 / 2:57 PM	2 / PM	2 / 12:46 PM	2 / 12:46 PM
Jefferson School	3 / 7:36 AM	3 / 7:36 AM	3 / 2:17 PM	3 / 2:35 PM	3 / 2:55 PM	3 / 12:23 PM	3 / 12:33 PM	3 / 12:44 PM
Rodgers & Conquistador	2 / 6:49 AM	2 / 6:49 AM	2 / 2:15 PM	2 / 2:39 PM	2 / 3:04 PM	2 / 12:22 PM	2 / 12:42 PM	2 / 12:42 PM
Rodgers & Water	2 / 6:51 AM	2 / 6:51 AM	2 / 2:17 PM	2 / 2:41 PM	2 / 3:06 PM	2 / 12:24 PM	2 / 12:44 PM	2 / 12:44 PM
Woodrow Wilson	3 / 7:32 AM	3 / 7:32 AM	3 / 2:20 PM	3 / 2:40 PM	3 / 3:00 PM	3 / 12:25 PM	3 / 12:35 PM	3 / 12:46 PM

Times are approximate and every effort is made to ensure the buses run on time. Be sure your child is at their designated stop at least 10 minutes prior to the actual pick up time.

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.

Revised: 8/10/2022

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.

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 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.

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.

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.