Southwest Newsletter

All absences are considered unexcused until the school receives a written excuse within three (3) days of the student’s return. Parents/guardians may provide written excuses for up to 10 days per school year. After the 10th day, a doctor’s note is required for any additional absences to be excused.

Acceptable reasons for absence include:

• Illness or medical appointments

• Quarantine

• Accident recovery

• Court appearances

• Family emergency

• Death in the family

• School-approved events

• College visits

• Religious holidays

• Pre-approved educational trips

Please note: Pre-approved educational trips and family emergencies are included in the 10 parent notes permitted each year.

As always, please turn in an early dismissal note before 12:00 pm of that day to Mrs. Sutton in the attendance office.

Tardy and early dismissal minutes will be recorded and counted. If the number of minutes over the course of the school year adds up, they could be counted against your child resulting in an unlawful absence from school.

Please do not bring in food or beverages for your child's class for any reason per board policy 246. The policy is shown below for your reference. Thank you very much in supporting us in this policy!

The school district will no longer be using Class Dojo to communicate with parents. Many families have already signed up for messaging through the PowerSchool PowerHub, which is now our main communication tool.

If you have not yet registered, please use the link below to learn how to sign up and make staying connected with the school and teachers easier:
🔗 PowerSchool Portal Information

Thank you for partnering with us to keep communication strong.

September:

9/4 - Cool Beans coffee truck at SW (11:00 - 1:00 pm)

9/26 - Professional Learning Day (No school for K4-6 students)

October:

10/13 -Professional Learning Day (No school for K4-6 students)

10/23 - SW Rollerskating Party 6 - 8 pm

10/31 - Professional Learning Day (No school for K4-6 students)

School dismissal starts at 3:40 and times are staggered by grade. Please ensure that your child is picked up before 3:55 at the appropriate door. Parents, keep younger brothers and sisters from running around the front door of the school. Please understand that dismissal is not recess and we are doing our best to promote a safe dismissal.

We understand life happens and the occasional late pick-up is understandable; however, we are having many families pick up late on a regular basis. We appreciate your assistance with maintaining a safe and timely dismissal for all students.

My name is Mrs. Jayne C. Hain and I am honored to work as the school counselor at Southwest! I have been the school counselor here from 1996-2000 and 2009- present. As a school counselor, I support the students through our three domains: assisting their social/emotional needs, guiding their academic needs, and teaching career awareness. I do this through classroom guidance lessons, small group counseling, individual counseling, and working with families to connect them to the services or outside agencies that can help their students.

It has been a privilege for me to work with the students of Southwest. I thoroughly enjoy teaching them classroom social/emotional lessons such as conflict resolution, personal safety, how to stop bullying, how to show manners and respect, empathy, listening skills, and career education. I also assist students academically though the MTSS Team (Multi-tiered Systems of Support) if a student is experiencing difficulty with their academics or behavior. One of my other responsibilities is to assist in the learning support process by helping to identify students who could receive academic or behavioral help.

As a counselor, I would be remiss if I didn't add the importance of excellent school attendance! Studies have shown that students learn more and do better academically when they attend school regularly. The Baltimore Education Research Consortium suggests that “students with low attendance in both Pre-K and Kindergarten, often continue to have low attendance; are more likely to be retained by grade 3, and on average have lower academic outcomes than peers with better attendance.” Good attendance is important (less than 10 days absent a year). It is my job to work with the families of Southwest towards better attendance for all.

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to call me at (717) 675-2173 ext. 2 or email me at jhain@lebanon.k12.pa.us. Thank you!

Email: kbensing@lebanon.k12.pa.us
Website: https://www.lebanon.k12.pa.us/southwest/
Location: 1500 Woodland Street, Lebanon, PA, USA
Phone: 717-675-2173
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SouthwestElem