Welcome Tiger Families!

Thanks to our fabulous PTO, supplies ordered online from schoolkidz by May 31 will be delivered to the school for our "Meet the Teacher" event.

We also have lists of the school supplies for 2025-26 so that, if you prefer, you can purchase the supplies on your own from any source convenient to you.

7:20 AM Students may enter the building & report to classrooms.

7:35 AM Bell rings as warning 5 minutes before Tardy Bell

7:40 AM Classes begin -Tardy Bell rings.

Late students must pick up a tardy slip in the office.

10:00 AM Attendance is taken.

3:00 PM Students are dismissed.

3:15 PM Students must be picked up by this time.

Extended Care is an after school child care option at WCHE. You may contact the Office of Community Programs for information regarding registration for this program.

The front office is open from 7:20am - 4:00pm

phone: 512.533.7500

Bus routes for the 2025-2026 school year will be available in Transfinder, an independent web-based boundary and routing system. Please note, some routes and pick-up and drop-off times will be adjusted from the previous school year.

Also, did you know that you can receive alerts regarding arrival times, delays and other updates regarding our transportation services? To do so, be sure to create an account in our SMART tag Parent Portal.

If your child will be riding the bus this school year and you have yet to enroll in transportation services, you may request services by selecting the ‘Transportation Update Form’ in Skyward Family Access. Additionally, if your contact information is not updated in Skyward Family Access, our Transportation Department will not be able to correctly identify your child’s bus route. Be sure to visit the Transportation Department web page for additional resources.

We look forward to providing a safe and enjoyable experience for students who will be riding our school buses this year.

We can provide an exceptional educational experience for your child, but he/she must be here on time and stay all day in order for us to do so.

Arrive before 7:40 and stay until 3:00 every day.

However…

...they can’t learn if they are ill, and others will miss learning opportunities if your child is contagious. Do not send your child to school if he/she:

•Is under doctor’s orders to stay home.

•Has had fever over 100 degrees within the last 24 hours.

•Has had diarrhea in the last 24 hours.

•Has pink eye.

Otherwise, we encourage you to send your child to school. If he/she is not well enough to stay the entire day, the nurse will send him/her home.

If your child is unable to attend school, please note that information in SMART Tag by 1:45 pm on the day of the absence. If you are unable to update SMART Tag, a handwritten note will be required upon the student’s return to school. The note should state the date(s) of the absence(s) and the reason for the absence(s) and should be provided within 3 days of the absence This is in accordance with district policy.

When you take your student to the doctor, please provide us with a doctor’s note confirming the student’s appointment.

A written excuse is required if a child is injured and unable participate in physical education. If a child is excused from PE participation, he/she will also be excused from recess.

• Please have your child/children ready to exit the car prior to entering the drive (ie. backpack on).

• Allow your child to exit anywhere on the sidewalk, rather than waiting until you are directly in front of the doors.

• Stay in your vehicle once you enter the drive. We are happy to assist your children!

• Please allow enough time for morning traffic (especially on rainy days).

• All car riders should be dropped off from the car rider lane only.

• For the safety of your child, do not let your child exit your car and walk between parked vehicles.

• The car loops are one way at all times!

• We encourage you to carpool and arrive early if possible.

West Cypress Hills Elementary utilizes SMART tag as our on-line dismissal management system. It is dependable, easy to use, and can be updated by parents and guardians from the convenience of their smart phones, tablets, and PCs. We use the instructions shown in SMART Tag to determine the way you wish for your Tiger(s) to go home at the end of the day. It is not necessary to email, text, or phone the teacher or the school to report dismissal changes. It is necessary that you enter your dismissal instructions in SMART Tag and verify that the information saved in SMART Tag is correct and current.

Through the on-line dismissal management system, you can:

• report student absences,
• schedule early departures from school,
• report late arrivals to school,
• schedule after-school activities such as scouting, enrichment classes, taekwondo...,
• and make transportation changes as late as 2 PM the effective date of the change.

Parents can help us ensure your child is dismissed according to your plans by doing the following:

Transportation changes: The greatest challenge we have at dismissal time is to give correct instructions to students when families change their transportation plans frequently or change them late in the school day, causing confusion with the students and staff as to where the child is supposed to go at dismissal (bus, car, or walker).

• Please note that you can make transportation changes in our dismissal management system, SMART Tag, when the need arises, but it is best to be as consistent as possible. To help eliminate dismissal confusion for your child, dismissal changes should be rare.
• If your child will be going home an alternate way, please make the change in SMART Tag on or before the day of the transportation change. If you do not receive a confirmation email reply, please contact the front office by phone at 512.533.7500.
• Please understand that the safety of your child is of vital importance to us. To avoid errors and confusion, transportation changes cannot be accepted after 2:00 PM the day of the change.
• It is important that students complete their school day; thus, early dismissal should be a rare occurrence reserved only for emergency situations. For the safety of students, please do not schedule an early dismissal for the purpose of signing out a student between 2:30 and 3:00 pm.

Siblings: Whenever possible, it is best if all siblings utilize the same method of transportation and that they check with each other when they are meeting for dismissal. A student who notices the sibling is not there can alert a staff member in time to help us catch mistakes before they happen.

There are 6 dismissal options:

• School Bus

• Car Rider

• Walker

• Escorted Walkers- an ADULT must be present to walk with the student. (Highly encouraged for K/1 students)

• Unescorted Walkers- will be released without a guardian/adult present

• Bike Rider

• Daycare Bus

• Extended Care

Please plan ahead when checking out your student early for an appointment. Parents picking up students during the day will need to sign out the student through the Receptionist. Students are called from class once the parent arrives.

Dismissal changes must be made before 2:00 pm.

1. Online meal pre-payments can take up to 24 hours to process.
   • The My School Bucks service charges a convenience fee of $2.49 for online credit card deposits up to $240.00 (as of 12/11/2017).
   • The overall convenience fee for the max credit card deposit is 1%. LTISD Food and Nutrition Services does not receive any revenue from this fee. Heartland School Solutions funds their service via this transaction fee.
2. Free pre-payments are accepted in cash or check at your campus cafe.
   • For proper account credit, cash or check pre-payments must be in a labeled envelope with student ID# and full name. Checks should be made payable to "LTISD."
3. If you deposit money at your school cafe, the money is immediately available for students at the campus only. It is available district-wide the following business day.
4. Due to the volume of transactions, any discrepancies in charges or deposits must be reported within five operating business days.
   • Please allow up to 10 operating business days for resolution of a discrepancy.
5. In all instances, students will not be allowed to purchase snacks or a la carte items without a positive balance in their lunch account!
6. For lunch account refunds and adjustments, please fill out a Refund/Transfer Request Form located in the Forms section of our website.
7. You may sign up for My School Bucks to utilize transaction history and other features for free. There is only a charge when using the online credit card deposit service.
8. For more information, call 512-533-7990 or email foodservice@ltisdschools.org

District Dress Code Prohibits the Following

•Bare midriffs

•Backless or strapless tops/dresses

•Beach wear

•Spandex, biker, or short shorts ( shorter than fingertip length)

•Muscle shirts

•Baggy pants or shorts

•Trench coats or dusters

•Hats

Items That Do Not Belong at School

•Weapons, including pocket knives

•Toy or virtual weapons

•Tobacco, tobacco products, and electronic cigarettes

•Drugs, alcohol, or drug paraphernalia

•Skateboards, rollerblades, or shoes with wheels

For a more detailed list, see the district Student/Parent Handbook and the Student Code of Conduct.

It is our priority to keep students and staff safe and focused on high quality education. Therefore, all VISITORS MUST BRING A PHOTO ID EACH AND EVERY TIME THEY VISIT OUR CAMPUS TO SIGN IN AND OBTAIN A VISITOR'S BADGE. The badge verifies that you have checked in the office, presented proper identification and made clear the purpose for your visit. In addition, you must have a pre-scheduled meeting with your child's teacher in order to have a parent-teacher conference.

For the first two weeks of school, we will not have visitors for lunch. This allows students time to adjust to school procedures as well as build relationships with classmates.

Deliveries of forgotten items to students should be limited to emergencies only so that important instructional time is not interrupted. Parents needing to drop off a lunch or other school items to their child(ren) will be able to do so by dropping the labeled item(s) in the drop box located outside the office area.

Labels should include:

NAME:

GRADE:

TEACHER:

Items will be delivered to the students as soon as possible.

• Our President for the 2025-2026 school year is Cassie Anundson and the Vice President is Kate Lennox.

• Join PTO today and support our Tigers!

• Visit the PTO website

• Our PTO has its own Social Media outlets and Newsletter

Communication is key to a thriving and growing community. We frequently communicate with families via our Tiger Talk newsletters, our school website, and via social media. Our PTO is fabulous about getting information to our families, too! We appreciate feedback and questions from you, and here are some communication tips to help us ensure that we receive your messages.

1) Please always start with the teacher. Often times the teacher can help clarify or answer questions without the need for a middle man.

2) Please always assume positive intent. Though it is inevitable that there will be concerns or questions, please know that it is never my, or any of my staff's, intent to upset students or parents.

3) Seek to clarify & avoid making assumptions. Sometimes something happens, and we assume we know the reasoning or the entire story. However, once we clarify with the appropriate teacher or staff member, we realize the situation was different than what we initially thought. Adult perspectives and student perspectives are often different, so please take the time to calmly and respectfully talk to the staff member to get a true understanding of a situation.

4) Go to the source. (Facebook is not a reliable source). If you have questions or concerns, please reach out to the school. Often times social media leads to higher emotions and misinformation. Please remember that my staff is human also. They are members of this community. Their children play sports with your children. They may go to your church. You may have mutual friend groups. It is not helpful to any relationship to write negatively about your students' school(s) or teachers.

5) Do not speak ill of your students' teacher(s). This can damage the respect, authority, and relationship between student and teacher. Little ones hear and pick up on more than you think.

6) Most of all, please remember that we value your partnership. We strive to create and maintain relationships with our students and their families, because that is when the true magic of learning really happens.

Useful Links

LTISD Bus Transportation

WCHE Student Arrivals Arrival Map

WCHE Student Dismissal Dismissal Map

Food and Nutrition Services (FANS)

West Cypress Hills Elementary

Email: WCHPrincipal@ltisdschools.org
Website: https://wche.ltisdschools.org/
Phone: 512-533-7500
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ltisdschools

X: https://x.com/wcheprincipals