Arrival and Dismissal Procedures

Dear Meadowbrook Families,

We know the first day of kindergarten is a big milestone—full of excitement (and a few butterflies). To support a smooth, reassuring start on the first day of school only, kindergarten parents/guardians may park in the front parking lot and walk their child to the main office entrance. Our staff will be ready to greet you and your child.

Beginning Day 2 and beyond (new this year), we’re implementing a morning safety plan:

• Front Parking Lot Closed Daily, 8:45–9:05 AM
  To promote safe, calm arrivals, the front lot will be blocked to all vehicles during this window. Last year, inconsistent use of the lot created unsafe drop-off situations. This change eliminates those risks.
• Bus Loop Closed Until All Buses Unload
  The bus loop is not open to cars during arrival. Once the last bus has dropped off, staff will remove barriers/cones to signal the loop is open for curbside drop-off only. Please do not park or leave your vehicle in the loop. Timing may vary slightly day to day based on bus arrivals.
• Fostering Independence for Our Youngest Mustangs
  After the first day, we’ll help kindergarteners walk to their rooms so they can build confidence and independence. Our friendly staff will be stationed throughout the building to guide students safely to their destinations.

How you can help:

• Please use district busing as the primary mode of transportation whenever possible.
• Use the Saddle Up line only if you live outside the busing limits.
• Have backpacks zipped and goodbyes said before unloading to keep lines moving safely.

Thank you for partnering with us to keep all students safe and to help our newest Mustangs grow their independence from day one. If you have questions, please reach out.

Sincerely,
Mrs. Danielle Archie
Principal, Meadowbrook Elementary
DanielleArchie@wlcsd.org | (248) 956-2700

MORNING BELLS:

First Bell rings at 8:50 a.m. - Students enter the building. Meadowbrook staff will open the doors.

Second Bell rings at 8:55 a.m. - Students should be in their classrooms. Exterior Doors lock at 9:05 a.m. If arriving after 9:05 a.m., use the buzzer at the front door to gain access to the building.

It is an expectation that our students arrive at school on time and are in their classrooms prepared to learn at 8:55 a.m. every day that school is in session. Students that are not in their classroom at 9:05 a.m. will be marked tardy starting at 9:06am. Tardy students must be signed in at the main office by an adult. If you need to drop off prior to 8:40 a.m., please contact Prime Time Care. Do not leave your child at the school doors unattended.

Dismissal Procedure:

We stagger our dismissal process. Below, you will notice the order in which we release our students. The dismissal process starts at 3:45pm.

1. Saddle Up Pick-Up (starts at 3:45pm and ends at 4:05pm)
2. Walkers Released
3. Prime Time Care Sent to Their Location
4. Bussers - Called to Dismiss as Busses Arrive

The school day ends at 4:00 p.m.. Any transportation changes need to be communicated to your child’s teacher or by calling the Meadowbrook Office before 3:00 p.m. at 248-956-2700. It is an expectation that students attend for the entirety of the school day. Children picked up early will be given an early dismissal, which is equivalent to a tardy on their attendance. Please arrive promptly to pick up your child. Students that are not picked up at dismissal (by 4:05 p.m.) will go to Prime Time Care and you will be billed accordingly.

On 1/2 days, dismissal is at 12:35pm. We do not have lunch at school on 1/2 days.

To allow for the safe arrival and dismissal of all Meadowbrook Elementary students, we will be limiting the number of cars in our carline each day. All students designated as bus riders will be asked to utilize our transportation services both in the morning and afternoon. Saddle Up pick-up is limited and only available for School-of-Choice students and walkers (students that live in the MBE attendance area that do not have an assigned bus) and not registered for daily Prime Time Care. We request that eligible families please fill out our Saddle Up form for the upcoming school year. Saddle Up will be available on a first come, first serve basis and will be limited to the total number of participants.

Students that ride the bus will follow the process listed below:

Bus Riders in the morning - Students riding the bus will be dropped off in the bus loop and allowed off the bus just before the first bell.

Bus Riders in the afternoon - Students riding the bus home will exit through the main doors. Staff will assist all students.

LATE BUS HOTLINE
248-956-5199

All late buses will be listed on the hotline if the driver is running TEN OR MORE minutes late.

***In the event of an emergency or accident, parents will be notified by a Skylert email or personal phone call.

Students fall into one of the three categories for their transportation needs:

- Saddle Up drop-off/pick up

- Walker

- Busser

Below, please find information regarding all three categories.

On behalf of the entire staff, we appreciate and thank you for adhering to our school procedures. Together we can create a safe and optimal learning environment at Meadowbrook Elementary School.

• Car drop-off should begin no earlier than 8:40 a.m. As a reminder, exterior doors lock at 9:05 a.m.

• DO NOT drop your child off early. Before school congregation is not permitted and supervision will not be available.

• Pull forward as far as possible along the curb and wait for a staff member to direct you to unload.

• Cars are not permitted to pass other cars in the drop-off line. This is critical to ensure safety for all students!
  

• CHILDREN MUST EXIT THE CAR ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE (CURB SIDE ONLY) WITHOUT ASSISTANCE. They must be able to unbuckle their seat belt/car booster and open and close the passenger door independently. This may mean that you need to disable child safety locks. Parents must remain in their vehicle at all times.

• Staff will monitor the drop-off line and there will be staff to help your child inside the building to help them find their classrooms.
  

In an effort to keep the students safe and keep traffic moving, we ask that if you are driving your child to school, you utilize the drop-off line rather than walking your child to the front door.

Saddle Up Pick-Up is a dismissal system that allows parents to pick up their children without coming into the building to sign out.

• To mitigate excessively long lines of vehicles for dismissal, we ask all families wo are eligible to to utilize the bussing service if possible.
• Enter the south parking lot and pull up to the end of the curb.
• Your Saddle Up Pick-Up name/number sign must be clearly visible to the staff member on duty. The staff member will alert the classroom that you have arrived for pick-up.
• Your student will then be dismissed and will exit the doors through the gymnasium. Under the direction of a staff member, your child will be permitted to enter your vehicle on the driver's side. Please do not get out of your vehicle to assist. We will have staff members on site who are able to assist if needed.
• You should arrive no earlier than 3:45 pm to pick your child up.
• While waiting in line, please adhere to kind, considerate, and safe driving procedures. Make sure that your vehicle is not blocking driveways while waiting on Meadowbrook Road. Pull as far forward as possible and keep moving forward with the traffic. Students will enter/exit your car when you are stopped after pulling completely forward at the curb.
• It is possible for other adults to be authorized to pick-up your child. Make sure you give that person an extra labeled “Saddle Up” sign to present for your child. All drivers must be on the green emergency card of the children they pick up.

Students who are walkers will follow the process listed below:

• Arrival - students wait outside for the first bell to ring. Do not arrive before 8:40 am, as we do not have supervision outside.
• CORRECTION Dismissal - Walkers will be released out 2 side doors. One door, positioned closest to Meadowbrook Road from the lower elementary hallway doors, and the other, positioned closest to 13 Mile Road. ALL student walkers will be escorted out of the school doors by MBE staff to the sidewalks adjacent to Meadowbrook Rd.
• Students that walk home are dismissed at 3:50PM. Please make sure to stand on the opposite side of the crosswalk, and we will walk your child to you.
• Families - PLEASE DO NOT ENTER THE BUILDING - no one should be in the vestibule or hallways without prior approval.

On most days, the routine is the same for of our children. However, we understand that circumstances arise and plans may need to be changed. If you have to deviate from your regular end-of-the-day routine, we ask that you send a note to your child’s teacher (which will be sent to the office) on that date. Email will also work. We just ask that the office staff is copied on the email (kellanwatkins@wlcsd.org and jenniferschloegl@wlcsd.org). Be sure to include the following details in your note:

1. Date

2. Your child(ren)’s name

3. Details of the change in plan (For example, “they are not to ride the bus, I will use car rider to pick them up today.” Or, “we have a dentist appointment at 3:30 pm and I will need to pick them up in the office at 3:15 pm).

We strongly discourage any parent pickups in our office at the end of the day unless there is an emergency or early release needed for an appointment. Students are expected to be in school for the entirety of the school day. If you need to pick up your child from school for any reason at the end of the day, this must be done BEFORE 3:30 PM. After 3:30 PM, students will use one of the tiers of dismissal above.

We cannot have parents congregating in our main office at the end of the day.

• Parents who pick up their children BEFORE 3:30 PM must buzz in at our main office.
• Our secretaries will let the parent enter and sign their child out.
• Secretaries will check ID if you are not a guardian that we are familiar with.
• Your child will be called down to meet you there.

STUDENTS WILL NOT BE CALLED OUT OF CLASS AFTER 3:30 PM. This is a great disruption to our dismissal process.

The staff at Meadowbrook Elementary are firmly committed to student safety and we regularly review our procedures and practices. Therefore, I wanted to share and/or remind you with you some key information regarding student arrival and dismissal.

• Families are not allowed to wait in the vestibule or hallways - it impedes our process causing too much congestion.
• If you are driving your student to school in the morning, you need to use our drop-off & pickup loop in the back of the building.
• Pull as far forward as possible to keep the traffic flow moving. Never allow your student to exit on the passenger’s side; they will be in the path of parking lot traffic.
  
• Please do not pass cars in the loop. Safety first!
• Please do not park in the front loop. This is reserved for busses only!
• Students should be ready with their belongings to exit the vehicle and should exit from the driver's side only.
• Arrive on time to avoid truancy.
• Early dismissal is when you take your student out of school before 3:58pm. This will result in an early dismissal and documented in your student's attendance records.

In addition to safety, and an orderly arrival and dismissal process, one of our other priorities as educators is to foster independence in our students. We want them to develop confidence in their ability to navigate on their own. Teachers and staff will be visible and readily available to assist students. It is going to be a wonderful school year. Thank you for your partnership!

Danielle Archie

Principal: daniellearchie@wlcsd.org

Denise Roth-Childs

Principal's Secretary: deniseroth-childs@wlcsd.org

Important Phone Numbers:

Main Line: 248-956-2700

Attendance: 248-956-2790