The Thursday Newsnotes are the School's official source of communication and should be read each week. The Newsnotes are sent home weekly and are posted here on the website.

The first day of school each student will be given Health Room and Family Information cards, which must be completed by the parent and returned the following day. It is very important that you inform the School of any changes which occur during the school year, such as home address or phone number, emergency phone number, work phone number, etc. It is imperative that we have on record any physical problems your child has or develops during the school year.

Adult supervision in the schoolyard begins at 7:50 A.M. The School will not assume responsibility for children who arrive earlier than 7:50 A.M.

Students in grades 1 - 6: line up on the playground by 8:10 A.M. Arriving after 8:20 A.M. will be considered late.

Students in grades 7 and 8: go directly to their Homeroom by 8:00 A.M. Arriving after 8:00 A.M. will be considered late.

Adult supervision in the basement of the Kindergarten building at the Sacred Heart campus begins at 8:10 A.M. The School will not assume responsibility for children who arrive prior to that time.

Students in Kindergarten: line up in the school basement. Students will be met by their teacher and be taken into their classroom. They should arrive between 8:10 A.M. and 8:20 A.M.

Only a parent may pickup their child unless express written permission has been given to the school. If someone other than a parent is picking up a child we MUST have a note signed by the parent stating the name of the person picking up their child, the date and time of the early dismissal. We will also ask for proper identification. No child will be released unless the School is certain that it is in accordance with the wishes of the parent

Students who are not picked-up by 3:00 P.M. (1:00 P.M. on the first and third Fridays) will be taken to the School Lobby to await your arrival. Parents must come into the Lobby and sign the Late Pick-up book. Do not allow your children to walk from the school to the Public Library, local shopping centers or street corners to await their carpools.

If your child is absent, the School must be notified by phone between 8:00 A.M. and 9:00 A.M. or by written note to the homeroom teacher. If you know your child will be absent for several days, one phone call will be sufficient; we keep a record of these calls. On the day your child reports back to school, a note from you must be given to the classroom teacher explaining his or her absence. Medical and dental appointments should be made after school hours.

Vacations are not considered excused absences. Vacations should be planned to coincide with the school calendar.

Students who are absent on the day a recorded grade is given for homework, class work, or tests, must take the initiative to hand in the assigned homework, and make up the missed assignment or test. The student must complete the make up arrangements within the same number of days as the student was absent. Make up work after the allotted number of days will not be accepted.

Please do not ask that your child remain indoors during recess or lunch hour. If students are too sick to go outdoors, they should remain at home. The only exception allowed is to those students who have a physician's note.

Children are not allowed in their classroom before the morning bell or at recess without specific permission from the teacher. Whenever students are in a classroom a teacher must accompany them.

In case of an emergency or severe weather, we will follow the decision of the Prince George's County Public Schools. However, if PGCPS begin late (whether one or two hours) on a scheduled half-day, St. Pius will NOT dismiss at 12:45 P.M., but at 2:45 P.M. Whenever school closes early, all after-school activities and meetings are cancelled. ESP (before and after care program) will operate on a modified schedule. Please listen to television and radio reports for all school closings or late openings. If school closes early for any reason, please wait until the announced dismissal time to pick up your children. It is very disruptive to the teacher and other students when numerous children are being called from the classrooms for early dismissals.

Since the St. Pius, Sacred Heart, and Ascension campuses are air-conditioned we will not close for excessive heat even if the Prince George's County Schools do.

The Main Office and Finance Office are open school days from 7:45 A.M. to 3:30 P.M. The Main Office is open in June and August. The Finance Office is open throughout the summer.

Any parent wishing to call the school (both Kindergarten and grades 1-8) for any reason may feel free to do so. The School Office phone number is 301-262-0203.

Parents are not to call the Principal, teachers, or other staff at their homes at anytime. All appointments and phone messages should be made through the School Office.

The office telephone is a business phone and should be used by the students for EMERGENCIES ONLY. Calls by students to arrange after school visits, to have forgotten Tag Day clothes sent to school, to ask for money for special lunches, or other similar requests do NOT constitute emergencies and will not be permitted.

Milk will be provided to students beginning on the first full-day Thursday, September 6, 2007. A milk order form will be sent home with each child on the first day of school and should be returned the next day. Payments must be made by check payable to SPX Regional School.

Students bring their lunches and may purchase milk. The school participates in the Federal Milk Program. Once a month students have the option of having pizza lunch.

All payments or money sent to school must be placed in an envelope clearly marked with your child's name, grade, the amount and purpose of the money. Children sent to school with cash are responsible for it until it is given to the proper person. The children should not bring personal cash to school.

St. Pius X Regional School complies with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations concerning the "Asbestos in Schools" Program. Records giving evidence of this compliance are on file in the Principal's office.

Students are responsible for the proper care of all books, supplies, and furniture belonging to the School. Any student who disfigures or damages school property will be required to pay for this damage. If the school has not been reimbursed for lost or damaged property, report cards, diplomas and/or school records may be withheld.

Report cards are distributed quarterly. Marks are based on the actual achievement of the student according to his or her grade or level of instruction. These marks are based on each student's daily performance, homework assignments, weekly tests, unit tests and in the upper grades, the results of projects, term papers and semester tests.

Conferences for all parents will be scheduled after the first quarter coinciding with the release of the first report card on Monday, November 12, 2007. You will be notified in advance of your scheduled conference time. Please be on time for your conference, the schedule allows little time between appointments. Any conferences held after this date are held at a teacher's or parent's request.

Kindergarten students will not receive a report card until January, however, a parent-teacher conference will be held on Monday, November 12, 2007.

All grades are based on the degree of success the individual student has achieved in completing the program designed to meet his or her needs. Students will be graded according to their abilities and achievements. So that students will be aware of the grading procedures of their teachers, each teacher will give students a copy of their method and procedures. A copy of the teacher's grading procedures will also be given to the parents.

At the midpoint of each quarter (see the School Calendar for dates) notice of unsatisfactory work will be sent to the parents of students who are failing or in danger of failing subjects. After this notification, it is the responsibility of the parent to check with the teacher on their child's progress. Progress Reports will be sent to you through your child. All Reports must be signed and returned to the school the day after they are received. The receipt of a Progress Report does not mean failure for the marking period nor does the absence of a Progress Report guarantee the passing of a subject.

In making decisions on the classroom placement of students the School will consider the following:

1. Girl - Boy balance
2. Familial relationship
3. Ability grouping
4. Recommendations of the Resource/Counseling Center
5. Recommendations of previous year's teachers
6. Teachers' strengths (matching a class's needs with a teacher's strengths)

Parental choice, mixing classes to improve socialization and other commonly requested considerations will be considered only after the criteria listed above have been fully met and as long as it does not impact on the proper placement of other students. All requests for placement must be made in writing by May 15 to Ms. Eileen Masters, Vice-Principal for grades K-5, or to Mrs. Maria Bovich, Vice-Principal for grades 6-8 and must include detailed reasons for the request.

Parents will be notified if there is any possibility of their child being retained in a grade or not being readmitted for the coming academic year.

If a student fails for the year in any of the major subjects (Math, Reading, English or Phonics), he or she will be required to attend summer school. Written proof of attendance and grades received will be required before the student will be promoted to the next grade the following school year. If a student fails any subject for which summer classes are not available, he or she will be required to be tutored in these subjects.

Absolutely no one is permitted to go directly to a classroom. All persons entering the school building must report to the Office, sign in and pick up a Visitor's Pass. Upon leaving the school all persons must report back to the Office to sign out and return the Pass.

Entertainment videos may be shown only during non-instructional time; however, under certain circumstances the Principal may give teachers permission to show videos during other times of the school day. Teachers will check the rating of all videos for age-appropriateness with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Students are given written notification of overdue library materials periodically throughout the school year. All books must be returned or paid for by the end of each school year. Report cards will not be given to children if they have any outstanding library material. Students must comply with library regulations to have library privileges renewed for the following year.

St. Pius X Regional School is a recipient of the Combined Federal Campaign Funds. Please consider designating the children of St. Pius X School by selecting #7448 on your enrollment form.

Field trips and visits to local exhibits are encouraged and permitted provided it has educational value.

Permission for these trips will be cleared with the parents through a written permission slip. This slip must be signed by the parent and returned to the classroom teacher. No child will be permitted on a field trip without this signed permission slip. Phone calls or written notes are not considered acceptable forms of permission.

Transportation and arrangements for all field trips will be made by the School. Parents who are in compliance with the Archdiocese of Washington Child Protection Policy will be needed to act as chaperones on field trips.

Chorus and Band is held for grades 4 through 8. Through chorus and band students are given the opportunity to participate in a large group activity.