Good Evening Gibbon Nation,
We are really excited for the beginning of the new school year and we have had a fantastic first few days of school. It has been fun seeing all the smiling faces, visiting about summer activities, and renewing relationships. Let’s keep up the great work.
Today, we want to continue efforts to share information about procedures designed to increase the level of safety for students, staff, and parents.
Two years ago, the school district changed the drop-off and pick-up procedures after many complaints regarding traffic at the beginning of the school day and at the end of the school day. The major adjustments involved changing the location for picking up and dropping off students and defining what was expected when dropping off and picking up students. Instead of picking students up and dropping students off on the east side of the facility, parents, grandparents, and guardians were expected to drop-off and pick-up students on the west side of the facility. This required the development of a structured process that addressed the flow of traffic, protected students, staff, and parents, and was efficient in terms of time required to safely enter and exit the facility.
Over the course of those two years, we have witnessed a growing number of vehicles who honor the established procedure. We thank each of you for your patience and attention to safety. However, we still have a few vehicles that appear to be unfamiliar with procedure. Believing communication is important, we want to clarify any questions that may exist for any and all vehicles.
The Procedure
Vehicles should enter the drop-off, pick-up area from the south. Most vehicles arrive to the facility via Court Street but there are a few cars that take the private road to enter the drop-off, pick-up area. Vehicles that take the private road still enter the drop-off, pick-up area from the south. There are several options to consider once a vehicle arrives to the drop-off, pickup area. Those include;
- All drivers are asked to follow the established drop-off, pick-up procedures. In the morning, the driver of the vehicle stops and their child moves as quickly as possible to the sidewalk. In the afternoon, the child leaves the sidewalk and enters the vehicle as quickly as possible.
- The driver of the vehicle parks in the designated parking area and walks their child to the sidewalk. Never leave your vehicle vacant in the drop-off, pick-up lane. This option exists for both morning arrival and afternoon dismissal.
- The driver of each vehicle exits to the west and takes the private drive to leave the facility. Please do not travel back across the cement or gravel parking lots where students, staff and parents are walking. By exiting to the west, we increase the level of safety for students, staff and parents.
We have noticed more parents are parking their vehicles in the gravel parking lot to the west. Before and after school. We appreciate their willingness to do so and applaud efforts to keep everyone safe. Thank You. This is another reason why we ask that all drivers exit to the west. We need to keep these parents and their children as safe as possible.
We have also noticed that some parking in the designated parking area has been taken by employees and students. The administrative team is monitoring this and will visit with the owner of each vehicle to clarify where they should park.
One final thought. The quickest way to drop-off and pick-up children is by following the designated procedures. A big THANK YOU for all our parents, grandparents and guardians for your efforts to protect others.
Sincerely,
Dr. Vern Fisher, Superintendent
#WeAreGibbon #FAMILY