HTS From A to Z

Absence

Parents are requested to call Bonnie Hill in the Health Office at (202) 337-2339 ext. 213 before 8:10am and leave a detailed message if their child(ren) is going to be absent. As a safety measure, we alert parents if their child(ren) is not in school. Please make sure the office has current home/work phone numbers for both parents. Please contact Mary Shannon with any contact changes. Children are expected to be in school unless they are too sick to attend.

Athletics

HTS belongs to the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) and sponsors teams for grades 3-8 in basketball, softball, cross country, and track. All students in these grades who desire to play CYO sports are offered a place on a basketball team based upon skill and grade level. Players from grades 3-4, 5-6, and 7-8 play together on teams. Participation on sports teams requires online registration through the CYO Program as well as a registration fee for each sport. Some scholarships are available. Experienced volunteer coaches are sought from the community and include parishioners, parents, GU students, and other adults from within our community. More information is available on the Athletics page.

Birthdays

Please check with your child’s classroom teacher in advance before providing a snack or treat to commemorate a birthday. Some of our students are affected by food allergies or are otherwise on restricted diets. Invitations to birthday parties may not be sent to school for distribution unless all children in the class are being invited to the party. Out of sensitivity for all of the children, discussion about parities should not take place at school unless all children have been invited. Invitations should always reflect the inclusive policy of the school.

Cell Phones

While students may bring cell phones to school, they MUST be turned off and kept in the student’s locker during school hours. Cell phones may only be used on school property with the express permission of an adult. Inappropriate use of a cell phone will result in its confiscation.

Computer Use

HTS is very proud of the technology we are able to offer our students. Our network allows students to move their files from one computer to another as needed while access to the Internet enables students to research innumerable sites. The faculty strives to integrate technology use to further educational goals and objectives and provides developmentally appropriate guidance to students as they make use of electronic information resources related to the curriculum. Having information-literate students who can evaluate and use information appropriately and effectively is our goal. HTS faculty monitor Internet use and guide students toward the most appropriate information, but families should be warned that some material accessible via the Internet may contain items that are illegal, defamatory, inaccurate, or potentially offensive to some people. However, on a global network, it is impossible to control all materials and users may discover controversial information not consistent with our educational goals. We at HTS believe that the benefits to students from access to the Internet, in the form of information resources and opportunities for collaboration, exceed any disadvantages. Ultimately, parents and guardians of students are responsible for setting and conveying the standards that their children should follow when using media and information sources. To that end, HTS supports and respects each family’s right to decide whether or not to apply for access.

Dismissal

Dismissal is at 3:00pm for both the Lower and Upper Schools (except the third Friday of each month when dismissal is at 1:00pm). Road construction around the school necessitates a flexible carpool system. For the most up to date version, check our website. At 3:15pm, any child who has not been picked up must go to the After School Program to wait for pick up. Parents will be charged a $25 drop-in fee for admission into the Program.

Proper behavior is expected of all Holy Trinity students on the way to and from school, whether walking, carpooling, or using public transportation. Students should walk on the sidewalk and stay off of the church steps and the wall. Students may not change out of their uniforms before leaving school except for sports team practices. At no time will students be allowed to remain outside school, unsupervised, which includes waiting for a ride.

Emergency Preparedness

In the event of a major emergency, your child(ren) will remain at school and be cared for until you are able to pick them up.

Field Day (Blue/White)

Field Day, traditionally held the last week of school, is an opportunity for all students in grades 1-7 to compete for their team’s right to claim the Tiny Titan. Students are assigned to either the Blue or the White team and compete in a variety of activities during the day. Students in PreK and Kindergarten do not compete in Blue/White Day; however, there is a beautiful tot-lot for them.

Field Trips

Class field trips within the city and to nearby points of interest are scheduled throughout the school year in order to take advantage of the wonderful opportunities provided by HTS’s location in our nation’s capital. These trips are designed to supplement the classroom curriculum and always have an educational objective. Permission slips are signed by parents prior to all field trips. No child may attend a field trip unless written permission is given. Parents are sometimes asked to help with driving or to chaperone. Drivers and chaperones need to be VIRTUS Trained.

Food

All students bring their own snack daily to school. Students in PreK and Kindergarten bring their lunch to school daily as well. Early Childhood students eat in their classrooms; grades 1-8 eat in the Upper School cafeteria. Students in grades 1-8 bring their own lunches from home or sign up for the hot lunch program, catered by Garrison Dining Services. Hot lunch is available Monday-Thursday beginning in mid-0September and ending in late May. Our hot lunch program offers a salad bar, a sandwich bar, and a hot entree. Water/juice are also available. The hot lunch schedule is available on our Google calendar. Hot lunch must be purchased for the year.

There are no provisions for refrigeration, so for those bringing lunch from home, please make sure that the contents will stay fresh, even in warm weather. All lunches should be marked with the child’s name. Microwaves are available for student use in grades 1-8. All lunches should be marked with the child’s name.

Pizza Days

Every long Friday in a given month is a “Pizza Day.” Parents of children in grades Pre-K – 8 are able to purchase pizza for their child(ren). This is a program offered by the HTS Student Council and the funds collected are used to offset the operating costs of the Student Council. Pizza Days for the 2011-2012 school year are marked on the Main Calendar page.

Hot Lunch Program

Hot lunch is served four days/week – Monday through Thursday. A yearly commitment is required and payment, either in full or through TADS, is expected at the beginning of the year. In addition, all families who order hot lunch must help serve. The average commitment is once/quarter. More information can be found on the Hot Lunch Program page. Also, a calendar listing lunches being served and volunteer days can be found on the Hot Lunch & Servers page.

Milk

At the beginning of each school year, children may order milk for their school lunches (chocolate, 1% white, or skim) for a small fee. Early Childhood children may order two cartons of milk for each day, one for lunch and one for snack.

Orders for milk, hot lunch, or pizza may be placed online through TADS.

Gavigan Program

Holy Trinity School has developed a special program for children from low-income families who have academic motivation and potential for personal growth. Named after our former pastor, The Gavigan Program provides, in addition to full tuition assistance, additional support services including tutoring, mentoring, summer school, after school tutoring/homework assistance and other services as needed that will help insure that the children will succeed in a competitive environment.

Grading Scale

The following grading scale is used in the Upper School:

93 – 100 = A
85 – 92 = B
77 – 84 = C
70 – 76 = D
69 and below = F

Handbook

A full version of the Holy Trinity School Handbook is available to view/download in DOC and PDF format.

Home School Association (HSA)

For all information regarding the Home School Association (HSA), please visit the Home School Association (HSA) page.

Library

The library is open every day during regular school hours. Penalties for overdue books for Upper School students are as follows:

first notice: return book, no consequence
second notice: return book, one check
third notice: return book, two checks, checks escalate with each notice

Notices are placed in the Tuesday folder.

Special problems? See Mrs. Bland.

Overdue books must be returned before the end of the school day on Friday to avoid the next notice. For all students, if a book is lost, the replacement cost of the book is assessed.

Lost and Found

All items found in the school buildings or on school grounds are placed in the Lost and Found boxes on the ground floor of the Lower School. Clothing not claimed periodically is donated to charity. Parents are asked to identify all children’s clothing with nametags.

Liturgy

Liturgies are held in the Church throughout the school year. All children attend the liturgies. Parents are always welcome. Most liturgies center around a particular holy day or feast in the Church calendar. Various grades, with teacher direction, plan the liturgy in conjunction with a school/parish liturgy planning team. On a rotating schedule, students attend the 8:00 mass in the chapel.

The dates and times for all school-wide liturgies and chapel mass will be announced in the weekly school newsletter and can additionally be found on the Main Calendar page.

Medication

HTS and ADW policies on medication may be found on the Health Office page.

Parking

Parking near the school is difficult. Please use great care and consideration when driving near the school as children do cross the streets as they are leaving. The DC Police Department is extremely vigilant about ticketing for infractions! Signs are posted in front of the school and on the north side of N Street which allow 15 minute parking from 7:30am until 6:30pm (except during HTS’s carpool time from dismissal until 15 minutes after dismissal). Parking for school events held in the evening is usually available at Georgetown Visitation Preparatory High School, just two blocks away at 35th and Volta Place, NW.

School Advisory Board (SAB)

The Holy Trinity School Advisory Board is made up of parents, alumni, parishioners and community leaders appointed by the pastor and principal and charged with advising the school leadership team in the governance of the school and in meeting the school’s mission.

School Hours

The school day runs from 8:10am until 3:00pm for both Lower and Upper School students. Students may be dropped off at HTS beginning at 7:30am. No adult supervision is provided before 7:30am. Children are dismissed at 1:00pm on the third Friday of each month. Early dismissals allow time for faculty meetings and professional development.

Service Projects/Service Hours

Holy Trinity’s Jesuit tradition calls the school to form “children for others” by engaging them in service opportunities at every grade level and encouraging an understanding that service is done in an thoughtful and reflective manner. Recoginizing that inherent in every child is an innate sense of justice, HTS embraces this early state of development to movitave students towards action and a call to social justice. During the course of the year, the students have many oppportunties to participate in service projects on a class-wide and school-wide basis. 7th and 8th graders hae a specific number of service hours that must be completed to meet their graduation requirements.

Examples of school-wide service projects include:

McKenna Sandwich Days: Every Wednesday, students may bring in extra sandwiches. Each week one class is assigned to make extra sandwiches. These sandwiches are given to Martha’s Table for distribution. To find out which grade is assigned to make extra sandwiches, visit the Main Calendar page.

Food Drives: Sponsored and run by the Student Council, children contribute non-perishable items for use by those in need during various times during the year.

Food Bank: Upper School students are given the opportunity to help package and prepare for distribution pre-packaged goods.

Snow and Inclement Weather Policy

HTS follows the snow procedure for Montgomery County as it is announced on the radio. For more information, please visit the Inclement Weather Policy page.

Tag Day/Spirit Day

Consult our Main Calendar page for Tag Days and Spirit Days. On regularly scheduled days each month, students may wear appropriate casual clothes instead of the school uniform. Spirit Days are an opportunity to showcase our school spirit. Students may wear one a number of Spirit Shirts, including past faculty-student basketball shirts, or any of the new designs available throughout the year from the Student Council. On Spirit Days, students may wear tag day “bottoms” described below. Tag Days are sponsored by the Student Council to raise money for charity. A small fee is charged. Clear guidelines are issued for dress on Tag Day/Spirit Day and must be adhered to:

pants – jeans are permitted
shorts – walking length shorts are permitted, no shorts shorter than where the tip of the fingers touch the leg
shirts must cover the midriff
no inappropriate logos or slogans
PE uniform is permitted
shoes may include sneakers or shoes with heals no more than one inch
no flip-flops or open backed shoes
jewelry/make-up/nails – same as uniform days
no pajama pants

Uniforms

The purpose of the uniform code is to take away distractions and undue focus on clothing and accessories. For a detailed description of the Uniform Policy and purchasing information, please visit the Uniforms page.

Virtus Child Protection Training/Volunteers

Holy Trinity School could not operate as successfully as it does without its parent volunteers. The Archdiocese of Washington and HTS require most of our volunteer opportunities to be manned by those volunteers who have received VIRTUS Training. Please go to the VIRTUS Training page for more information.