Arrival & Dismissal

Arrival & Dismissal Plan

Principal: Dr. Cynthia E. Farmer
Instructional Director: Dr. LaTonya Williams

Transportation Coordinator: Brian Cuvo, Assistant Principal (301-805-1000, ext. 61174)

Traffic Map

Arrival of Students

To ensure the safety of students and foster independence, parents are encouraged to drop their children off within the circle. Parents must remain in their vehicles during drop off. Do not get out of your car for any reason. If you need assistance in getting your child out of your vehicle, please raise your hand and a staff member will be there to assist you. Please do not drive into the circle in front of the school while buses are present. When you bring your child to school, there will be adults directing traffic. Please follow their directions.

No students may arrive at school until 9:15am, unless they are a Safety Patrol, a member of the Morning Show crew, a designated before school club, or are enrolled in Champions Before and After Care. This includes those students who ride bikes, are walkers, and who are dropped off. There is no adult supervision outside before 9:15am. Parents in the car line must wait until 9:15am and will be directed by a staff member to enter the traffic circle. During arrival, the parking lot will be closed to parents. A video demonstrating arrival procedures will be sent out before the first week of school. For student safety, our school doors are locked at all times. When students are dropped off at 9:15am, they will be directed inside the school building and report directly to their classrooms. If students are buying breakfast, they will report to the Multipurpose Room. Breakfast will be from 9:10am-9:28am. It is highly encouraged that students arrive at 9:15am so they have time to get to their classrooms, unpack, and prepare for the school day. Instruction begins promptly at 9:30am. Students are considered tardy if students are not in class by 9:30am, parents must come into the school building and sign their child in. The child will be given a late pass. Be sure your child arrives at school on time.

Dismissal From School

The dismissal process will begin at 3:30pm. Dismissal will be staggered by how students will get home. Students in Grades K-4 will exit the front of the building (see specific areas below), while students in Grade 5 will exit at the blacktop near Learning Cottage #10. The order for dismissal will be:

1. Champions (Grades K and 1)- A member of the Champions staff will pick students up from their classrooms.
2. Van Riders - An assigned staff member will monitor the students as they exit the building and go to their vans.
3. Bus Riders - Buses will be called in the order in which they If there is a late bus, they will wait in their classrooms until the conclusion of dismissal.
4. Parent Pickup (K and 1) - Kindergarten and 1st grade teachers will release students to their parents from the exterior Kindergarten Your child’s teacher will communicate with you as to which door dismissal will take place for your child’s class.
5. Parent Pickup (Grade 2) - The assigned staff member will then escort 2nd grade students outside to their designated parent pickup This will be the Little Library in the front of the building.
6. Walkers (Grades 2-5) - Students in grades 2-4 will be dismissed as walkers, and will make their way to the front of the building and exit the building to walk home. Grade 5 will be dismissed from the learning cottages, and will walk the path from the learning cottages to the front of the building as they proceed to walk home. This will be done on a rolling basis with each grade being called separately.
7. All remaining students- Grades 2-5 If there is a late bus, these students will be called to the back of the Multipurpose Room.

Important Note: Students in 5th Grade will exit by the gate located near Learning Cottage #10.

Due to safety issues, the traffic circle will be CLOSED to cars for dismissal. The traffic circle will only be utilized by PGCPS buses and van riders by aftercare providers. As a result, there will be no car riders this school year. Students will either walk home or meet up with a parent to go home. Parents who are picking up their child will need to park on the street and walk up to the school to get their child. There will be no parking by the houses closest to the school on Woodhaven Lane. This will ensure a clear path for buses and vans. Please do not block our Whitehall neighbors’ driveways. The parent pick-up location for Grade 2 will be at a designated area in the front of the school building. Parents should not wait at the very front of the building. This will allow us to keep the area clear for students who are exiting the building as well as for van riders who are waiting for their transportation.

Kindergarten and 1st grade students may not walk home by themselves. Students in Grades K-1 must be picked up by a parent, someone on their emergency contact, or walk home with a sibling in Grades 3-5. If walking home with a student in Grades 3-5, parents will need to provide this information in writing to their child’s teachers. Kindergarten and 1st grade teachers will release students to their parents from the exterior Kindergarten classrooms. Your child’s teacher will communicate with you as to which door dismissal will take place for your child’s class. A child’s parent will check in with the assigned staff member and state who they are picking up. Students may not be picked up by a Lyft, Uber, or taxi unless a parent/legal guardian is in the car.  

If there is a late bus or private van, students will wait in a designated location inside the school building. A staff member will be assigned to wait with students. If it is 4:00pm and the late bus has not yet arrived, an administrator will wait with students. The location of students waiting for late buses or vans may change as the year progresses, depending on how many students are waiting on a regular basis.

If a student has not been picked up by the end of dismissal, they will be escorted into the main office where they will call their parents or legal guardians. Students will wait in the main lobby until their ride has arrived. Parents must come into the building, present identification, and sign out your child. Repeated instances of late pick up can result in consequences aligned with the PGCPS Code of Conduct for Families, Volunteers, and Visitors. This can include a call to the Department of Social Services and/or the Bowie Police Department. Whitehall understands that occasionally, there will be circumstances that are beyond your control that will cause you to be late. In these situations, we kindly ask that you contact the school with an estimated time of arrival.

If a student will take a dismissal route that is not part of their regular dismissal, a written note or email must be provided to the front office and your child’s teacher. A parent can also send an email to the teacher and office staff. This will be given to their child’s teacher, who will notify the main office. If this includes going on a PGCPS school bus, a copy of the written note will be made and given to the bus driver. An email request is acceptable. Whitehall Elementary School will not be able to honor a change in dismissal request that is made over the telephone.

NOTE: Please refrain from using cell phones while driving on school property.

Dismissal From School - Inclement Weather

The dismissal procedure will differ from the regular dismissal procedure. On severe inclement weather days, the traffic circle will be opened to parents. A notification will only be sent out if the traffic circle will be opened via robotext. If a message is not sent, Whitehall will have its normal dismissal.

Kindergarten and 1st grade walkers will meet their parents at the back door of the K classrooms they are normally dismissed from. For car riders, a staff member will be working the car line to gather student names to be sent out for pickup. For this reason, it is important that you have a sign on your

passenger-side dashboard with your child’s first and last name, homeroom teacher & grade written or typed in large, bold type, easy to see from someone standing on the sidewalk. Continue to communicate with the school (teacher, office, etc.) in advance if your child will change from a walker to a car rider due to the weather.