School Policies
School Hours
Monday-Thursday: 7:30 am - 3:30 pm (Doors open for breakfast at 7:15 AM)
Bus Students are dismissed starting at 3:05.
Walkers / Pick Ups are dismissed starting at 3:20.
The main office closes at 2:45 pm to prepare for dismissal.
Friday: 7:30 am-12:30 pm (Doors open for breakfast at 7:15 AM)
Bus Students are dismissed starting at 12:15.
Walkers / Pick Ups are dismissed starting at 12:30.
The main office closes at 11:45 am to prepare for dismissal
School Supplies
Required Every Day
Proper Uniform (Policy is outlined in this packet)
Optional as of 7/20/2022: A school-appropriate mask
Required during Day 6 - Day 10 if related to COVID-19 protocols: High-Filtration N95 Mask
Transportation
The transportation company will reach out 1-2 weeks before the start of school if your child is eligible for busing. If your child is not routed for a bus, they will be considered a walker/pick up. We will follow your alternate transportation form that you completed at the time of enrollment.
Please note the eligibility requirements for transportation for each grade level outlined below per Hartford Public Schools:
Grade 5: Scholar must live 1.0 miles or more from school to be considered eligible.
Grades 6-8: Scholar must live 1.5 miles or more from school to be considered eligible.
Required: Complete our transportation form via parentsquare at this link: https://www.parentsquare.com/feeds/13185973 so we are clear on your scholars dismissal plan for the 22-23 school year. New to AF families will have access to parentsquare no later than August 19th, 2022.
Contact Information Update
Have you moved? Do you have a new number? Do you want to add an emergency contact or an email? Please complete and submit the form below so we can send you school notifications or in case of emergency. https://bit.ly/3jDPSLi - Check ParentSquare for the link!
Uniform Policy
Students should be in their school uniform every day for school. There is no longer a separate uniform for PE classes. Our school uniform includes the following:
Black Pants
No jeans, joggers, or athletic pants allowed
Purple Polo or White Button Down Shirt
No plain white, gray, or black polos allowed
Black or Gray Zip-Up or Button Down Fleece/Sweater
A small logo is acceptable (no other colors/etc. i.e. no adidas stripes down the sleeves, etc.)
Sneakers
No crocs, heels, slides or sandals.
FYI/Resources
Our building typically runs cold and we bring scholars outdoors for recess, unless there is inclement weather. We strongly encourage scholars to come to school with either a black fleece, cardigan, or crew neck sweatshirt to have on hand in case they become cold. We also strongly encourage families to purchase a plain black sweatshirt and to have it embroidered with our school logo at Living Word Imprints. Embroidering usually costs ~$8.00 per item. Pro tip: write your scholars name on the tag, in case it goes missing.
Suggested Plain Purple T-shirts for PE/Yoga + Wellness Class (Links can be clicked on ParentSquare):
Suggested Cardigan/Black Fleece Zip Up:
Attendance Policy
School Hours:
Monday-Thursday: 7:30 AM – 3:30 PM
Friday: 7:30 AM – 12:30 PM
Absences:
Hartford Summit believes scholars should not miss any classes under any circumstance. All absences are considered unexcused unless proper documentation from a doctor or approved program is provided. If a student has 10 unexcused absences in a year, the student may be considered truant and is at risk of not being promoted to the next grade. To successfully complete the requirements for a given grade and advance to the next grade, a scholar should not miss ten (10) or more days of school, this includes any absences that accrued from tardies and early dismissals. We also want to take into consideration illnesses and students not feeling well. We ask that you communicate with the main office anytime a scholar will be absent due to illness. You should not be sending your student to school if they are feeling unwell or experiencing symptoms of COVID-19.
CT State Law defines Chronic Absence as missing 10 percent or greater of the total number of days enrolled during the school year for any reason. It includes both excused, unexcused, out-of-school suspensions, and in-school suspensions that last more than one-half of the school day. For example, a student who has been enrolled for the first 30 school days at the beginning of the school year and has been absent three of those days is chronically absent. Please note, CT State Law defines Truant as a student who has 4 unexcused absences from school in one month (30 consecutive calendar days) or 10 unexcused absences in one school year.
Tardiness:
Being on time and ready for class on time is a key to each scholar’s success – at school and in life. Classes begin 7:30 AM each morning. Every five (5) tardies in a year will be recorded as one (1) AF absence. In other words, each tardy is 0.2 or 1/5 of an absence. Excessive tardiness can lead to your scholar being considered Promotion in Doubt, chronically absent under CT State Law, and could face retention.
Early Dismissal:
Early dismissals should be avoided whenever possible. Scholars are expected to participate in all classes until the very end of the day. Every five (5) early dismissals in a year will be recorded as one (1) AF absence. In other words, each early dismissal is 0.2 or 1/5 of an absence.
You must contact the main office by 1:00 pm Monday - Thursday if you need to pick up your scholar for early dismissal. You should schedule doctor appts for Fridays after 1:00 pm.
You must contact the main office by 11:00 am Fridays if you need to pick up your scholar for early dismissal.
The main office will not be able to accept phone calls/early dismissals after 2:45 Monday - Thursday and 11:45 on Fridays due to dismissal/end of day duties.
All families must sign their scholars out for early dismissal at our main office on the 3rd floor. Students will NOT be allowed to leave on their own. No exceptions!
Communication:
A ParentSquare text, robocall, and email is sent every time your student is marked absent for an unknown reason. A personal follow-up call is made Monday - Thursday if you do not contact us or fill out our absence form. Our absent form link is https://bit.ly/HSMSNotify.
Medical Requirements
Immunization requirements
All scholars must have required immunizations, or allowable exemptions, on record prior to the first day of school.
Most new immunizations are required before Kindergarten and Grade 7.
Allowable exemptions:
Medical (Must be valid contraindication and completed by Dr.)
Religious Exemptions are no longer accepted under CT Law as of 04/27/2021.
Annual Physical Requirements
Up-to-date physical exam required for:
7th grade
New Students (new to district)
Must be dated within 12 months or after to be accepted.
Additional support for families/schools
Access Healthcare CT flyer (English and Spanish) includes information for enrolling children in CT’s Husky Health program for low-cost or free coverage.
The State Immunization Program is providing a free flu vaccine to all kids <18.
Proof of Address
Please ensure you are submitting a proof of address (residency) when you are requesting an address change and/or are new to our school. It is required by HPS from us.
Staff Email Contact List
Click here to view our 22-23 staff contact list!
2022-2023 Family Calendar
Please click here to view our 2022-2023 School Calendar.
Main Office Contact Information
We encourage families to reach out to the main office with any questions or concerns, or you may use the staff contact list included in this packet to get in contact with a specific teacher or grade team.
Phone: 860-695-6760
Email: HartfordSummitMS@achievementfirst.org
Fax: 860-722-8805
School Website: https://bit.ly/AFHSMS
Title I
What is Title I?
Title I provides financial assistance to schools with high numbers/percentages of students from low-income families to help ensure that all children meet challenging academic standards.
Receive an annual allocation of funds from the state based on the number of low-income students enrolled (determined by free and reduced-price meal counts)
Our Title I Program
School-Wide Program – can use Title I funds to increase the amount and quality of learning time to ensure all students meet challenging academic standards
Family Involvement
Participating in school events and activities
Being involved in your child’s academic achievement
Providing input to our school
Parent Portal
Hartford Summit uses an online student information system called Infinite Campus to track students’ enrollments, contact information, attendance, grades, etc. The Campus Parent Portal website and app allows parents to access the information about students’ attendance, and grades that AF staff have entered in Infinite Campus. Please note: Only legal guardians will be given access. Please see the top page of this packet for your username and/or activation key. If you do not currently have a username/activation key - we will get this information to you ASAP!
Instructions:
Step 1: https://achievementfirstct.infinitecampus.org/campus/portal/AchieveFirst.jsp
*If you download the Infinite Campus app – the district is Achievement First, the state is Connecticut*
Step 2: Select “Campus Parent”
Step 3: If you already have an account, log in with your username and password. If you do not have an account, click on NEW USER and enter the activation key. If you forgot your password, click on “Forgot Password” to reset the information.
Mandatory Parentsquare Family Communication Program
At the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year, we launched a new parent communication program called, ParentSquare. ParentSquare is an excellent way for school staff and parents to communicate with one another. We at Hartford Summit use ParentSquare regularly to communicate our weekly newsletters, important announcements, and events happening at the school and in the community. We also require families to utilize the ParentSquare Health Screener every day to alert the school of the health of their scholar. This is an initiative that we set forth to ensure the safety and health of our scholars and staff.
If you are not signed up on ParentSquare, please follow these instructions below:
Step 1: Download the free App by clicking on the link below or visiting your App store.
iOS App – Apple Store
Android App – Google Play Store
Or you can scan this QR Code!
Step 2: Enter your email or cell phone number. The email and/or cell phone number should match what is in your school’s information system or database. Note: if your email or phone number is not recognized by ParentSquare, please contact our main office at 860-695-6760
Step 3: After you download the app, you will create your password and be sure to confirm it!
Step 4: You will receive a registration code via email or text. Enter the code and click “Verify” – this will take you to the ParentSquare home feed. This is where we post announcements, share documents, and where you will take your Hybrid Survey!
Step 5: Set your notification preferences. We suggest enabling all notification preferences.
If you need a quick refresher on how to submit the daily Health Screener, see below:
Step 1: Open the ParentSquare app or visit parentsquare.com and enter your login credentials. Once you are logged in, you will see the following screen. Select “Submit Daily Health Screening”
Step 2 + 3: Answer the FOUR Daily Self-Screening Questions. Select “Yes” or “No” and then type out your full name to be able to submit the form. This process should take you less than 3 minutes. If you have any questions, please contact our main office at 860-695-6760.
