Due to district procedures implemented to help ensure the safety of our students and staff, Comal ISD will not allow parents to walk their child into the building to class on the first day. While your children are in our care, we will do everything we possibly can to ensure a safe environment for them. Please review these first day of school procedures:
Staff will be on duty beginning at 7:00 a.m. at our drop-off locations. Students may be dropped off in the Parent Drop Off Loop . We have a large number of students dropped off each morning. Please have your child ready to exit the vehicle when you pull up to the curb and make sure to pull all the way up to the car in front of you. Please do not get out of your vehicle. If you wish to walk your child to the door, please park in the parking lot.
Please note KINDERGARTEN parents will have the option to drop their student off later, on THE FIRST DAY ONLY. Kindergarten teachers will be in front of the school to meet their students at 8:00 a.m. Kinder students who arrive prior to that time will be held in the cafeteria.
Students who eat breakfast at school will be able to do so in the cafeteria beginning at 7:00 a.m.
Parents will not be able to walk their child into the building.
Morning Drop-Off
For the 2025-26 school year, the following morning drop-off procedures will be in effect.
Bus transportation is available for students that live in the service zone.
Parents can drop off their child in the car drop-off loop. For the morning drop-off, we have a single lane drop-off. The child exits the vehicle and then walks to the designated waiting area inside the building. Please ensure that your child is ready to unload from the vehicle so that the line can continue moving efficiently.
AFTER 7:20am, parents can park in the main parking lot only and walk their child to the front door. Please park in a parking space and utilize the crosswalk. Please do not park or drop off in the bus loop/staff lot or the city parking and walk across to GRES.
Dismissal
For the 2025-26 school year, the following UPDATED afternoon dismissal procedures will be in effect:
Bus transportation is available for the families that live in the service zone.
Parents may pick up in the car pick up lane. Please do not exit your vehicle. Place your numbered car tag on the front dash in plain view or hang it on your rear view mirror. Traffic will flow through two lanes up until a certain point. The lanes will be blocked off by cones and, at approximately 2:30pm, cars will be allowed through the gate to the road behind the school. Students will be escorted on a continual basis to their associated cone number. The purpose of this is to maintain a constant flow of students being loaded into their cars. A staff member will be assigned to each cone and will assist with getting students safely loaded into their vehicle.
Please see the map above for traffic flow.
Another pick up option is walk ups. Parents can park in a main parking lot, walk up to the front of the school and stand in the designated walk up location beginning at 3:10pm. This walk up area will be by the courtyard. You must have your numbered car tag with you. We will dismiss your students to you as soon as possible. Once you have your student, please proceed safely to the crosswalk to cross the road back to the main parking lot.
Please note that picking up students from the office after 2:30pm may be challenging as students/classes typically transition during this time and are difficult to reach. When scheduling afternoon appointments, please be cognizant of this as it may take longer for your child to arrive to the office.
As a reminder, due to safety concerns, the Garden Ridge Police Department will give citations to anyone who is seen driving the wrong way on Municipal Parkway. Please be aware that if you need to pick up your child from the office or park in the parking lot before dismissal, that you arrive early before the line starts to back up on Municipal Pkwy. This should help you avoid driving on the wrong side of the road to get into the parking lot and help ensure everyone’s safety. Please be mindful of texting during car pickup. It is a school zone and we want to ensure our lines a moving and everyone is dismissed from school safely.
Transportation Change
Please do not email or text your child's teacher regarding a transportation change. All changes must be made by calling the front office by 1:30pm.
Bus
Grades K - 1 students will not be allowed to unload without an adult waiting for them at the drop-off site. Please use the transportation website to answer any of your questions regarding routes. All bus riders will have a T-Pass given to them on the first day of chool. Late registrations will receive their route and pass at a later date.
SACC
Comal ISD's School Age Child Care (SACC) serves more than 1,500 children in kindergarten through fifth grade on a daily basis providing safe, quality, affordable child care. School-aged children are welcome to register at any of our 20 elementary schools for After School Care, or any of the 6 annually rotated elementary schools for Summer Care. We provide the highest quality child care that meets the needs of each child and family in a safe, nurturing and enriching environment. SACC's program protocols follow Comal ISD guidelines and are subject to change. Please see our Parent Handbook for additional information.
Registering your student does not guarantee enrollment into SACC. Once registration is completed you will receive an automated pending contract request email, with the subject line stating: "Your School Age Child Care After School Program Contract Request." This puts your contract on a waitlist for contract review and for verification of availability at your selected campus. You will receive an email notification within 10 business days if your contract is approved for enrollment. If you do not receive an email notification, confirming your contract has been approved for enrollment, within 10 business days, you will be notified via email when there is availability for your child(ren). There will be no further communication of contract status until you receive notification from SACC Support Services that there is space available. For more information about after school care visit:
https://comalisd.ce.eleyo.com/child-care/2/school-age-child-care-programs