Update 5/20/18
Transportation and Parking Notes
 

As always, we so appreciate your safety and caution and care for all adults and children in the parking lot.  
 

1. On the last day of school, please join our whole staff in saluting the busses as they drive away for the last time in 2017-2018 school year.  Its an annual tradition, and one that we look at with bitter-sweet feelings. Have a safe summer.

2. As we start next school year, don’t forget...we need to have updated transportation plans and emergency contact-lists, please contact the office if you need to update your contact information, plans or lists at 725-1243.
3. Have a safe Summer!


* New Drvier for “orange bus” route, please see staffing updates below for details.

Walking School Bus Cancellation from 6/14/18

Unfortunately last we needed to cancel our Whole School Walking School Bus from the Topsham Fire Department To Woodside School.  I wanted to offer up a few more details that prompted new field trip guidelines from the Superintendent that morning that left us unable to continue with the walk as planned.

Last week, a tragic loss of student life in a nearby school district during a field trip prompted system leadership  to consider safety and field trip permission practices at all schools.

Our superintendent sent out some guidelines for us as principals to follow regarding any and all current and future field trips until future notice.

For our purposes, a Woodside  “field trip” will be considered any activity that involves students leaving school grounds (this includes a walking school bus or walking trip to Dairy Queen, for example.)

For the immediate term and from now on until further notice, here are the expectations for any and all field trips:

1. Any activity involving students leaving the school grounds will first require signed permission from the principal. (Teachers will use the MSAD 75 School Field Trip Permission Form as the basis for a request, Mr. Dedek will approve or deny those and sign them before Being sent home for parent signature.) For previously planned trips planned through the remainder of the year with permission slips already in place, teachers were instructed to see Mr. Dedek for retroactive approval.

2. Permission slips are required for each trip and all students attending. No blanket year-long permission slip will suffice. (Teacher are required to consult with the principal for any special concerns.)

3. All permission forms signed by parents must be collected by teachers, and all parent approvals noted before the trip.  All signed will be turned into the office.

4. Our expected chaperone to student ratio will be 1:6 until further notice.  

Thank you. Updated guidelines from Superintendent Smith were only sent out a little before 7:00 a.m. last Thursday. Among the biggest changes was the requirement for a walking school bus trip to have signed permission forms. This was a change from past practice, and directly impacted our ability to hold the walking school bus and necessitated a cancellation.  I want to thank all the school staff as well as transportation department and fire department staff for working so quickly and collaboratively to change gears.  The professionalism for all the school department and town personnel responsible for student safety is, as always, greatly valued.  We had a great whole school extra recess in its place. We intend to hold a walking school bus again next fall under the new guidelines.