Afternoon Walker & Bike Rider Dismissal

• VHE will use the “PikMyKid” app to support us with afternoon dismissal.  Please click on the link for more information. PikMyKid Parent Information  
• We want our walker/biker lines to be as efficient and orderly as possible.  We anticipate delays as we begin the first few weeks of school, so please be patient.  
• Students will remain in their homeroom teachers' classrooms until they are announced to come out by their parent/guardian via the PikMyKid app.  Students will meet parents/guardians at the Auditorium entrance located at the corner of Virginia Avenue &  Park.  We will be training students on how to do this, so anticipate delays.  Be patient.
• Bike racks are located at the front of the school and at the Clemont Avenue entrance. If you plan on leaving your child’s bike at school for the day, please be sure to secure the bike to the bike rack.
  
• Independent Walkers (3rd, 4th and 5th grades)  will be allowed to walk or bike home on their own.  Please let your child's teacher know that you would like this to happen. Independent walkers may choose to exit from the Main Entrance or the Bus entrance depending on where their home is located. Independent walkers will be dismissed once Buses have left the building and once the majoirty of cars in carpool line have left the school. 
• Independent walkers will be released to walk home between 2:30 -2:35pm.
• We recommend that all PreK, Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade students walk or bike home with an adult or with parent permission and older sibling. 
• For Transportation Safety Tips, please click the link. Transportation Safety Tips

Bus Rider Afternoon Dismissal

• Virginia-Highland elementary will always encourage parents with school bus access to place their children on the bus.  Riding a bus will reduce traffic, reduce pollution, ensure that your child will always arrive on time and give students a sense of responsibility.
• Be reminded that traffic in the Virginia-Highland Elementary zone is heavy at times and we assure you that bus drivers will do their best to arrive on time in the morning and afternoon each day.  
• Once the buses arrive, we will begin loading all grade levels onto buses on Clemont Avenue.
• School buses will leave VHE by 2:30 - 2:35 each day. Pick-up and drop-off times will be available via the district transportation portal.  Bus pick-up and drop-off times are approximate.  Route times are affected by changes in traffic patterns and ridership.  All bus schedules are subject to change during the school year.  Bus routes are updated each Friday; updates will take effect the following Monday.  Please check your student’s bus route weekly for updates.  You can check bus routes by visiting the APS Transportation page or by clicking here. VHE Bus Routes
• Bus routes are designed to accommodate only students who ride that bus.  Adding students to the bus because of play dates may result in too many children riding the bus.  Our number 1 priority is to ensure that all students are safe and secure on the bus at all times.  Playdate transportation changes are not allowed on a bus. 
• Parents are not allowed to pull students from the bus, bus pick-up area, hallways or directly from the classroom. Students are only to be dismissed via bus, carpool, walker, or after-school activity dismissal areas if we have been notified accordingly.  This is to ensure the safety and security of all students.
• For Transportation Safety Tips, please click the link. Transportation Safety Tips

Afternoon Carpool Dismissal

• We want our carpool to be as efficient and orderly as possible. We anticipate delays as we begin the first few weeks of school so please be patient.  VHE will use the “PikMyKid” app to support us with afternoon dismissal.  Please click on the link for more information. PikMyKid Parent Information
• Carpool parents/guardians will be given two mirror hang tags. The hang tags have a visible carpool number listed. 
• Your child’s teacher will provide you with your child’s carpool number prior to the first day of school. Carpool hang tags are used to match students up to the correct car.
• Parents will join the carpool pick-up by turning into the main entrance parking area off of Virginia Ave.  
• We ask that no one arrive prior to 1:45 p.m. as it could pose a safety hazard for students and staff in the event of an emergency. 
• Once parents notify the school that they have arrived through the PikMyKid app, students will be dismissed to the carpool area for pick up.  
• For Transportation Safety Tips, please click the link. Transportation Safety Tips

Early Dismissal

• Early dismissal must occur before 1:30pm.  We ask that parents do their best not to pick students up between 1:30pm and 2:15pm.  This is to ensure the safety and well-being of all students within our building.  

Late Pick-Up

• School begins dismissal at 2:20 each day.  All carpool/walkers/bike riders students must be picked up by 2:35 p.m. daily.  If there is a possibility that you will be late picking up your child, please call the school immediately to let us know.  School staff will not be able to supervise students in the afternoon past 2:45 p.m.  Please be sure to make arrangements for another parent/guardian or emergency contact listed on the student’s registration to be able to pick your child up in the event of late pick-up.  Parents will be responsible for designating individuals to pick children up in the PikMyKid app. 
• If parents are tardy picking up their students,  we will ask the Afterschool Daycare Provider to supervise the students until the parent arrives.  There is a $25 drop-in fee for Afterschool Daycare. 

Transportation Changes

Transportation changes must be requested before 1:45 p.m via the PikMyKid app.  It is the responsibility of the parent/guardian to change a student's transportation within the PikMyKid app.   Requests after 2:00 p.m. will not be permitted.  This is to ensure the safety and security of all students throughout the building and it will provide school time to ensure that students will be sent home via the correct mode of transportation.

• Early dismissal must occur before 1:30. We ask that parents to do their best to not pick students up between 1:30 and 2:15.  This is to ensure the safety and dismissal procedures for all students within our building.  After 1:30 PM students will be dismissed via their regular transportation dismissal.
• Parents that are volunteering must check-out their child by 2:00 p.m. if they are taking them home with them. Parents may not check their child out directly from the classroom after 2:00.

Onsite Afterschool Daycare & Clubs

• VHE will use the on-site afterschool daycare provider, "VHAS Virginia-Highland Afterschool. VHAS will be responsible for providing on-site afterschool daycare at Virginia-Highland Elementary daily from 2:45 - 6:00 p.m. VHAS will also organize all on-site afterschool clubs and extracurricular activities for the school. 
• Parents/guardians who register their students for Afterschool Daycare or Clubs will pick students up at the VHE main entrance in the main office.
• For more information about "VHAS", please click this link. VHAS Afterschool Childcare

Off Site Daycare or Clubs - Afterschool Van Riders  

• Many parents may opt to have their child in an off-site afterschool daycare program. Many of these programs will pick students up from Virginia-Highland Elementary and take them to their off-site facility.
• Please let our teachers know if your child will be riding an afterschool van for off-site daycare.
• Afterschool van riders are loaded once all VHE school buses have left.  Afterschool van riders will board off-site provider vans on Clemont Ave. 

• If a student is not in their homeroom class by 7:45 a.m. they are considered tardy. Students will be marked tardy and the tardy will be reflected within Infinite campus.  Teachers will mark all tardies in our database for attendance purposes.
• For students who arrive to school after 7:45, parents/guardians will need to park and walk their children into the school to sign them in. Under no circumstances should parents drop their students off in the parking lot or at the front door.  Parents will need to walk inside of the building with their child. This ensures that all students make it into the building in a safe and secure manner. 
• School begins dismissal by 2:20 each day. All carpool students must be picked up by 2:35 daily.  If there is a possibility that you will be late picking up your child, please call the school immediately to let us know.  School staff will not be able to attend students in the afternoon past 3:00.  Please be sure to make arrangements for another parent/guardian or emergency contact listed on the student’s registration is able to pick your child up in the event of late pick-up. If you miss afternoon carpool due to traffic or an unplanned conflict, your child(ren) will be taken to our After School Daycare Provide – “VHAS Afterschool Daycare". When you arrive, park in the main parking lot and proceed to the main office.