Parents’ Right to Know

1. Parents’ Right to Know Their Child’s and School’s Achievement

2. Right to Know Child’s Achievement • At the beginning of each school year, SCES will provide each parent a copy of their child’s ARMT and SAT-10 scores along with a letter explaining the scores. If you need additional assistance in understanding these reports, please set up a meeting with your child’s teacher or the school counselor.

3. Right to KnowPersonnel Qualifications • You have the right to request information concerning your child’s teacher. A notebook is located in the office for you to review the qualifications of your child’s teacher. You have the right to know:

4. Whether the teacher has met state qualification for the grade and subject she/he teaches;

5. Whether the teacher is teaching under emergency or provisional credentials because the state has waived normal qualifications;

6. The teacher’s college major and any graduate certification or degree and the discipline in which it was taken; and

7. Whether paraprofessionals provide services to the child, and if so, their qualifications.

8. In addition, if at any time your child has been assigned to and has been taught by a teacher who has not met the state’s criteria for being considered highly qualified for a period of time of 4 or more weeks, you must be notified in writing in a timely manner.

9. SCES 2010-2011 • All teachers at SCES during the current academic year are all Highly Qualified and are teaching in their field of qualification and grade.

10. Right to Know for Parents of Limited-English Proficient Children • Parents have the right to information concerning their child’s placement in a language instruction program, and they have the right “to opt out” of any placement. In any school using Title I funds for language instruction the school must provide the following information within 30 days of the beginning of school (or within 2 weeks of the child’s program placement):

11. The reason for identifying the child as LEP;

12. The child’s level of English proficiency, how it was determined, and the “status” of the child’s achievement;

13. The instructional methods of the program in which the child is participating;

14. How the program will meet the needs of the child;

15. How the program specifically helps the child learn English; and

16. The specific exit requirements for the program.

17. If a LEP child is also disabled, the parental notification must include information on how the language instructional program meets the objectives of the child’s LEP.

18. Notification for Parents of Children Attending Schools Not Making Progress Parents have the right to know whether their child’s school is making adequate yearly progress, and if it is not, what they can do about it. If a school has been identified as being in “school improvement” status, parents will be notified of the following:

19. What the identification means and the reason for it;

20. What the school is doing to address the problem;

21. What local and state authorities are doing to correct the problem; and

22. How parents can become involved in addressing the academic problems that caused the school to be identified in the first place

23. If a school fails to make adequate yearly progress for two or more years, parents must be told about options to transfer their child to another public school or to obtain supplementary educational services.

24. SCES • SCES did make adequate yearly progress in all areas for 2009-2010, as reported by the Alabama State Department of Education. • We still need parents to remain involved in their child’s education to make sure that we continue to make adequate yearly progress in the coming years.

25. FAMILY EDUCATION RIGHTS AND PRIVACY ACT (FERPA)

26. The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is a Federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education.

27. FERPA gives parents certain rights with respect to their children’s education records. These rights transfer to the student when he or she reaches the age of 18 or attends a school beyond the high school level. Students to whom the rights have transferred are “eligible students.”

28. Parents or eligible students have the right to inspect and review the student’s education records maintained by a school. Parents or eligible students have the right to request that a school correct records which they believe to be inaccurate or misleading

29. Generally, schools must have written permission from the parent Or eligible student in order to release any information from a student’s education record. However, FERPA allows schools to disclose Those records, without consent, to the following parties or under The following conditions:

30. School officials with legitimate educational interest; • Other schools to which a student is transferring; • Specified officials for audit or evaluation purposes; • Appropriate parties in connection with financial aid to a student • Organizations conducting certain studies for or on behalf of the school; • Accrediting organizations; • To comply with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena; • Appropriate officials in cases of health and safety emergencies; and • Stand and local authorities, within a juvenile justice system.

31. Schools may disclose, withoutconsent, “directory” information such as: • Student’s name; • Address; • Telephone number; • Date/place of birth’ • Honors and awards; and • Dates of attendance

32. However, schools must tell parents and eligible students about directory information and allow parents and eligible students a reasonable amount of time to request that the school not disclose directory information about them.

33. For additional information contact: Family Policy Compliance Office U.S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20202-5920

34. SAT 10 & ARMT SCORES SCES 2009-2010

46. CIP Continuous Improvement Plan Copies of the plan are located in the media center the school office and the central office. This is an important document for parents and our school. For any and all suggestions, we have our suggestion box in the office and one that is on-line at the school’s website. We will be updating it throughout the year and dates will be listed on our website and on our newsletters. Please get involved – we need you!!!!!

47. School Compact The proposed school compact will be sent home within the next few days. Please look at it and see if you think there need to be any additions or changes and let us know. This year we have included a new addition to our school compact, in that there is now a space for parents and teachers to sign at the end of a conference. We want to thank you for being active participants at SCES. We always have and we always will depend on our parents because we know they are our school’s biggest supporters.

48. THANK YOU FOR COMING TO THIS MEETING AND SHOWING YOUR INTEREST IN YOUR CHILD’S EDUCATION AND OUR SCHOOL!