Policies
Attendance & Truancy Policy and Procedure
The Lea School follows the School District of Philadelphia’s Attendance and Truancy Policies and Procedures, found here.
Code of Student Conduct
Lea follows the School District of Philadelphia’s Code of Student Conduct, found here.
Arrival
School begins promptly at 9:00 AM. On School District of Philadelphia delayed openings days for inclement weather, school starts at 11:00 AM (subject to change).
Breakfast will be served from 8:30-8:50 AM. Students may enter the cafeteria from the doorway in the Schoolyard closest to 47th and Locust Sts. After breakfast, students will assemble in the Schoolyard to greet their teachers and line up.
Any student not eating breakfast should report to the Schoolyard at 8:50 AM to greet their teacher and line up. There is no supervision in the Schoolyard until 8:45 AM. The School assumes no liability or responsibility for children on school grounds until supervision begins.
In case of inclement weather, students in grades K-3 should go directly to the auditorium and sit in the assigned areas. Students in grades 4-5 should go directly to the gym and grades 6-8 should go directly to Cafeteria.
Early Release
Students may not be released early except in cases of emergency. If the need for an emergency early release is anticipated, the parent/guardian must send a note to the classroom teacher, who will forward it to the office. If an emergency occurs during the school day, early release is requested in the main office.
In either case, a parent/guardian must first report to the main office and sign the Early Release Book in order to have a child released from school. Children will be dismissed from the main office, not the classroom. Children are not permitted to leave the school alone during the school day. Requests for early dismissals after 2:30 p.m. will NOT be honored due to School District Policy.
Late Arrival
Any student who arrives after 9:10 AM is considered late. If a student is late, he/she must report to the Late Desk located in Cafeteria A for a late slip. Late arrivals are recorded on a student’s attendance record. Lateness is disruptive to the instructional day. Punctuality is expected.
If your child has an early morning appointment, please go to the appointment first before reporting to school. You must have a doctor’s or other acceptable note for the lateness to be excused. Please make every effort to schedule appointments before or after school hours.
In accordance with School District of Philadelphia lateness policy, students who arrive two hours late (as defined as 11:00 AM or later) without an excuse note or leave school two hours early (as defined as 1:39 PM or earlier) without an excuse note will be marked as an unexcused half day absence. All half day absences will be accrued to equal full day unexcused absences.
Dismissal
Students are dismissed from school at 3:39 p.m. Please arrive promptly at 3:39 PM to pick up your child. On Early Dismissal days, students are dismissed at 12:39 PM.
It is imperative that parents/guardians/caregivers pickup children on time during regular and early dismissal days. The faculty, staff and administration have other obligations once the school day ends.
Students are dismissed as follows:
- 6-8 Grade: Will be dismissed from the stairwell and doors on the corner of 47th and Locust Sts. They should then proceed to the appropriate place to pick up their siblings or go to the Big Schoolyard to line up for their after-school program.
- 3-5 Grade: Will be dismissed to the Big Schoolyard through the middle stairwell and door closest to 47th and Spruce Sts. They should meet older siblings in the Big Schoolyard, proceed to the little yard to pick up younger siblings, or line up for their after-school program.
- K-2 Grade: Will be dismissed to the Little Schoolyard by the Auditorium through the doors closest to the Auditorium or the stairwell closest to 48th and Locust Sts. They should line up with their teachers and wait to be picked up by a sibling, adult or their after-school program. Teachers will remain until students are retrieved.
Students in Grades K-5 that aren’t picked up on time will be brought by their teachers to the main office for late pick up. - On inclement weather days, grades 4 to 8 are released through their respective doors. K-3 students are dismissed from the Auditorium.
Students in PreK and Kindergarten are not permitted to walk home alone. It is strongly advised that students in grades 1 and 2 have walking buddies as well. If an older student from the school or another adult is picking up a child in grades PreK-2, written permission must be given by the parent/guardian. A student will not be released without written permission to any adult other than those who have been designated.
On school days, the playground is unsupervised after school. The School District of Philadelphia is not responsible for students on the playground once the school day ends at 3:39/12:39 PM.
Gender Neutral Dress Code
All Lea students may wear their uniform daily. Please note that clothes must fit and there should be no exposure of undergarments or inappropriate bare skin.
Tops: Navy blue
Bottoms: Khaki
Shoes: Rubber Soled
Gym: Plain t-Shirt and bottoms, sneakers
The following are not acceptable as part of a student’s attire:
Undershirts
Tank tops, midriff tops, spaghetti straps or see-through clothing
Head wear other than for religious purposes (no bandanas, scarves, hats, hoods on hoodies may not be up, etc.)
Sandals, open-backed shoes or other footwear that could cause injury
Students not wearing acceptable clothing will be assigned an appropriate consequence AND will be provided with alternate clothing for the day.
School District Issued Chromebooks
All students grades K-8 have been issued a school district Chromebook and will bring their chromebooks to school each day unless otherwise directed by administration. Chromebooks are to be used only for school work and activities designated by the classroom teacher and administration.