Visiting Students, Faculty Absences and Substitutes

FACULTY ABSENCES AND SUBSTITUTES

When a prospective student visits Renaissance School you will receive a Visiting Student Survey form by email as soon as we know of the visit. Please fill out the form promptly and return to the Admissions Director. The Admissions Director will also email you a survey. Please submit either form, not both.

If a faculty member must be absent from school, miss a class, be tardy for a class or is unable to open/close the school as assigned, he/she/they are responsible for arranging for, and paying if needed, a qualified substitute. The substitute should be approved in advance by the Dean of Academics. In an emergency, the Office Manager/Assistant to the Head will send out an email to the current faculty. The Office Manager/Assistant to the Head must be notified of a teacher’s absence as soon as possible.

It is not the responsibility of the administrators to find a substitute or

serve as a substitute themselves for absent faculty.

Individual faculty members are always responsible for remunerating the substitute. The cost will be $50/class and can be deducted from the teacher’s monthly paycheck or paid directly by the teacher.

Faculty planned absences must be approved in advance by the Head of School. If a teacher fails to show up for his/her/their class a dated and signed letter noting the reason for the absence will need to be presented to the Head of School within 24 hours of the absence. This letter is kept on file and may serve towards a decision of termination. Multiple absences from class or school events may serve as grounds for immediate termination.

CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS

Cleanliness

It is the responsibility of each faculty member to keep his/her/their classroom and mailbox clean, neat, and tidy at all times. If you share a room with another teacher, please be sure to put away your materials and clean the whiteboards.

On a daily basis, student possessions should be removed from the classroom, chairs should be straightened, trash emptied, and tables and floors free of debris.

Students should be reminded to keep their belongings in their cubbies, except for books and supplies that are needed until the next break.

No food or drink is allowed outside of the lunchrooms, with the

exception of bottled water or drinks with spill-proof lids. No chewing

gum is allowed in classrooms or in any other area of the school.

The faculty should be leaders in keeping Renaissance School clean and beautiful. It is the faculty’s responsibility to police and correct this behavior when we see it.

Additionally, faculty are expected to tidy the common areas outside of their classrooms each day prior to leaving. This includes throwing away trash, straightening up chairs, stacking books, and papers. Faculty should always ask for student assistance with this responsibility—it is a teaching moment.

Meeting with Students

Faculty should never have a closed-door private meeting with any individual student. Conversations should be in plain view of passersby and interruptible. Faculty serving as Advisors should always meet with their students during school hours at a public location. Going for walks is encouraged.

Communication

All teacher-student and teacher-parent communication should be sent with the Renaissance School email account and copied to the Head of School (cc or bcc). All group correspondence to students or parents should be “blindcopied” to protect the school and to respect the privacy of Renaissance School families.

There should be no text exchanges between the faculty and the students or their parents.

Curriculum

Each teacher must keep the Dean of Academics up to date and current with weekly lesson plans by sharing classes through Google Calendar. This should be set up prior to the start of the school year.

Faculty are in charge of running Focused Study and are to be available to students during Focused Study at least once a week for each course they teach.

Ninth, tenth, and eleventh graders are required to attend Focused Study. Twelfth grade students are excused from Focused Study if they are in good academic standing (no F's or D's), and with parent permission.

Focused Study is a CLASS and is designed to be a quiet and productive period during the school day when students can work on assignments, meet with teachers, or develop study skills with instructors.

Ninth, tenth, and eleventh grade students are excused from the Focused Study room to meet with individual teachers, or to work at the computers, only when they present to the teacher in charge at the beginning of class a signed note from another teacher.

Focused Study rules apply to ALL Focused Study classes. The focused study rules are school rules and therefore supersede individual faculty expectations.

Attendance should be taken at each Focused Study and any tardies or absences should be reported to the Office Manager immediately. Focused Study passes to meet with a faculty member should be given at the end of each class.

FOCUSED STUDY GUIDELINES

FOCUSED STUDY IS A MANDATORY TEACHER-LED CLASS FOR

GRADES 9, 10 AND 11. Therefore, all class and school rules apply, including tardies.

Students should use the first five minutes of class to:

Talk with friends Use the restroom Get needed books and materials for class Make copies Check email and Google Classroom for homework updates

Misuse of computers may result in the loss of computer privileges at school.

FOCUSED STUDY IS A QUIET PERIOD. No talking except to ask the teacher a question. If students need to work on a group project for a specific class, a pass from the teacher of that class will need to be obtained. If the Focused Study teacher determines the group is not working and/or is being distractingly loud, students will return to the Focused Study room and work independently.

If a student has “nothing” to do, they will need to obtain a pass from the Head of School stating they have nothing to work on.

Faculty should make it very clear to their students, and to the students’ parents, what is expected in the near and far term. They should maintain attendance records, including records of tardies. Faculty are expected to also maintain grade records documenting student progress and credit earned. At any point, the Head of School or Dean of Academics may request to see your grading process and distribution.

Grade reports should be carefully proofread and turned in on time.

Student work should be graded and returned to the students promptly. Students should never be in the dark about their grades and, if requested, should always have access to their current academic standing.

The primary function of grades is to provide a transferable record of a student’s performance that other schools can use in making decisions about that student’s ability to enter their curricula. At Renaissance School we observe high absolute standards when grading a student’s performance.

While the student is attending Renaissance School, we consider direct contact between the student and teachers (including semester comments) much more important than the actual grade in evaluating the student’s learning progress. Parents take teacher comments seriously and use them as the basis for assisting their child in maximizing the Renaissance School learning opportunity.

When writing grade reports, make sure you explain why the student earned the assigned grade and what they can do to improve that grade.

Renaissance School Grading Scale

All courses at Renaissance School are Honors level courses. A teacher may recommend Advanced Honors or the Standard level based on student performance in the class. This recommendation will be made under the guidance of the Dean of Academics and Head of School and will be discussed with the student and parent prior to the end of the grading period.

Grade A: Mastered (91% - 100%): (eligible for distinction)

Student demonstrates and articulates a thorough factual and conceptual understanding of course material.

Grade B: Learned (81% - 90%): (eligible for distinction)

Student demonstrates factual and conceptual understanding of course material with some ability to apply concepts.

Distinction: Students performing at the Mastered and Learned levels will be encouraged by their teacher to initiate independent work outside of normal course material to further their ability to apply and integrate course concepts. Demonstrated ability to integrate concepts with other disciplines will earn Distinction. The Distinction Award will be noted on the student transcript next to the appropriate semester grade.

Grade C: Achieved (71% - 80%):

Student completes assignments and demonstrates a consistent understanding of course material.

Grade D: Probationary (65% - 70%)

Student shows serious difficulty in understanding and using the course material. A lack of effort may be indicated.

Grade F: Failed (0% - 64%)

Student has incomplete assignments and failure to understand the course material.

Incomplete:

A temporary status for students with enough excused absences to justify the conclusion that they need extra time (after the normal end of the quarter or semester) to complete assignments/exams before being assigned a grade. Under normal circumstances, grades must be completed within two weeks of the end of the quarter. The Head of School, with the Dean of Academics, will determine which, if any, students qualify for Incomplete status.

SEMESTER EXAMS

The exam schedule will be posted two weeks before exams. Exams must be submitted to the Dean of Academics by the Wednesday before exam week. Exams should be designed for two hours. All exams should be proofed and practice timed.

The three days before exams are dedicated to exam review. No new material should be taught on those days.

Faculty will work with the Head of School and Dean of Academics to cover the administration of exams. Faculty of exam classes should plan to cover multiple exam sessions. Faculty of non-exam classes may be asked to fill in to cover exams.

REIMBURSEMENT

Faculty have a classroom budget to spend on educational and classroom materials only. The Business Manager will keep a running tally of what is available to be spent on classroom materials. After confirming that there is money in the classroom budget to cover the expense, order requests for

these materials should be emailed to the Office Manager, with the Head of School copied. The Head of School will follow up with any questions and/or will make a decision on the approval of the purchase. The faculty cannot be reimbursed for classroom supplies/materials that have not been pre-approved by the Head of School.

ACTIVITY FEES

If trips or activities are taken outside of school which involves a student fee, faculty should notify the Business Manager. All money should be collected by the Business Manager. All outside trips should pay for themselves through student fees.