BRADLEY/POLK
AdultEducation
STUDENT HANDBOOK
2013 – 2014
REACH Adult Ed. Center Polk Adult Ed. Center
1450 Strawberry Lane 1010 Old Federal Rd.
Cleveland, TN 37311 Old Fort, TN 37362
(423) 473-8473 (423) 464-3248
fax (423) 473-8483 Mail: P.O. Box 665
Benton, TN 37307
POLICIES & PROCEDURES
ATTENDANCE POLICY
Attendance in class is essential for student progress. Students who attend class infrequently will take longer to achieve their goals than those who attend regularly. Further, funding for this program is determined partly on student attendance. If you are not here, we may not be either.
- Absences – Students are to call the local office when they are going to be absent from class. Students who miss 3 or more consecutive classes will receive a phone call inquiring as to the status of their enrollment. Students who miss 5 or more consecutive classes, without communicating with the office, may be dropped from the program and may not re-enroll for a minimum of 3 months. Students who do not attend class for 90 days will automatically be withdrawn from the program and may not re-enroll for one (1) year.
- Tardies – Students who are going to be more than 15 minutes late for class are to call the local office to indicate what time they expect to arrive.
- Leaving Campus – Students who need to leave campus before class is over are to sign out in the classroom.
Your attendance will be determined by the Attendance Sheet in the classroom. You must sign in when you arrive and sign out when you leave for your attendance to be counted. If you do not sign in and sign out in the classroom, the office will not know you were present and you will be counted absent.
INCLEMENT WEATHER POLICY
Bradley/Polk Adult Education follows the policy of local public school district for inclement weather. Watch theTV or listen to the radio for notification of school closings. If Bradley County Schoolsare closed, REACHAdultEducationCenter is closed. If Polk County Schools are closed, Polk Adult Education Center is closed. Use good judgment regarding travel during bad weather.
BEHAVIOR
This school is provided for ADULTS. Respectful, cooperative, adult behavior is expected. If students cannot act like mature adults, they will be suspended from school. Students will be suspended from school for defiant or argumentative behavior, or for any behavior that disrupts the learning environment. Students are to treat each other with respect, as well as the school staff. If this cannot be done, students will be suspended from school, possibly for the rest of the semester. Any student who is determined to be a threat to him/herself or others will be expelled from school for the remainder of the semester plus one and may not be allowed to return to school. Any personal conflicts students have with one another are to be dealt with away from school. If these conflicts disrupt the educational environment, all parties to the dispute will be suspended from school for the rest of the semester.
LANGUAGE
Students are to refrain from using profane, offensive, or otherwise inappropriate language while on campus. Students who cannot comply with this expectation may be suspended from school.
DRESS CODE
Students are expected to dress appropriately for class. Any manner of dress that offends others or is deemed inappropriate for an educational setting will not be allowed. This includes, but is not limited to:
the visibility of underwear and/or body parts that should not be exposed
any form of underwear that is worn as outerwear
sagging pants where underwear is easily visible
gang colors/symbols
all shirts/blouses are to have sleeves
excessive piercings/tattoos
pants/skirts are to come close to, or beyond, the knee
hoodies may be worn, but hoods may not be over the head when in the building.
Students should come dressed as if going to work.Students who come to class inappropriately dressed will be asked to go home and change. Students for whom this is a consistent problem may be withdrawn from school for noncompliance with school expectations. Adults should know what is and is not appropriate dress in a work environment. When in doubt, don’t wear it!
DISCIPLINE PROCEDURES
Any behaviors that disrupt the learning environment will be considered a cause for disciplinary action. Teachers are in charge of discipline in the classroom and decide what is disruptive and what is not. If a teacher determines a behavior to be disruptive, the teacher will discuss the behavior with the student and may ask the student to leave for the remainder of that class. If the student’s behavior continues to be disruptive, the teacher will discuss it with the Adult Education Supervisor. The Adult Education Supervisor will discuss the behavior with the student and may suspend the student. If the student’s behavior continues after the suspension, the student will be suspended for up to a year by the Adult Education Supervisor and will be required to have a conference with the Adult Education Supervisor before being allowed to return to school.
Certain kinds of behaviors will result in immediate suspension from school. These behaviors include, but are not limited to, possession of or under the influence of alcohol or drugs, legal or illegal; possession of a weapon; fighting; threat of danger to self or others; assaulting a staff member or student; viewing inappropriate sites on the internet in the computer lab; etc. This suspension can be for up to one full year depending on the seriousness of the offense.
CHILDREN
Childcare services are not available on site. Children are never to be brought to class. Make arrangements for the care of your children ahead of time.
VISITORS
Visitors are not allowed in class, unless they are there at the request of the teacher.
WITHDRAWAL
Students may voluntarily withdraw at any time. Students may also be administratively withdrawn from the program at any time for non-attendance or failure to comply with behavioral expectations. Students who voluntarily withdraw may return after 90 days. Students who are administratively withdrawn may not return for one (1) year.
PARKING
Parking for Bradley County students is in the back of the building. Park perpendicular to the building to accommodate more spaces for parking. Parking for persons with handicapping conditions and with the proper documentation is provided at the front of the building.
Parking for Polk County students is limited. Park on either side of the drive, parallel to the building and perpendicular to the road and the elementary school. Parking for persons with handicapping conditions and with the proper documentation is provided perpendicular to the building.
DRUG FREE & WEAPON FREE CAMPUS
This is a drug free school. Anyone who appears to be under the influence of or in possession of alcohol or drugs, legal or illegal, will be reported to law enforcement and may be expelled from school.
Smoking is prohibited on all public school campuses. Weapons of any kind (guns, knives, etc.) are prohibited.
Violation of any part of this policy will be grounds for suspension or expulsion from school. Depending on the offense and the age of the offender, law enforcement may, by law or necessity, be contacted.
CELL PHONES AND ELECTRONIC DEVICES
All cell phones and electronic devices are to be turned OFFduring class, not on silent or vibrate modes. There is plenty of time before and after class to check voicemail and return calls. Students for whom this is a constant issue may be suspended or expelled from school.
Sexting is the most serious violation of the privilege of use and possession of personal communication devices at school. As defined in Board of Education policy 6.312, sexting is the electronic transmission or reception and retention of pornographic pictures. In the event the picture exploits a minor, all persons involved in the sexting will be reported to the authorities.
Furthermore,
First time offenders will receive no less than three (3) days of suspension.
Repeat offenders will be sent to a disciplinary committee to determine what actions are to be taken.
It is our goal that each student will demonstrate responsible cell phone and electronic device use.
However, in the event there is reasonable suspicion that a student may have violated this policy, his or her phone or other device will be confiscated. In addition, if a student is suspected of a violation, Bradley County Schools reserves the right to look at the contents of his or her cell phone or electronic device.
SCHOOL SUPPLIES
Students need to bring something to write with and something to write on for class. Textbooks and study materials will be provided free of charge to students. Textbooks and study materials are not to be taken from the classroom.
TESTING
Students take placement testing prior to enrolling in the adult education program. If classes are scheduled, students are retested regularly, in the classroom, to monitor their progress.
Retest results will be received during the next scheduled class. When testing indicates that sufficient progress has been made to qualify the student to take the Official Practice Test (OPT), the student will be scheduled for that 4 hour test. If the student qualifies to take the high school equivalency diploma test by earning the minimum passing scores on the OPT, the student will be scheduled for Fast Track class where the student will receive instruction regarding the test, test taking strategies, practice questions, creating an online account to register for the test, and receivethe necessary paperwork to take the high school equivalency test at Cleveland State Community College Testing Center.
INTERNET ACCESS
Computers are provided for educational purposes only. Any student found abusing this privilege by accessing pornographic or other sites deemed inappropriate may be suspended or expelled from school. Inappropriate sites include, but are not limited to, social networking sites, email, instant messaging, eBay, shopping sites, YouTube, etc. DO NOT DOWNLOAD ANYTHING TO A SCHOOL COMPUTER.
COMPUTER LAB RULES
- No food or drinks of any kind will be allowed. Instructors may have a drink and snack.
- Students are to sign in and sign out on the attendance sheet.
- Students will not be allowed to stay in the lab after the posted hours.
- No music will be allowed of any kind, even if headphones are used.
- Cell phones are to be turned OFF at all times, not on silent or vibrate modes.
- No e-mail, instant messaging, or web “surfing” is to be done. Read INTERNET ACCESS above.
- Website for OdysseyWare - bradley.owschools.com
NON-DISCRIMINATION POLICY
It is the policy of the Bradley County SchoolsBradley County Adult Education not to discriminate on the basis of sex, national origin, creed, age, marital status, or disability in its educational programs, activities, or employment policies as required by Title VI and VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Title IX of the 1972 Educational Amendment and Section 504 of the Federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Students and employees shall be provided a learning and working environment free from sexual, racial, ethnic, and religious discrimination/harassment. It shall be a violation of this policy for any employee or any student to discriminate against or harass a student through disparaging conduct or communication that is sexual, racial, ethnic, or religious in nature.
Inquiries regarding compliance with, or reports of discrimination/harassment, may be
directed to the Bradley/Polk Adult Education Supervisor, Zoe Renfro, or Mr. Dan Glasscock, Compliance Manager of Bradley County School System.
STUDENT INFORMATION RELEASE
Students’ personal information will not be released to outside persons without written permission of the student except where required by law.
MEDICAL ASSISTANCE
Should medical assistance be needed during class, the teacher will contact the office
immediately. If the situation requires it, 911 will be called for assistance. As long as the
person needing medical assistance is conscious and coherent, that person will determine the
extent of needed medical assistance. If an ambulance is called, the person needing assistance
will be responsible for all expenses.
EMERGENCY PROCEDURES
Tornado:When a tornado warning is received, an announcement will be made. Everyone should seek shelter immediately by following instructors’ directions.
Fire:When a fire is reported, everyone should evacuate the building in an orderly
fashion, following instructors’ directions and remain at least 300 feet away from the building until an announcement is made for re-entry.
Intruder/Present Danger:If a lockdown is announced, teachers are to lock the classroom
door, open the blinds, and everyone is to huddle, crouched down against the back wall of the classroom.
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