PARENTS
LONGMEADOW PUBLIC SCHOOLS | 535 BLISS ROAD | LONGMEADOW, MA 01106 | P 413-565-4200 | F 413-565-4215
ANNUAL NOTIFICATIONS
FOOD SERVICE INFORMATION
REGISTRATION & ENROLLMENT OF STUDENTS
Please note the Central Office has temporarily moved to Longmeadow High School for the summer, 2023. Please enter through the LHS main door, 95 Grassy Gutter Rd.
You must complete all steps in order to register your child:
STEP 1: To begin, please complete the “Pre-registration Form” linked here
STEP 2: - Provide ALL documents listed below by stopping in during registration acceptance hours Tues/Thurs 9-11, Wed 1-3, or by email to register@longmeadow.k12.ma.us or place in the drop box outside Central Offices. (Please note, due to the high volume of documents we will receive we highly recommend you supply all documents at the same time with the exception of the health forms):
o New student’s Birth Certificate
o Residency documentation:
Please provide one of the following for your Longmeadow address:
Rental Agreement as well as the Landlord/tenant affidavit.
Completion is required if family leases/rents.Recent mortgage statement (dated within the last 30 days)
AND provide one of the following for your Longmeadow address (dated within the last 30 days)
Utility bill or work order (electric, gas, oil, cable, phone or water)
Medical bill
Insurance bill
o The following forms (available in this folder for those who are able
to print them, or hard copies are available in the Superintendent’s Office):
MA Health/Immunization form
Over-the-counter med. release form – for school nurse
Kindergarten Questionnaire (entering in grade K only)
Home language Survey – Information may influence school assignment
Release of Information Request
(for students entering LPS in grades 1 – 12)
STEP 3: You will receive directions for Step 3 via email once you complete Steps 1 & 2.
o Login to PowerSchool and complete online forms.
NEXT once all steps of the registration process have been completed, for ALL New Students the school nurse will review the provided health/immunization information, if approved, you will be contacted by the school(s) with more information including start date. In addition, for high school and middle school students only, you will be contacted by the school Principal or School Counselor to make an appointment to develop a schedule of classes.
If you choose to drop off the required documents in the drop box, please clearly label them as registration documents with the child’s name. The district has a computer available in the Central Office if you wish to complete this process in the Central Office.
Students who qualify as homeless as defined by the McKinney Vento Act, students in foster care as defined by the Every Student Succeeds Act and students who qualify under the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children will be entitled to immediate enrollment. For more information, please review the Longmeadow Public Schools District Policies regarding Homeless, Foster Care and Military Children.
As always, LPS Staff are available to answer questions you have regarding registration. Please feel free to email register@longmeadow.k12.ma.us. You may also call the Superintendent’s Office at 413-565-4200.
*For students residing with one parent, the district must receive a copy of an Order of the Probate Court designating current physical custody of the student.
If a property is close to a school zone border, you may call the Central Office to see which school zone the property is in.
BUS TRANSPORTATION 2023-24
BUS TRANSPORTATION FOR 2023-2024
Longmeadow Public Schools is pleased to offer bus transportation for the 2023/2024 school year. You must register your child for transportation annually. Students in grades K-6 who live two miles or more from their assigned school will be transported free of charge. Other students in grades K-12, who live more than 1 mile from their school will be offered paid bus transportation on a first-come first-served basis. Capacity is limited. The fee is $260 per child, with a family cap of $520. This payment is required at the time of registration to be considered registered and to be added to the route list. Our routes are designed to travel on main roads, however, occasionally buses will enter into neighborhoods if necessary. Please note: Blueberry Hill Elementary and Center Elementary Schools do not offer busing.
The applicable form for each student will be added to your PowerSchool Parent Portal beginning on May 24, 2023. Your registration must be completed by June 21, 2023 to be added to the route list. We will continue to accept registrations; however, your child will be placed at a previously established bus stop if registration is received after June 21, 2023. If a bus has filled to capacity then they will be put on a wait list.
You must log into your PowerSchool Parent Portal and click on Forms (which is located on the left side in the menu) to access the transportation registration form. Each student needs to be registered individually for bus transportation. Please make sure you log into your PowerSchool Parent Portal to confirm you have access to the form. If you are having issues logging into your Parent Portal please contact the LPS help desk for assistance at helpdesk@longmeadow.k12.ma.us.
Please fill out the form even if you do not require transportation.
Please note: payment plans and subsidy applications are available through the Business Office if needed. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Caitlin McCarty at the Business Office cmccarty@longmeadow.k12.ma.us or at 413-565-4200 ext 4022.
Your registration form will not be available until Monday May 23, 2023.
ALERTS & HOME-TO-SCHOOL MESSAGING
Longmeadow Public Schools uses the SchoolMessenger service for school-to-parent communication which allows for periodic and personalized messages to be sent by telephone, email and text message. There is no need to sign up for this service as we use the phone numbers and email addresses you provide during registration. To verify or make changes to the information we have on file, please use the PowerSchool Public Portal. For more information about the portal, please contact your school office.
If you wish to exclude certain numbers from the School Messenger system you may do so in the PowerSchool Parent Portal. Please keep in mind that excluding a phone number from the system prevents that number from receiving any messages, including emergency messages.
WELLNESS POLICY & PARENT INFORMATION
By supporting healthy eating and physical activity, the Longmeadow public schools provides school environments that promote and protect children's health, well-being, and ability to learn. Schools contribute to the basic health of students and staff by facilitating learning through the support and promotion of good nutrition, physical activity, and positive dietary and lifestyle practices. In compliance with recommendations by the Massachusetts departments of Elementary and Secondary Education and Public Health, the Longmeadow School Committee approved a wellness policy in 2006. The policy outlines the district's ongoing commitment in support of wellness in the areas of nutrition, physical activity, and other school-based activities. We believe community participation and parental support is essential to the policy's success.
Additionally, students with serious food allergies are on the rise and we must take responsible steps to ensure their safety by exercising control over the food products that are distributed to children in school.
With this in mind, parents are asked for their cooperation in not bringing baked goods from home to be shared at school. However, store bought, packaged items, will be allowed as long as they comply with the wellness policy's nutritional guidelines and the ingredients are listed on the package. The nutritional guidelines state that snacks be 2 ounces in size or less and that they contain no more than 10 grams of fat per serving. Additionally, they must contain no nuts, including peanuts.
The policy highlights are summarized here:
No baked goods from home. Store bought foods must follow guidelines from the Wellness policy.
Only 100% juice, water or milk will be allowed for school/classroom celebrations
No candy is allowed
The Wellness Policy and the Parent Packet are posted below.
Bullying & Prevention
PRIORITY STATEMENT
Longmeadow Public Schools is committed to providing all students with a safe learning environment that is free from bullying and cyber-bullying. We seek to eliminate all forms of bullying and other harmful and disruptive behavior that may impede the learning process. This commitment is an integral part of our mission as a learning community. Posted below you will find the full Bullying Prevention and Intervention Plan, an incident reporting form, and parent guides.
HOME EDUCATION
Home Education
File: IHBG
Home Schooling
The Superintendent must certify that a Home Schooling program meets the minimum standards established for public schools in the Commonwealth prior to approving such a program.
When a parent or guardian of a student below the age of 16 wants to establish a home-based educational program for his/her child, the following procedures shall be followed in accordance with the law:
Prior to removing the child from public school:
The parent/guardian must submit written notification to the Superintendent of the parent’s/guardian’s intent to establish a home-based educational program. The notice must be provided as early as possible, but no fewer than 21 calendar days, before the program is established. The notification must be resubmitted on an annual basis as long as the parent/guardian seeks to continue to educate the child in a home-based environment.
The parent/guardian must certify in writing, on a form provided by the District, the name, age, place of residence, and number of hours of attendance per academic year of each child in the program and must submit a proposed curriculum for each child in the program.
The Superintendent, in deciding whether or not to approve a proposed home education program, may consider the following factors:
1. The proposed curriculum and the number of hours of instruction in each of the proposed subjects.
2. The competency of the individual(s) designated to teach the child/children.
3. The textbooks, workbooks and other instructional aides to be used by the child/children and the lesson plans and teaching manuals to be used by the individual(s) designated to teach the child/children.
4. Periodic standardized testing of the child/children to ensure educational progress and the attainment of minimum standards.
A home-based educational program must be approved by the Superintendent before a parent/guardian may remove the child from the District. To obtain the Superintendent’s approval of a proposed educational program, the parent/guardian must demonstrate that the home-based educational program proposal meets the requirements of G.L. c. 76, § 1 by providing instruction that is equal in thoroughness, efficiency, and progress to the education provided in the District. The Superintendent may designate the Director of Pupil Services to review the proposed plan and make a recommendation as to whether the proposed plan should be approved. Parents/guardians shall have an opportunity to explain their proposed plan to the Superintendent or designee, including presenting witnesses on their behalf.
Any approval or rejection by the Superintendent of an application to establish a home-based educational program is subject to review by the School Committee.
A rejection by the Superintendent shall detail the reasons for such rejection and provide an opportunity for the parents/guardians to revise their proposal to remedy inadequacies.
A student being educated in a home-based program within the District may have access to public school activities of either a curricular or extracurricular nature upon approval of the Superintendent.
A parent/guardian in charge of home instruction should make provision for regular testing or the use of other indicators of student progress such as standardized achievement tests, periodic progress reports, or dated work samples.
Within thirty (30) calendar days of the ending date of the home instruction year, as indicated on the home instruction application form, the parent/guardian shall submit a completed home instruction summary form to the Superintendent. This summary form must be returned to the School District office before annual approval of home instruction can be made for any succeeding year. The home instruction summary form must include either a summary of home testing results for each required subject for each child or a summary of the alternate indicators of student progress for each required subject for each child.
The Superintendent will act in a responsible, cooperative manner to ensure that all students, including children in home education programs, in the School District receive competent, adequate instruction. If the Superintendent determines that a home instruction situation is inadequate, a conference between the parent/guardian and the Superintendent or the Superintendent’s designee will be scheduled to find mutually acceptable ways to correct any deficiency. If deficiencies in a home education situation are not corrected or the proper annual application or summary is not completed by the parents or legal guardian, an appropriate referral will be made.
LEGAL REFS.: M.G.L. 69:1D; 76:1, Care and Protection of Charles, 399 Mass. 324 (1987)
Approved 5-9-2018
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TO APPLY FOR HOME EDUCATION
Notification must be made to the Superintendent of schools by parents of their intent to home-school their child/children.
On behalf of the Superintendent, the Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment, will process the notification and send the proposing parents/guardians a copy of the relevant policy and the associated regulation and exhibit.
For a child to be home schooled, parents must submit the completed Home Education application and the proposed curriculum plan to the Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment.
Parents may be asked to meet with the Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment to review the proposal and curriculum plan.
The Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment will review the proposal and curriculum plan and consult with the school principal (and the Superintendent of Schools) when appropriate.
The Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment will recommend approval/disapproval or modification of the curriculum plan to the Superintendent of Schools.
The Superintendent of Schools will approve/request modification of/deny the home education plan based on the proposed program's demonstrated ability to provide adequate education comparable to that of the Longmeadow Public Schools.
A letter of approval/request for modification/denial will be sent to the parents/guardian under the signature of the Superintendent of Schools. If the plan is denied or a request for modification is made, parents/guardians will be notified of the reasons(s) for the request or denial and be given the opportunity to resubmit the adjusted proposal.
Individual records for student with approved Home Education Plans will be updated annually and kept on file in the ' Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment office.