Eli Whitney Elementary School
94 Middle Road
Enfield, CT 06082-3100
Robert Fenton (860)763-7541
Principal Fax (860)763-7547
September 9, 2011
Dear Parents and Guardians,
It has been a great first week of school. It appears our kids have settled in with their new teachers and routines with ease. Much of that success is due to the preparation efforts of the teachers and the parental support from all of you. Positive communication between home and school is essential if a student is to reach his/her potential. I look forward to meeting and getting to know all of the Whitney families. If you are able to attend the PTO sponsored family picnic today from 6 to 8 p.m., I will see you there. All the rain has left the grass areas a bit damp. Bringing lawn chairs rather than blankets is suggested.
Morning arrival has been working very well. Thanks in great part to parents following the drop-off procedure in the west end parking lot. If you haven’t done a morning drop-off yet the procedure is to drive up to the west end of the building and enter the parking lot via Olmstead Road, drop your child off and exit back onto Olmstead following the arrows on the pavement. Please do not allow your children to cross the parking lot at any time unless escorted by an adult.
The afternoon dismissal is still a “work in progress”. I realize many students riding the bus need to get home in a more timely fashion. The teachers and I have been making daily revisions to our dismissal plan to get our students on the bus and on their way home as quickly and effieciently as possible. Yesterday, (Thursday) all but one of our 14 buses left Whitney by 3:10 p.m. We will continue to streamline our plan to get our students home as soon as possible.
Currently we are dismissing the walkers, students being picked up by parents and private day care vans, into the west end parking lot or sidewalk through the double doors of the back wing. Parents are to enter the parking lot via the entrance on Olmstead Road and exit back onto Olmstead once they have picked up their children. Pink cards that were provided the first day of school are to be displayed in the car window with the child’s name. One of the teachers on duty will relay the students name to the teacher inside the building to release the child for pick-up. Parents parking and meeting their child at the door may do so at the 3:01 dismissal time. Students are not allowed to cross the parking lot to enter a parked car without an adult escort.
The bus students are currently lining up in three separate hallways by grade level and bus number. When their bus is announced they proceed to the front entrance where they are directed to their bus by one of the teachers on duty.
This seems to be working but as I said we will continue to work on our plan to have our students on their way as soon as possible.
Thanks for your help and patience.
Sincerely,
Robert Fenton
Principal