General Information

Technology has brought new meaning to the phrase “Keeping in Touch”. Today, teachers and parents are just a few buttons away on the telephone or a simple mouse click away on the computer. Listed below are procedures for parents to use when the need arises to communicate with school personnel.

COMMUNICATING WITH THE SCHOOL OFFICE BY TELEPHONE                                 610-351-5840

Parents may contact the school office directly by dialing our main number at 610-351-5840.  In most cases, the school secretary will answer the call personally.  During high volume periods, calls may be directed to the school’s general voice mailbox where parents can leave a message and a return call will be made as soon as possible.  All requests that need attention before the end of a particular school day should be made through the school office using our main telephone number. An example of this situation would be an unexpected need to change a student’s instructions for transportation at the end of an individual school day. In addition, parents should use our main telephone number when there is a need to speak directly with school personnel during the school day.  The school office and our main telephone system operate each weekday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

COMMUNICATING WITH SCHOOL PERSONNEL BY VOICE MAILBOX                        610-351-5900

Parents may leave a voice message for school personnel by dialing the district’s voice mailbox system at 610-351-5900.  When prompted, parents should enter the five-digit extension for the staff member they wish to contact.   This method of communicating with school personnel should be used when a message or request does not need attention before the end of the school day.  The voice mailbox system should not be used to give verbal permission for parent transport, to request homework, or for any other matter that needs attention before the end of the school day.  Parents should contact the school office using our main telephone number when they need to speak with school personnel directly.  The district’s voice mailbox system operates 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

COMMUNICATING WITH SCHOOL PERSONNEL VIA E-MAIL

All school personnel have a District provided e-mail account. Please visit the Directory page on the Kernsville website (https://kernsville.parklandsd.org/directory) to obtain a staff member’s e-mail address.

INFORMATION THROUGH THE DISTRICT AND KERNSVILLE WEB SITES

Parents may visit our district web site at www.parklandsd.org and follow us on Twitter @KVCoyotes.. The web site has pages for the school district calendar, the Board of Education, the administration, curriculum and instruction, policies, athletic events, and food services.  In addition, each school in the district has a separate home page of information.  District-wide events can be retrieved from the calendar web page and a school menu can be retrieved from the Food Services web page. Kernsville is also proud of its website https://kernsville.parklandsd.org/ You will find great information pertaining to grade level curriculum, special programs, guidance, the main office, our nurse, PTO, and much, much more on the Weekly Update page.  The website is the primary source of information for our families.   

As part of Parkland’s going green initiative, the Weekly Update page of our website was created. This page replaces the paper flyers that would previously come home in your child’s backpack.   Each week the Weekly Update page on our website is updated to reflect new information for our families concerning school events and educational concerns.  Please review this website on a weekly basis.

The School District uses the rapid notification system “School Messenger” that allows for automated telephone calls, text messages and e-mails to phone number(s) and email addresses the parent or guardian has provided to the District.  To receive text messages, parents must opt-in by texting the word “yes” to 67587. To view or change this contact information, parents need to submit a Student Update Form within Home Access Center (HAC) at http://pldhomeaccess.splihost.com

We strongly encourage our families to utilize the “Note to Kernsville School” pads to communicate common needs and requests to school personnel.  Examples of these would include changes to a student’s transportation plan, notification of planned appointments, or explanation for absences.  These notes should be sent in with your student to the classroom Teacher who will make note of the information and then pass the note along to the Main Office.

School will be held each weekday from 8:50 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Students may enter the building at 8:35 a.m. Vacation days, teacher in-service days, early dismissal days, late start days, and inclement weather days will create variations in the regular school hours.

The school office will operate from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Early Dismissal Days only:  All students will be dismissed at 11:45 AM.

Students are encouraged to use bus transportation provided by the school district. If a student is driven to school the designated parent drop off location for the school must be utilized, avoiding the bus entrances. Students will be allowed to enter the building at 8:35 a.m. and should report to their classrooms no later than 8:50 a.m.

Students who arrive after 8:50 a.m. are considered tardy and must be signed in by a parent or designated guardian. Students utilizing parent pickup at the end of the day should be picked up at the designated location. 

Kernsville Elementary School will be locked at all times, and all visitors are required to enter the school through the main entrance. The Parkland School District has initiated a new security protocol, which may require all visitors, including parents to show identification upon arrival. Acceptable forms of ID include:

1)  Driver’s license or DOT  identification card; 2) Commonwealth Agency Issued ID 3) U.S. Government Issued ID 4) U.S.  Passport 5)U.S. Armed Forces ID 6) Employee ID 7) Student ID 8) Firearm permit.

When a visitor arrives at school, press the buzzer to contact the building secretary. The visitor will be asked their name and to state the nature of their visit. The visitor should be able to identify the name of the child, grade, and name of the staff member they have an appointment to see, if appropriate.

Any student who arrives late to school or leaves early from school must have a parent sign them in or out and that person may be required to show identification. (see above for acceptable forms of ID). This procedure is mandatory in order to keep accurate attendance records and maintain student security. Parents should remind students of this procedure whenever it is necessary. FOR SECURITY & SAFETY PURPOSES, PLEASE DO NOT SEND YOUR CHILD INTO THE SCHOOL BY THEMSELVES

WHEN LATE. Parents need to escort child (ren) into the foyer and sign in their student. Students should proceed directly to the main office to check in for lunch. Please note that parents are not to enter the main building due to security reasons unless given access by the school office.

A written request from the parent is necessary for a student to leave school early. These requests must be given to the classroom teacher in the morning. Upon the parent’s arrival, the child will then be called from class to meet their parent in the vestibule entrance way. In the event of an emergency, parents should notify the school office of an early pickup, and this should be done as soon as possible to avoid any delay or confusion.

In all cases, students will be released only to their custodial parent unless written or verbal permission from the custodial parent is received to do otherwise. That person may be required to show identification.

If your child must stay home from school, please call and leave a message on our attendance hotline 610-351-5900, ext. 27711 or e-mail KVAttendance@parklandsd.org by 9:15 AM that day.  Homework requests may also be left with the message. The office staff will keep a log of all calls made before 9:15 a.m., and, therefore, a written absence excuse will not be necessary.  If an absence is not reported before 9:15 a.m., a staff member will call the designated telephone number to inform the parent of the child’s absence.  If they are not able to speak with anyone, a message will be left and an excuse will be required within three (3) school days, or the absence may be considered unlawful as required by the Compulsory Attendance Law. Parents are requested to complete a VACATION/EMERGENCY PERMIT for any planned or extended student absence from school.  A week’s notice must be given to compile homework for an absence of three days or more.  This form is available from the school office and on our website and must be returned to the classroom teacher prior to absence.

ABSENTEE HOTLINE   610-351-5900 Ext 27711

Written permission from the parent is necessary for a student to participate in parent transport from school. Written permission must be given to the classroom teacher in the morning. In the event of an UNEXPECTED need for parent transport at the end of the day, please call the Main Office. To minimize disruptions to classroom instruction, please avoid changing transportation plans once the school day has begun.

STUDENTS WILL BE SENT HOME ON THEIR SCHOOL BUS IF PARENT PERMISSION IS NOT RECEIVED BEFORE THE END OF THE SCHOOL DAY.

Students who are transported by their parents to and from school should arrive between 8:35 a.m. and 8:50 a.m. and will be dismissed at 3:25 p.m.  Students involved in parent transport to and from school must use the West doors by the loading dock area. The main doors are used for bus transportation only.

A.M. Parent drop-off:  Vehicles should enter the school at the main entrance off of Kernsville Rd. and move in a single line around the outside perimeter of the West parking lot heading toward the school.  Vehicles should move in succession to the sidewalk area, and then exit directly out of the parking lot at Kernsville Rd.  A teacher will supervise the arrival of the children.

P.M. Parent pick-up:  Parents should follow the same route in the afternoon and wait in the vehicle line. Parents should not exit their vehicle.  A teacher will supervise the dismissal of the children.

A recess and lunch period will be conducted on all regular school days according to the following schedule.

Grade K    10:35am-11:20pm
Grade 1     11:25am-12:10pm  
Grade 2     1:00am-11:45am
Grade 3     12:40pm-1:25pm
Grade 4     11:50pm-12:35pm
Grade 5     12:15pm-1:00pm

Parkland School District offers breakfast and lunch daily.   

Breakfast and Lunch Menus

Students may bring a lunch from home or purchase a school lunch. The following cafeteria prices are in effect for this school year:

Student Lunch - $2.70
Breakfast - $1.50
Ala Carte Milk -   $ .50
Water - $ .50

Reduced Price Student Lunch - $  .40

Reduced Price Student Breakfast - $ .30

A school lunch consists of five different components: 1.) meat/meat alternative 2) bread/bread alternative 3) vegetables 4) fruit 5) milk.

All five food items are offered daily.  The Cafeteria staff encourages students to take all five items but students must choose at least 3 of the 5 to make a meal, with 1 of the 3 being either a serving of a fruit OR vegetable. Whether students choose 3, 4, or 5 items, the price of the meal is the same.  This “offer vs serve” concept was instituted to encourage children who may not like one menu item to purchase lunch and to help eliminate the vast amount of plate waste generated by forcing children to accept products they will not eat. A main entrée and two alternate entrees will be offered to all students in first through fifth grade for lunch.  On alternate weeks, a salad bar will be one of the alternate entrees offered. 

The CAFTRAC Debit System will be used in our school cafeteria to assist parents and students in managing lunch money from day to day during the school year.  Students may purchase the school lunch, a la carte items which include a beverage or and “extra” (prices may vary) using the CAFTRAC system.

Cash is not accepted in our building cafeterias.  Deposits may be made with credit card or check.  See below for link to credit card process.

Checks, made payable to PSD Cafeteria, may be sent to the food services office at 2219 North Cedar Crest Boulevard, Allentown, PA 18104.  Parents/guardians will need to allow time for the check to pass through the U. S. Postal Service.  The Food Services Department will not hold post-dated checks.   There is a $25 per check fee for returned checks.  

You may also log onto www.myschoolbucks.com and deposit money into your child’s meal account for a small fee.  You will need your child’s Student ID number.

The Cafeteria Staff will alert students of a low balance in their account. If an account reaches a negative balance, a letter requesting additional money will be sent home.

Parents may acquire homework assignments for students who are absent from school in one of the following ways.

• A SIBLING MAY PICK UP THE HOMEWORK.

The sibling should request the homework from the appropriate classroom teacher in the morning before school begins. The sibling may pick up the homework at the end of the school day.

• A PARENT MAY PICK UP THE HOMEWORK.

The parent should request the homework through the school office BEFORE 9:00 a.m. on the day of the absence (610-351-5840). The parent may pick up the homework at the school on the table in the foyer at the end of the day (3:30). Parents should be advised that the school cannot ensure a request for homework made after 9:30 a.m.

• A FRIEND MAY PICK UP THE HOMEWORK.

A friend may pick up the homework for a student who is absent from school provided there is a mutual agreement between both sets of parents for the safe delivery of the homework. A friend should follow the same procedures as a sibling to acquire the homework.

The Parkland School District Activities Calendar provides district-wide information for school events at all schools in the district. The youngest student in each family will receive the Parkland School District Activities Calendar during the first week of school.

The school nurse will administer medications to students during the school day with parental and/or physician permission when necessary. Parents must complete a “Medical Authorization Form” before any medication can be dispensed at school. In addition, parents are required to bring the medication to school. Medication should not be sent to school with a student. These procedures are mandatory to ensure the proper and safe administration of medications. Parents are advised to contact the school nurse or nurse’s aide whenever it is necessary to administer medication to their child during the school day.

Parents may drop off items for their child before, during, and after the regular school hours as circumstances dictate. Parents are requested to drop the item(s) off on the table in the foyer and a staff member will make the delivery to the classroom.  Please be advised that parents are not permitted to make deliveries to their child’s classroom. 

A delivery should be placed on the table in the foyer and must be labeled with the student’s name and the teacher’s name for easy identification and distribution. A pick-up arranged in advance will also be placed on the table in the foyer and will be labeled with the student’s name and/or the parent’s name.

If a student forgets to take home their homework, projects, etc., following dismissal, the latest it can be picked up is 4:00 p.m.  There will be no access to the building after 4 p.m.

At times during school hours, students will participate in day field trips for educational purposes that take place away from your student’s school. These may include a visit to another Parkland school or to a site off School District property. Parents/Guardians will be notified of all such field trips in advance. All possible care and precaution will be taken to safeguard students including the administration of emergency medical treatment by qualified personnel.  Field trips are governed by Board Policy 121. If you do not want your student to participate in day field trips, you must notify the District in writing no later than one day prior to the scheduled trip.

The Kernsville Elementary School PTO and the Parkland School District provide for the cost and transportation of all field trips taken by our teachers and students during the year.

To volunteer for any event or program, adults must have their volunteer clearances on file with the PSD Human Resource department. This includes (but is not limited to) class parties, field trips, book fairs, Holiday Shoppe, Family Fun Day, Field Day, assemblies, and other school events.

Please visit the PSD website at https://www.parklandsd.org/  and click on “Departments”, “Human Resources”, and then “Volunteers” to access complete instructions for obtaining your clearances and the required forms.