Hopkinton Public Schools
Source Book 2010-2011

Calendar

Elementary Calendar Only

Secondary Calendar Only

Letter from the Superintendent

Comings and Goings

School & Administrative Directories

School Health and Safety

HPS Public Notices

School Information Pages

Integrated Preschool

Center School

Elmwood School

Hopkins School

Middle School

High School

HPTA: A Look Inside

Community Organizations

HPTA Board

Tips & FAQ

School Health and Safety

Each school has a full-time school nurse to provide supervision for school and child health issues. School nurses provide important health guidance to the school staff and can be a valuable resource to parents in coordinating information and care between the students’ own physicians, parents, and school personnel. If you have a question about school health or specifically about your child, contact the school nurse.

School Nurse Health Information Forms
During the first week of school your child will bring home a cherry-colored Health Information Form. Please fill it out completely and return it promptly. The information on the form is necessary to provide appropriate medical care in the event of an emergency and/or appropriate accommodations for health impairments or issues. Please be sure that the telephone contact numbers are the same numbers provided on the orange school contact information form. (For legal reasons, this form is completed separately from the orange form.)

Medication at School
If the school nurse is to administer a prescription or over-the-counter medication during school hours, please adhere to the following regulations:
Sign and date the AUTHORIZATION FOR DISPENSING MEDICATION available from school nurse or downloadable from
http://www.hopkinton.k12.ma.us/newweb2/schoolcommittee/policies/policies/J/JLCD-R1.pdf. The form must be completed by a licensed prescriber stating the student’s name, name of medication, dosage, frequency and duration of treatment, diagnosis, potential side effects,and any other conditions requiring the medication.

Self-administration: Consistent with school policy, Middle School and High School students may self-administer prescription medication provided certain conditions are met: (1) The student must meet with the school nurse to complete a self-administration form. (2) Parents must provide the medication in the original pharmacy bottle with the following information: student’s name, name of medication, dosage of medication, frequency of administration, name of licensed prescriber, and date of prescription. (3) The parent or guardian must deliver the medicine to the school nurse. (Medication can never be accepted from students.)

Over-the-counter Medications
The school nurse may administer over-the-counter medications without a licensed prescriber’s order in some circumstances for Middle School and High School students only. The parent/guardian authorization form must be completed, signed, and dated by the parent/guardian. In schools permitting administration of over-the-counter medications by the school nurse without a licensed prescriber’s order, the school nurse shall determine when to approve such administration in each case. The school nurse shall comply with the policy and administration requirements of the MA Board of Registration in Nursing pertaining to Massachusetts school nurses administering over-the-counter medications. Any over-the-counter medication must be in the original bottle or box with the student’s name clearly written on it. Over-the-counter medication must be delivered to the school nurse by the parent or guardian.
School Committee policy on administration of medications may be found at:
http://www.hopkinton.k12.ma.us/newweb2/schoolcommittee/policies/policies/J/JLCD.pdf

Communicable Diseases

The Hopkinton Public Schools is required to provide educational services to all school age children who reside within its boundaries. By law, however, attendance at school may be temporaily denied to any child diagnosed as having a disease whereby attendance could be harmful to the welfare of other students and staff, subject to the District’s responsibilities to handicapped children under the law. School attendance may also be temporaily denied for any student who is not immunized and has been exposed to the disease for which he/she is not immunized.

The School Committee recognizes that communicable diseases which may afflict students range from common childhood diseases, acute and short-term in nature, to chronic, life-threatening diseases. Management of common communicable diseases shall be in accordance with Massachusetts Department of Health guidelines. A student who exhibits symptoms of a communicable disease may be temporarily excluded from school attendance. The District reserves the right to require a physician’s statement authorizing the student’s return to school.

Children who have had throat cultures must remain at home until the report is received or for 24 hours if an antibiotic is administered. Streptococcal infections, which include scarlet fever, are considered communicable.

Parent Information Confirmation Forms

Each student will be given a student contact form containing emergency information and printed from the student record system. (Most schools send it home on orange paper.) The information form must be updated or confirmed as accurate, signed, and returned before the end of the first week of school. Please be sure that the parent contact numbers are the same as the numbers given to the school nurse on the cherry colored form so there is no confusion about emergency contacts.

Weapons and Drugs

Each school publishes its own guidelines in regard to expected student conduct in their student handbook. Federal and state laws, however, mandate specific school actions if and when a student brings a weapon to school. This deserves special mention here because it is a concern for students of all ages, especially in this time of heightened safety and security consciousness. Even the youngest child may bring an object to school that can be considered a weapon. Some bracelets (studded) sold in Massachusetts stores are classified as weapons under Massachusetts law. Pocketknives, multi-tools, and any tool with a blade may be classified as a weapon.

Federal and state laws provide for harsh consequences for students who bring weapons or drugs to school and in many cases the law leaves school officials with limited discretion. Bringing a weapon or drug to school, even once, can result in permanent expulsion from public schooling in Massachusetts. Please talk to your children of all ages about school policies and laws regarding weapons and drugs. Many situations that begin as jokes, or show and tell, or innocent mistakes, end up as very serious matters. See policy:
(http://www.hopkinton.k12.ma.us/newweb2/schoolcommittee/policies/policies/J/JICI.pdf)

Crisis Response and School Emergency Planning

The school system has worked extensively with the Hopkinton Fire and Police Departments to prepare for school crises and emergencies of all types. The district has prepared a guidebook entitled Crisis Preparation, Prevention, and Response that outlines in great detail how to prepare for an emergency and respond to one, should it occur.

Each school has a Crisis Response Team (CRT) trained to handle emergencies and protect student and staff safety. Schools regularly practice emergency situations as table top drills and actual drills. The district’s crisis response and emergency planning efforts are guided by the District Safety Council whose members include our Police and Fire Chiefs and other officers, health professionals, community church leaders, teachers, and administrators. The District Safety Council meets every other month to share information and plan for a unified response to any emergency situation.

Hopkinton Public Schools
www.hopkinton.k12.ma.us

Teachers and Parents: Partners in Education

HPTA
www.hptaonline.com

Non-Discrimination Notice
The Hopkinton Public School System does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, or disability in admission to, access to, employment in, or treatment in its programs and activities. The Hopkinton Public School System is committed to maintaining a school environment free of harassment based on race, color, religion, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, or disability. Harassment by administrators, certified and support personnel, students, vendors and other individuals at school or at school-sponsored events is unlawful and is strictly prohibited. The Hopkinton Public School System requires all employees and students to conduct themselves in an appropriate manner with respect to their fellow employees, students and all members of the school community. Also see the HPS Public Notices section of the Source Book.