Health & Safety

Service Projects and Partnerships – Exploring and building community happens in many ways here at Friends, and at the core of this work are relationships: relationships with ourselves, with others, and with the world around us. For their community work each grade has a theme or topic they are exploring in their curriculum throughout the year, and work with various community partner organizations. These partnerships enhance what is being taught in our classes, as well as provide real, meaningful service to organizations. We are fortunate to work with many change-makers right in our community, and through this work we’ve formed relationships that are authentic, reciprocal, and sustainable. The Parents Association Service Committee helps coordinate service opportunities for families throughout the year; more info can be found in the Parent Portal or Circle Back.

The school works to provide relevant health and safety information to children and their parents. Faculty and staff members are trained in First Aid and CPR, and the school is equipped with first aid kits and defibrillators.

Allergies –

Food at School – SFFS is not a nut-free campus. We permit students to bring the meals of their choice from home. At each snack and lunch period and on field trips we organize a nut-free table or area. Our Extended Day programs include two daily snacks, in which there are options for children with allergies. Extended Day includes cooking classes. If there is an activity that involves food preparation, teachers are careful to attend to the needs of those students with food allergies.

Animals at SFFS – There are class pets in the Lower School, and animals in the science labs of the Middle School. In addition, the school has activities and assemblies that introduce students to animals, insects and birds, and field trips to farms, zoos, and animal shelters. Such activities include a kindergarten trip to a goat farm, a 1st Grade trip to Slide Ranch, and a 2nd Grade trip to the SPCA.

A Well-Informed Staff – Each fall, at our back to school meetings, we share information about student allergies. All school employees (classroom teachers, administrators, staff, Extended Day teachers) are informed of student allergies. Teachers are given all the data you provide on the allergy form over the summer, and knowledge about each student is passed from teacher to teacher at the beginning of every year. In the case of severe allergies, we post photos of the students with life-threatening allergies in various spaces around the

school, and make sure that we have updated Epi-pens and family instructions for the treatment of an accidental exposure. On field trips, parents are informed by the lead teacher of students who warrant special care and attention around food (or other) exposure.

Overnights and International Travel – In the case of overnights (in 3rd–8th Grade) teachers and outfitters are prepared to treat a student with an allergic reaction and transport the child to professional medical attention. When our students travel internationally, such as in the 7th Grade trip to Guatemala, the students are either near a medical facility or they travel with a medic to attend to any medical issues that arise while the students are further from hospital care.

Building Security – Our home at 250 Valencia Street has one entrance during school hours for parents and visitors (Brosnan Street side entrance). Parents and visitors will be screened by the front desk clerk and must sign in and out.

It is essential that all parents and visitors to the school sign in at the front desk and wear a guest badge while in the school. We are responsible for every student’s safety while here at school, and having a clear log of who is on the premises and who has left contributes to the knowledge we have in the event of an emergency. Parents, we hope you will understand the precaution the school takes in this regard, and in the knowledge that we take our responsibility for the care of your children very seriously.

Concussions – The School Nurse has created a protocol that our staff uses when a child may have suffered a concussion. Staff members call parents immediately, and fill out a head injury questionnaire that closely tracks symptoms while closely observing the child.

Crisis & Emergency Preparedness – Director of Facilities Roman Osorio directs the school’s emergency preparedness efforts. The school has staff members who have attended NERT (Neighborhood Emergency Response Team) classes, taught by San Francisco firefighters and emergency responders, as well as programs such as Wilderness First Responders. The full faculty receives training in CPR and first aid each fall.

We consult regularly with San Francisco Police and Fire Department officials about safety and evacuation procedures. The school also has a comprehensive Emergency Action Plan that is revised annually. In addition, the staff Emergency Planning Committee meets four times a year.

We have food, water, clothes, blankets, a generator, radio, and flashlights on hand in order to take care of students for 72 hours, in the event of an emergency. The school practices drills for fire (10 times a year), earthquake, play yard evacuation, and lockdowns (two times a year), and one major emergency role-play exercise each fall; the fire drills are conducted by the SFFD, which consistently commends the school for its swift and orderly evacuation of the building. We work together with parents to respond in a developmentally appropriate way to any kind of crisis in the neighborhood or world.

In the event of an emergency school staff members will direct parents to wait in a designated area. Students will only be released to contacts listed on the student emergency/medical information card with valid identification. Once the parent/guardian has been verified, school staff members will send a runner for the child and escort the parent/guardian and child(ren) to the exit gate, where another staff member will collect cell phone numbers and affirm that the reunification process is complete and documented.

In the case of a major emergency or catastrophic event in which our building or yard are not safe—or parents are unable to reach our neighborhood for an extended period of time—we will use Millennium School and Francis of Assisi as safe spaces to gather our students and professional community.

Carpools – We strongly encourage carpools and are grateful for the ease in the congestion around school, the friendships that form in this daily contact, and the cleaner air we all get to breathe. Please, make this a priority! Better still, join a “walking school bus,” ride bikes, or jump on a bus! There is a resource on the Parent Portal Household Directory to help you identify other families who live near your home with whom you might carpool as part of the school directory. Carpool! Make new friends! Drive less! Smile more!

Carpool Etiquette – We work hard to keep you, your children, pedestrians, and cyclists safe during the rush of pick-up and drop off times. Below are detailed carpool etiquette guidelines, and we implore you to follow them and to share them with caregivers who may pick up your students.

Remember:

● Do not queue along Valencia Street between Clinton Park and Duboce ● Always yield to pedestrians and cyclists ● Do not double park anywhere ● Do not make U-turns on Valencia ● Do not jaywalk across Valencia ● Do not drop off in front of Francis of Assisi on Guerrero Street

Morning Drop-Off Carpool – Do not use either of the side alleys (Brosnan and Clinton Park). Approach the loading zone on Valencia, coming south from Duboce. Upon arrival at the loading island in front of the school, please ensure your child is ready, bag in hand, to get out of the car. Staff and faculty will be on the island to open doors and unload the students.

Walkers/Bikers – Bring your child(ren) to the Valencia gate to enter the Front Yard.

Afternoon Pick-Up Carpool – Approach the loading island in front of the school by using the side alley Clinton Park, entering from Guerrero Street. Queue up your car on Clinton Park until you are directed to the loading island on Valencia by a staff person. Do not approach the loading zone by way of Valencia Street traveling south from Duboce. Use Clinton Park. It is absolutely prohibited to double park/idle on Valencia between Clinton Park and Duboce. Students will assemble on the basketball court inside the front north gate. A placard with the name of each student in a carpool should be visible on the passenger side of the dashboard. (Placards are traditionally mailed home in August.) Cars will pull up to the loading island in front of the school by way of Clinton Park. A staff member will communicate the name of the carpool to staff who are posted where the students are assembled. Students will be released from inside the gate. A staff person will open the car door and the students will be walked to the car and helped in. In deference to our neighbors who live on Clinton Park, and who may need to exit from a parking space or a garage there, you may be asked to exit Clinton Park and circle the block in order to allow our neighbors to leave and not be stuck in our carpool line. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation if and when you are asked to circle the block.

One Pick-Up Per Car – If you have students in your carpool with different dismissal times, you should only pick up (once) at the later dismissal time. Students who have earlier dismissal than others in their carpool will wait for their older sibling.

Walkers – Walkers in Grades 1–8 will gather at the south gate picnic tables. A gate monitor will let caregivers in through the South Gate.

Parking – There are several areas for parking when you are visiting 250 Valencia, the lot on 14th being the closest. Please do not ever, for any reason, block a driveway or double park at the front of the school. Cars will be towed if found blocking a neighbor’s driveway. Please help us be kind and respectful neighbors to the community around us.

Ride Services for Students – Lyft, Uber, and other ride services that are not specifically designated for youth are not allowed to pick up students at SFFS. If a Middle School student

is allowed to self-dismiss, once they leave campus they have been dismissed and the school is no longer responsible for their transportation choices. If a parent/guardian decides to use a youth specific ride service (Zum, Hop, Skip, Drive, Kanga, etc.) they must inform the school and submit the name of the authorized driver by 10:00 a.m. the day prior to pick up. The school is not responsible for the use of a ride share service or any other commercial transportation service, nor does the school make any representations about such services.

Emergency Notification – In the event of an emergency or crisis that affects SFFS students, teachers, or families, the school has contracted with SchoolMessenger, an automated communication system, which is located out of state, to provide immediate information (and subsequent updates) by phone, text, and email. We test the SchoolMessenger system periodically.

Illness – Our School Nurse will call you if your child becomes ill at school, and we hope that you will come as quickly as possible to bring them home. If your child is not well in the morning, please do not bring him/her to school even for part of the day; we ask that your child has been fever-free for at least 24 hours after stopping fever-reducing medicine before returning them to the classroom. Please email your child’s teacher in the morning if your child is ill and copy attendance@sffriendsschool.org, and bring a note of excuse upon their return. If a student in your child’s class is infected with a contagious condition, you will receive an exposure notice with listed symptoms and treatment. We ask that children with contagious conditions not return to school until they have been confirmed infection-free by a doctor for the prescribed amount of time.

Immunizations – Immunizations are an important safeguard against serious communicable diseases, and their effectiveness relies on all healthy children being fully vaccinated. Please make sure your children receive the necessary immunizations.

New state law mandates that all students receive immunizations according to the health department guidelines before they enter school. The provisions of the law are as follows:

“No students will be admitted to the school without complete immunization for their age unless they have a medical waiver stating that “the physical condition of the child is such, or medical circumstances relating to the child are such, that immunization is not considered safe, indicating the specific nature and probable duration of the medical condition or circumstances, including, but not limited to, family medical history, for which the physician does not recommend immunization, that child shall be exempt from the requirements.”

If your child has received any new vaccinations, please update the Magnus Health student health tracker via the Parent Portal.

Lice – Parents are responsible for performing regular lice checks on their children. We send both regular reminders and exposure notices (when a case of lice is discovered in your child’s classroom). If there seems to be an infestation in a particular grade or class at any point throughout the year, we will organize a screening (not treatment) of that grade or class. Parents of students found to be carrying lice will be contacted. The student will remain in class for the remainder of the day, but following that day shall not return to school until after treatment.

Medical Records and Emergency Information – All medical records and emergency information are kept securely at the school site. When children are on a full day field trip, we’ll take emergency treatment release forms with us. Relevant medical information is shared with playground supervisors and specialists at the beginning of each school year.

Medicine – Required medications should be provided to the front desk, along with your doctor’s instructions in a zippered plastic bag marked with your child’s name, his/her teacher’s name, as well as your doctor’s name and telephone number. Please notify your Lower School child’s classroom teacher or the Middle School Head once you’ve done this. Please be sure to renew any medications or Epi-pens on a regular basis, as many of these are outdated quickly.

Mental Wellness – All of us have encountered difficulties that may affect our ability to be available to our family in the way we would like. Children also, from time to time, experience challenges that set them back. There are several resources available to help families understand and deal with stressful situations. School staff is experienced at working with children and families in a variety of challenging passages. The Circle of Friends Committee has an array of resources to help families. Our Mental Health Specialist, Katherine Preston, is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who works with the faculty and parents to help members of the Friends community find support for negotiating the normal challenges of raising children as well as issues of anxiety, depression and stress, or any other mental health need.

Please refer to the Health & Wellness in Uncertain Times webpage on our SFFS school website for more resources on self-care and getting through the unprecedented challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic has posed to many of us.