Skip to main content
Main Menu Toggle
To translate this website into another language, please use the Google Translate box
Heather Handbook » Drop Off / Pick Up and Parking Lot Procedures

Drop Off / Pick Up and Parking Lot Procedures

We need your help to keep the school and your children safe. EVERY child’s safety is important to us. It remains our highest priority to ensure that students enter and exit cars in a safe and organized way. We ask everyone to correctly follow our pick-up and drop-off procedures. Failure to do so creates chaos, frustration and unsafe conditions. Please discuss proper drop-off and pick-up procedures with your children, nannies, and extended family members or friends who will be driving your children to school.

We encourage you to consider walking your children to school each day. Not only would it help alleviate our serious traffic problem, but it also encourages good exercise and a healthy lifestyle. Walking to school and carpooling are more important than ever!

BEST TIP: Park remotely, such as at Highlands Park, two blocks below Heather and "walk to school". Save yourself the parking lot headache and start your child's day with fresh air and exercise.

 

Parking Lot Procedures

There is NO PARKING anywhere along the curb.

The curb is a quick loading zone only, parents must remain in the car. You need to pull all the way forward to the front of the office to load and unload your children within the coned area.

  • Please circle the perimeter of the parking lot until your child is ready to be picked up, or find a parking space in the parking lot, or on the street.
     
  • In the mornings say your goodbyes before entering the parking lot, and all students must exit on the curbside, never the traffic side of the car.

  • If parents need to get out of their cars to assist their children, they need to PARK in a space and not the curb, otherwise allow your child to get out on their own.

  • BE VERY CAREFUL when pulling away from the curb at the crosswalk. A special thank you (in advance) to our crosswalk volunteers. I am hoping to once again have a couple of committed volunteers for morning drop off and afternoon pick up.

  • Buses have priority, please be careful when driving around them. The long bus cannot safely or properly execute the turn when cars are parked by the After School building. The result is: “the now waiting bus” blocks the cars trying to enter the parking lot and the line becomes backed up on Melendy. The bus needs to park alongside After School—keep this area clear and moving forward.

 

  • Staff or parent volunteers will be on the curbside near the office to open doors and get kids in and out as quickly as possible to help keep traffic moving. If staff is not there (rainy days etc.) please follow the process as usual.

 

We realize that some of these rules and procedures may be an inconvenience to parents and that you might feel your exception is “only one”—but we have over 300 children at Heather, and our policies are in place for the well-being of everyone.

Kindergarten Families

We understand that these procedures can be difficult for our 8:25 am kindergarten parents, as they prefer walking their children on to campus, or dropping off right near Room 1. Please find a parking space in the main lot, the street. If you want to remain in your car and drop your children off at the curb, you will need to drive all the way up to the front office. Please do not stop in front of Room 1. This is not quite an issue with 9:25 start times as the parking lot is much calmer by then.

Also, all children need to be able to exit the cars on their own, at curbside, not the traffic side. If parents need to get out of the car to assist their children out of car seats etc. they will need to find a parking space to do so, instead of holding up the car line. Exiting at curbside may mean that they will need to climb over younger sibling car seats, but this is safer than exiting on the traffic side of the car!


Preschool Families

We recognize that preschoolers can’t be dropped off at the curb, but we need for all families, even our preschool parents to follow our parking lot procedures, which means parking in a legal parking space when dropping off or picking up your preschooler. Please follow our Parking Lot Procedures above.

Our policy is that “There is NO PARKING anywhere along the curb”. For all parents, including our preschool parents this is critical between the hours of 8:00 – 8:30, not a minute in-between, and between 2:15 and 3:00. There are two parking spaces reserved for 10 minute preschool drop-off.

Our school bus needs to have access in front of the After School building at these critical times times as well as a fluid lane of cars moving into the drop off and pick up area. 

In addition, all children need to be able to exit the cars at curbside, not the traffic side of their cars.

Please help us to keep our parking lot safe and efficient by following the procedures for dropping off and picking up students, including preschoolers.