Student Services

Please review the updated Guidelines for Facility Usage and contact the appropriate building administrator for more information.

Facilities Usage Application

The McKinney-Vento Act, part of No Child Left Behind Act of 2002, guarantees homeless children and youth an education equal to what they would receive if not homeless.

Who is Homeless?

According to the McKinney-Vento Act, homeless children and youth include individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.

The McKinney-Vento Act also recognizes unaccompanied youth who are homeless.  According to the act, an unaccompanied youth is a youth not in the custody of a parent or legal guardian.  

If your family lives in any of the following situations, your preschool aged and school-aged children may qualify for the Families in Transition Program:

• Sharing housing with others, known as doubled-up, due to loss of housing or economic hardship
• Living in a shelter or transitional housing due to hardship
• Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping ground due to hardship
• Abandoned in hospitals
• Living in cars, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, or similar settings
• Children living with relatives or friends while parents are incarcerated

Enrollment

The McKinney-Vento Act requires the immediate enrollment of homeless children and youth even if they are unable to produce previous academic records, immunizations and medical records, proof of residency, birth certificate, or other documentation that is usually required.

We encourage you to visit the St. Joseph School District’s Enrollment Center located at 1415 North 26th Street for assistance with enrolling your child.

Contact

For more information about the Families in Transition program, please contact your child’s school or the Families in Transition office at 816-259-5100.

Families in Transition Liaisons (McKinney-Vento)
Kim Siela
kimsiela@sjsd.k12.mo.us

Kim Hill
kimhill@sjsd.k12.mo.us

Maria Burnham
mariaburnham@sjsd.k12.mo.us

Applications

Families in Transition Application (English)
Families in Transition Application (Spanish)
Families in Transition Application (Chuukese)
Community Resources Handbook for Families in Transition

Home School Guidelines

According to Section 167.031 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri, a parent or guardian of a child, between the ages of seven and seventeen years of age, shall cause the child to attend regularly some public, private, parochial, parish, home school or a combination of such school. Any parent may educate a child at home. The parent does not need a teaching certificate or need to meet education requirement in order to provide in home instruction.

If a parent decides to home school, he or she must offer 1,000 hours of instruction during the school year, with at least 600 hours in the basics, which will be in reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies and science. At least 400 of the 600 hours shall occur in the home location.

Home school education enforcement and records pursuant to this section, and sections 210.167 and 211.031, RSMo, shall be subject to review only by the local prosecuting attorney.

• A parent who is home schooling a child must maintain the following :
• A plan book, diary, daily log, or other written record indicating the subjects taught and the activities engaged in with the student;
• A portfolio containing samples of the student’s academic work;
• A record of evaluation of the student’s academic progress; or other written, or credible evidence equivalent to a, b, and c.
• The school year is defined as beginning July 1 and ending the next June 30.
• Children with disabilities attending a home school program may receive special education services provided by the local school district, in accordance with Section 162.996 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri, and the State Plan for Special Education.

If a student is 17 years of age or older, they may enroll in Adult Education at the Webster Learning Center.

To officially notify the St. Joseph School District of your intent to home-school a child complete the form below and submit it to the Student Services office.

Homeschool Notification Form

How We Notify Families

Decisions about school closings are made by the administration by 5:30 a.m. If possible, we will try to make the decision the night before. All notifications will clearly state whether the day is an AMI day or a non-AMI snow day. 

In rare cases, school may be dismissed early due to changing weather conditions. If this happens, we’ll communicate with families as early as possible. Parents and guardians should have a plan and make sure children know what to do, whom to contact, and where to go if school lets out early.

We also offer community alerts for grandparents, neighbors, family friends, and others who want to receive closure notifications even if they are not listed as a student’s primary contact.

We will communicate with you through several sources: 

• ParentSquare (phone call, text, and email) 
• SJSD Facebook
• SJSD Website at www.sjsd.k12.mo.us 
• Local TV and radio stations
• SJSD Channel 13 (Optimum Cable) 

Please don’t rely on just one source, power outages or service interruptions can occur. Always have a backup way to receive information. If you are not currently receiving our district calls or emails, please check with your school secretary to make sure your contact information is correct.

Activities

Some afterschool activities may still occur if school is canceled. Please contact your student’s activity sponsor or coach to find out. Make sure you have the name and contact information for the sponsor or coach at your child’s school.

Keeping students safe is a top priority for the St. Joseph School District. It is important that we know who is in our buildings at all times. Starting in January 2019, the district began using the Raptor visitor management system at each of our schools to keep track of visitors. The procedure enables each school building to screen all visitors against sexual offender registries in all 50 states and establish a consistent sign-in process across the district.

Please understand that the process is not intended to discourage parents from visiting their children's schools. We welcome visitors and encourage all parents to be an active part of their child's educational experience. The goal is simply to enhance the safety and security of both students and staff by prohibiting school access to those who pose a potential threat.

Once the system is in place, all visitors, including parents, will be asked to report to the main office upon their arrival at the school.

• A secretary or other office staff member will request that each visitor provide their driver's license or other state or federally issued ID.
• The visitor's name, address, and photo will be checked for a match to a national sexual offender database.
• If a match is identified, the building principal or designated representative will immediately be notified and respond according to district procedures.
• If no match is found, visitors will be issued a date-specific visitor's badge. These badges must be worn at all times while on the school grounds. School personnel have been directed to escort anyone not wearing a badge to the office. Visitors must check in and receive a visitor badge each time they visit.

School Hours

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

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What is the visitor management process and why do we need a visitor management system?
This process helps us make sure visitors follow our district procedures when visiting our schools beyond the school office or checking out a student. Visitors entering a school beyond the office receive a printed ID sticker that must be worn and visible during the entire stay. This makes it easier for our school staff to know who is allowed inside the school.

During school hours, entry to the school building will be restricted to a single door near the office. Office personnel will check a visitor's driver's license or other state-issued ID, comparing information to a national sex offender database, alerting school administrators if a match is found, or issuing a detailed visitor badge if the person is cleared.

What if a match is found?
Driver's license/ID information is compared to a database of registered sex offenders from all 50 states. If a match is found, a silent alert will go to administrative staff members. School administrators and law enforcement personnel will take appropriate steps to keep the school, students, and staff safe.

Why is the St. Joseph School District using this system?
Safety of our students is our highest priority. Part of keeping our students safe is knowing who is in our buildings at all times. The Raptor system allows us to track visitors and volunteers in our schools, as well as manage student checkout. The new process will provide a consistent system to track visitors and volunteers while keeping away people who present a danger to students and staff members.

What if I don't have a valid form of ID or don't want it scanned?
A first-time visitor who does not have a valid ID may be granted access, with the building principal's approval, only after manually running the visitor's legal name and date of birth through the system. Visitors that do not present an ID their first time will only be allowed in the building with an escort at all times.

Will I have to have my ID scanned if I am just dropping something off?
Visitors who are leaving an item and will not enter the building past the office will not need to be scanned. Anyone who goes beyond the office or is picking a student up will have to will need to have their ID scanned.

Do visitors who are children need a state ID?
Children who do not have a valid ID may be allowed to visit as long as an adult who has completed the check-in process accompanies them at all times.

What other information is the school taking from driver's licenses?
We will only capture the visitor's name, date of birth, and photo for comparison with a national database of registered sex offenders. Additional visitor data will not be gathered, and no data will be shared with any outside organization or authority.

Will St. Joseph School District employees follow the procedure?
St. Joseph School District employees who do not have an employee badge visible must follow the same procedure and wear the school-issued badge. Substitute teachers will follow exactly the same procedure as other employees.

Will volunteers have to follow the procedure?
Volunteers must follow the same procedures as any visitor. Identity must be verified with an acceptable form of identification (i.e. driver's license or state ID).

Will contractors, subcontractors and vendors follow the procedure?
Contractors, subcontractors and vendors must be checked the same as any visitor. If identity cannot be acceptably verified, they will not be allowed on district property. Acceptable forms of identification include driver's license, state ID, U.S. military ID, or passport.

Can the St. Joseph School District require parents to produce an ID before entering the building?
Yes. The district must be sure of who is in our buildings, why they are there, and – particularly if a student is involved (e.g., early pickup) – be able to confirm that an individual is authorized to access the student. We can only do this by knowing exactly whom we are dealing with.

What about grandparents?
Grandparents will be checked against the database and the student's enrollment form to see if they have parental permission to access the student.

What about police officers, firemen, and other uniformed or governmental officials?
Law enforcement and other first responders will bypass the sign-in process if responding to an emergency. If there is no active emergency, police/fire/other officials will be checked in and will be asked to show credentials.

Does the district have to give listed sexual offenders and predators access to the school?
Listed sexual offenders and predators are not allowed on district property or transportation or at district events. See Board Policy KK and Missouri Statute 566.149.1 for further information.

Will the district use the process for after-school activities?
No. The visitor management process will only be used during school hours.

How does Raptor keep my data secure?
Raptor uses firewalls, intrusion prevention systems, host integrity monitoring and port filtering, as well as the latest security processes to protect all of its systems and data. All information entered into Raptor gets encrypted using 256-bit AES encryption. Raptor does not share data with any third parties.

What if I have an outstanding warrant or am undocumented? Will you report me to the police or immigration?
The National Sex Offender Public Registry and the SJSD student information system are the only two databases that Raptor checks. The system will not alert office staff or even know if you have an outstanding warrant or are undocumented.

The St. Joseph School District does cooperate with police. If authorities contact us to alert us to someone who might pose a threat to school safety, this information can be entered into the system so administration gets alerted if that person visits one of our schools.

Do other schools and institutions use a system like this?
Yes. Many of surrounding districts use Raptor or similar visitor management systems to help ensure school and student safety.