School Policy Guide

We believe optimal student achievement, both academically and behaviorally, can be achieved by taking a positive and proactive approach for creating and maintaining a safe and effective learning environment. We use the Proactive Behavior Support (PBS) practices to both teach students about expectations and recognize when they are “caught doing good.” Every classroom has dedicated times and lessons to support the ongoing development of students’ social-emotional learning (SEL). Additionally, teachers integrate the SELS throughout the academic day and also utilize the Zones of Regulation, which provides students easy language to be metacognitive about their feelings and many strategies for keeping themselves “in the green.”

There is an After-School Day Care Program located within the school itself. Care is provided for children from the time school is out until 5:30 p.m. The program is sponsored by the Wisconsin Youth Company, and children are registered in it through its central office by calling 608-276-9782.

Other organizations that provide care to many of our families are:

• Woods Hollow Children’s Day Care at 5470 Research Park (By Promega) 608-273-4433 *
• LaPetite Academy at 5574 Lacy Road, 608-277-8388 *
• Dane County Boys & Girls Club – 608-257-2606 *

* Leopold bus routes include drop-offs at these daycares.

These are not school-sponsored activities and the Madison Metropolitan School District does not support these programs and personnel. Permission to distribute this information is not a recommendation or endorsement by the school district.

There are many ways that Leopold families are engaged in our school community. We have room parents who help with class communications, field trips, room organization and more. We have many special events throughout the year where families can volunteer, such as Literacy Night, Black History Celebration, Multicultural Night, the Fall Fiesta, and the Timberwolf Trample. Additional volunteers help around the school, such as in the library, assisting at lunchtime and recess, organizing our Little Libraries, and prepping teacher materials. There are also leadership opportunities for our families. Leopold’s very active Parent-Faculty Organization supports many improvement projects and community events. General monthly meetings typically focus on an area of learning about how Leopold and MMSD function, with presentations from classroom teachers and updates from the principal. Our Community School Committee, made up of parents, staff and community partners, is a driving force behind our Community School designation. As well we have family groups Black Parents for Progress, which meets monthly, and a Latino Group which meets several times a year.

Our teachers plan field trips that enrich the educational experience we provide, as well as ones that help to build community and celebrate our successes. Parent volunteers/chaperones are very much appreciated!

Conferences occur twice a year, in November and April. Your child’s teacher will send home available times to sign up for conferences as the conference date approaches. Some of our instructional and grade-level teams use a model called Madison Parent Teacher Teams (MPTT), which has classroom teams – made up of the classroom teachers and all the parents in the class – meet as a group 2-3 times a year. At these meetings, the teacher reviews and explains class-level academic data. The teacher then provides parents with data about their own child’s performance and helps them set 60 day SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time-Bound) academic goals. Teachers also model and provide materials for activities that parents can do with their children at home, giving them time to practice with each other in a small-group setting and share tips with each other.

To ensure the safety of your child, please send a note in advance to your child’s teacher or the office. We require parents to come into our office and sign out the student. We will call the classroom to have the student sent down to the office to meet the parents. Please remember anyone picking up a student must be authorized and listed in Infinite Campus. Once school is in session, no non-school staff (including parents) will be allowed to go to a classroom unaccompanied and pick up a child.

Families play a key role in school safety. At leopold.madison.k12.wi.us/families/safety-and-security, you can read about school-specific resources for helping keep students safe. You’ll find more information on district safety and security, including how we communicate with you in an emergency, at madison.k12.wi.us/safety.

Start: 7:35 AM
Monday Early Release Dismissal: 1:10 PM
Dismissal: 2:30 PM

• Main Office: 608-204-4240
• Safe Arrival/Attendance Calls: 608-204-4241
• Interim Principal Marisa Flowers: 608-204-4242
• Assistant Principal: Kim Carruthers 608-204-4244
• School Nurse: Ryan Bruschke 608-204-4246
• School Psychologist: Maria Warren 608-204-4259
• Social Worker: Danny Roller/Maggie Smith 608-204-4249
• Spanish Bilingual Resource Specialists: Nayda Gonzalez, Graciela Laguna, Ms. Millet School: (608) 204-4240
• Hmong Bilingual Resource Specialist: Chao Herr Family/Community Liaison, Linda Johnson 608-204-4275
• Community School Resource Coordinator: Thomas Kearney, Cinthya Diaz 608-204-4275

To help us preserve the academic environment, and to avoid possible problems, please ensure that your child leaves items unrelated to learning at home, including all toys. We ask that students leave cell phones at home. In the case of an emergency, students are allowed to use the phone in the main office. If your student needs to bring a cell phone to school, the device must be “Off and Away” at all times during the school day. As a result, cell phones should remain out of sight (i.e.- kept in lockers or backpacks) and powered off during the school day.

As a technology forward school, we want to teach and promote appropriate digital citizenship, as well as help students stay more present and engaged in their learning. The intent of this policy is to support students in their academic success by removing a major distraction and promoting face to face social interactions and connections.

Students who “forget” the “Off and Away” policy will be warned the first time. The second time we collect the phone for students to pick-up from the main office at the end of the day and a parent will be notified. The third offense and beyond, a parent has to pick it up from the main office. Thank you for supporting the cell phone policy and our children’s engagement in the learning and face to face connections with people around them.

Classes begin at 7:35 a.m. For those students who walk to school or ride with parents, we ask that they arrive at school no earlier than 7:20 a.m., when the doors open and students proceed to their classrooms to eat breakfast.

Our number one priority at Leopold is the safety of your child/ren. To ensure that we have a secure building, we require every visitor to sign in at the office. Outside of drop-off and pick-up hours, you will need to use the intercom to let the office know you are coming into school. You will be asked to come to the office and sign in, after which you will get a visitor’s badge. If the teacher is expecting you, you will be allowed to go to the classroom without an escort. Please be sure to follow this protocol since it keeps our entire Leopold community safe. Thank you in advance for working with our team to focus on safety.

Parking maps are available in the school office. Student drop off/pick up is in the circle drive (drop and go). The school parking lots are reserved for staff only except for the short-term visitor parking located in the upper parking lot which is marked for this purpose. When you drop-off your students across from the school, it is critical that you remind them to cross and the crosswalk, which has lights and an adult school crossing guard. Our student Safety Patrol also offers guided crossing on the north side of Post Road.