Student/Parent Summer Checklist 2025-26

Things to do prior to the start of school

• Uniforms

Please see the Student-Parent Handbook on our website, saintjoehigh.com for dress code expectations. School uniform tops, outerwear, and skorts must be purchased through the online uniform store posted to the Parents and Students portals of our website. Uniforms will be shipped directly to your homes. We will no longer offer the option to have them delivered to school.

We encourage you to purchase uniforms by July 18 to have them in time for the start of the school year.

• Spirit Wear

Spirit wear can be purchased on our website under the Parents or Students tabs. Additionally, our Spirit Shop will be open at New Student-Parent Welcome (8/05), on Student Orientation Days (8/12 - 8/13) from 2:45 p.m. - 3:30 p.m., and at Back-to-School Night (8/27). Spirit wear is permitted to be worn to school on dress down days and spirit wear days.

• Parking Passes

All student drivers must park in the student parking lots in their assigned spot with their parking tag visible. Parking tags can be purchased on our website in the Students portal starting on July 15. Parking tags are $65 for the year and $35 for one semester. Parents will be billed for the pass through FACTS. All tags purchased before August 6 will be distributed during first period at Student Orientation on August 12. Tags purchased on or after August 6 must be picked-up in the Office of Student Life.

• Pictures

Derby Photography is the official photographer for Saint Joseph High School. School and ID Pictures will be taken during Student Orientation (9th and 10th grades on August 12; 11th and 12th grades on August 13). On picture day for their grade level, students may wear a non-uniform top that is school appropriate. Students must be in uniform from the waist down. To purchase pictures, students must either bring the enclosed order form with payment on their assigned picture day or have placed an order and paid online prior to their picture day.

• Laptop Pick Up

Students who did not keep their laptop for the summer may pick them up on Tuesday, August 12 from 7:30 to 8:00 a.m. at the iHelp Desk. New students will receive their laptops at New Student-Parent Welcome on August 5.

• Apply for Free or Reduced-Price Meals: To qualify for free or reduced-price meals, parents need to complete a free and reduced-price meal benefit application. The applications open July 1 and can be found at lunchapp.com and on our website in the Parents portal. When applying online and searching for the school name, use "St. Joseph High School." (It is not listed as "Saint" here.) Apply by August 7 to ensure that your student, if eligible, will receive free or reduced-priced meals when school starts. Families must reapply every year to be eligible. For food service-related questions, please contact Danielle Kaidan, Director of Food Services, at dkaidan@saintjoehigh.com.

• Open (or Add to) Your Meal Magic Account: We use the Meal Magic System for lunch purchases. Families can create an online account at familyportal.cloud (the link is on our website in the Parents portal) to check their cafeteria balance and add funds to their student's account. Note: when searching for the school, enter "St. Joseph High School." (It is not listed as "Saint" here). In Meal Magic, parents can set communications preferences for notices sent from Meal Magic.

• Final Forms

Student-athletes must complete all steps in Final Forms at saintjoehigh-in.finalforms.com prior to the start of any team practice schedule. For fall sports this is due no later than July 31. A list of fall sports is on the Athletics page of our website.

• School Supplies

Students will be informed of needed supplies by each of their teachers on the first days of school. To be prepared for the first day, we suggest having at least one notebook, a pen, a pencil, and your laptop. Students in 9th grade will receive a supply list at New Student-Parent Welcome.

• Attend New Student-Parent Welcome on August 5 at 6:30 p.m.

This event is required for all freshmen and transfer students. Parents new to Saint Joe are especially encouraged to attend. See the enclosed flier for more information.

• Attend the First Days of School and Student Orientation on August 12 and 13

All students attend both days. Please see the schedule enclosed.

Saint Joseph High School will not be participating in the Summer Food Service Program. Those interested in the summer menus and locations can visit sb.nutrislive.com or download the Nutrislice app from their smartphone's App Store.

If you're interested in participating in our Wellness Committee please contact Director of Food Services Danielle Kaidan at dkaidan@saintjoehigh.com

 

Parent Drop-off/Pick-up This applies during peak hours (7:15 - 8:15 a.m. and 3:00 - 4:00 p.m.)

• Primary parent drop-off and pick-up for school occurs on Notre Dame Avenue in the southbound lane along the curb. Please pull sufficiently forward to allow other vehicles to pull up behind you. Students should always exit the vehicle on the curbside.
• Additional drop-off and pick-up for school is permitted northbound on St. Louis St in front of Leighton Stadium. Please be cautious, as this is a primary route for student drivers.
• Secondary drop-off/pick-up occurs in the parking lot located on the southeast corner of Notre Dame Ave and Cedar Street (across the street from the school) in the non-numbered spots. This can be useful after school if you need to wait for your child for an extended time. Please make sure that your child crosses the street at the corner.
• Off-limits for drop-off and pick-up during peak hours:
  • Faculty/Staff parking lot
  • Student parking lot
  • Northbound on Notre Dame Avenue
  • Cedar Street

Late Arrival: After 8:15 a.m. (9:45 a.m. on late start days), parents are to drop students off on St. Louis St. near the event entrance. Students must sign in at the Office of Student Life.

Student Parking

• All student drivers must register their vehicle with the school, purchase a parking tag, and park in a student parking lot in their assigned spot. Parking tags can be purchased on our website at www.saintjoehigh.com in the student portal starting on July 15, 2025.
• Parking tags are $65 for the year and $35 for one semester. Parents will be billed for the parking tag through FACTS. All tags purchased before August 7 will be distributed at Student Orientation on August 12. After that, students must pick up their tags in the Office of Student Life.

• Students are not permitted to park on Cedar Street, in the neighborhoods, or in any other locations. Saint Joseph High School is not responsible for vehicles that are ticketed or towed for parking anywhere outside the Saint Joe student lots.

Please see the reverse side of this page for a campus map with traffic patterns.

For questions, please call 574-239-7665 or email Mr. Luczynski at cluczynski@saintjoehigh.com.

Important Policies and Procedure Reminders and Revisions 2025-26

This document summarizes some of the new, revised, or prioritized policies and procedures for the 2025-26 school year. For more information, refer to the Student-Parent Handbook (available online in the "Student" and "Parent" portals of our website).

New Diocesan Policy on Child Pornography

Bishop Kevin Rhoades has issued a zero-tolerance approach to knowing or intentional violations of policy involving the creation, distribution, possession, dissemination, or recording of pornographic images, photos, or videos of children under 18 years of age. Consequences include expulsion from school and reporting to the Indiana Department of Childhood Services and/or local law enforcement. Please see the letters included in this mailing on this policy as well as a new subsection titled "Pornography" in Section 9: Discipline of the Student-Parent Handbook.

Attendance Policies and Procedures: Excessive Absences

We believe that learning happens best when a student is present for instruction, and that presence in class is vital to academic success and to fully experiencing a Catholic education that transforms students in heart and mind. The following guidelines may be helpful when thinking about attendance in each class per semester:

Attendance Status (per class, per semester):

Exemplary: 0-2 absences, Good: 3-4 absences, Excessive: 9-12 absences, Loss of Credit: 13 or more absences

A student who exceeds eight (8) absences in a class in one semester is considered to have excessive absences. A student that exceeds twelve (12) absences in a class in one semester will not earn credit for that class. Both excused and unexcused absences count toward these totals. Field trips or other school-sponsored absences do not count.

We expect all student absences to be properly reported by parents. Thus, unexcused absences result in more severe academic consequences. Students with an unexcused absence will not be granted an extension on work due or assessments missed. Specific consequences will vary by teacher. After a student has reached eight (8) absences, documentation, such as a doctor's note, will be required for an absence to be considered excused.

Students who reach eight (8) absences due to unique and extenuating circumstances, such as significant and documented medical diagnoses, may apply for an absence waiver to prevent certain absences from counting towards their cumulative totals. Parents will need to provide documentation to and work with the Office of Student Life.

Attendance Policies and Procedures: Excessive Tardies

To promote personal responsibility and academic success, students are expected to arrive on time to each class. Tardies to the 1st Block of the day (1st and 5th hours) are tracked by the Office of Student Life. Students start receiving consequences on the 4th tardy in a semester. This year, students will be assigned morning detention, running from 7:10 a.m.to 8:10 a.m. Additionally, each time a student is tardy beyond the 7th tardy, the student will be ineligible to participate in their next scheduled athletic or co-curricular event (i.e., game, performance, competition). In other words, the student receives a 1-game/event suspension, including if the game/event is scheduled for that day.

Approach to Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) by Students

Consistent with our aim to provide academic rigor and to facilitate critical thinking and deep learning in students, we value original work and expect students to produce their own work. Therefore, students are not permitted to submit work produced by digital AI tools (i.e. ChatGPT) as their own. Considered a violation of the Academic Honor Code as stated in the SJHS Student-Parent Handbook, work that is produced by or aided by AI tools will not be accepted and will result in consequences unless the teacher has provided explicit permission for use of AI on an assignment.

Dress Code

We believe that all students should dress in a modest and professional manner while at school. The following will be points of emphasis in 2025-26:

• Skorts must be the khaki uniform skort purchased through the SJHS online uniform store and must be worn at full length. They may not be altered and may not be rolled or shortened in any way (the shorts underneath are not to be cut out). Skorts must extend to no more than 3" above the knee. The continuation of skorts as a uniform option will be evaluated during the 1st semester of the 2025-26 school year. Non-compliance with this policy will result in discontinuation of skorts as an option.
• Shorts are permitted until October 31 and again starting on April 1. Shorts must be khaki or black dress shorts. Athletic shorts are not permitted. Shorts must also extend to no more than 3" above the knee.
• As a reminder, leggings are no longer permitted on dress down days.

Cell Phones and Earbuds/Headphones

A point of emphasis this school year will be that earbuds and headphones are not permitted to be worn in the hallway, cafeteria, or other common areas. Earbuds and headphones are only permitted to be used in class with explicit and specific teacher permission. Earbuds and headphones worn in violation of this can be confiscated.

Cell phones are not to be taken out or used in any way during the school day. Cell phones should be placed in the student's locker at the start of the day. Any cell phone that is taken out or used in class, the hallway, the cafeteria or any other area between 8:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. without explicit and specific teacher permission can be confiscated.

The cell phone policy will be under study and review this school year.

Student Parking

As a point of emphasis, student drivers are reminded that they must purchase a parking tag and park in a student parking lot in their assigned spot. Students parked in another student's parking spot or parked improperly will receive a SJHS Parking Violation. The consequences start with a warning and progress to a $10 fine, a $25 fine, detentions, revocation of parking privileges, and possible towing of their vehicle at the owner's expense.

Hall Passes

We are working to implement a new hall pass system that will include permanent restroom and locker passes for each classroom. The restroom passes will be color-coded per area of the building to hold students accountable to using the restroom closest to their classroom. This will reduce hall traffic and shorten the time students are out of class.

Student Health Policies: Administration of Medication

The school will only dispense medication with the following forms on file in the nurse's office:

• Stock Medication Consent Form for the four stock medications available in the nurse's office - Ibuprofen (generic), 200mg; Acetaminophen (generic), 500mg; Calcium Carbonate Antacid (generic/Tums); Cough Drops
• Parent Consent Form for prescription and over-the-counter medication
• Physician Consent Form for prescription medication

All required forms may be found on our website in the Parents portal under "School Nurse." Parents may submit forms via email, mail, or fax, or send to school with your child (deliver forms to the Main office or the nurse's office). Parent Consent Forms need to be renewed every school year. Consent must be written; phone calls or texts are not accepted.

Student Possession of Medication

As a reminder, students may not have any type of medicine in their possession at any time while on school premises. All medications must be brought to the nurse or, in the absence of the nurse, left in the Office of Student Life. Failure to adhere to this policy could result in the student being in violation of the school's Drug and Alcohol Policy.

Please contact Nurse Katie Harshman, at kharshman@saintjoehigh.com or (574) 232-1152 to discuss your child's health needs.

Unpaid Tuition / Past Due Accounts

While we are committed to meeting the demonstrated financial need of each family, it is also necessary for the stability of the school to ensure that tuition obligations are met in a timely manner, in accordance with the family's preferred payment method. Thus, we will take all reasonable steps to collect outstanding tuition balances. This may include prohibiting a student from: attending class, participating in co-curricular and athletic activities, re-enrollment, registering for classes, receiving a cap and gown, participating in the graduation ceremony, and more. In all situations regarding tuition, we ask that the parent respond to all communication from the school, and communicate openly and in a timely manner with the SJHS Business Office.