Please review the following handbook closely to be aware of the proper procedures and policies by which the school is operated. These policies are implemented for the safety and comfort of the children, as well as the effective operation of the school. Some of them are required by law. Parents can find all required posted notices on the classroom board.

Mission Statement

Under the directories and guidance of Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) and other recognized accrediting agencies, we offer a carefully prepared environment and curriculum with which we help each child to realize his or her many individual potentialities (intellectual, social, moral, artistic...), and in so doing create a Joy of Learning. When one experiences joy in the learning process, one becomes a lifelong seeker of knowledge.

ADMISSIONS
Each applicant, regardless of background, is considered according to individual needs, and each is admitted according to the school's ability to help develop individual potential.

Each child is admitted into a mixed age grouping, and each period of learning is regarded as a three year cycle (2 1/2 to 5 years of age, grades 1, 2, and 3, and grades 4 & 5).

We consider each application in the order of its submission. If there is waiting list, openings will be filled as space becomes available. We accept children of a minimum age of 2 1/2 who are fully toilet trained. If space permits, Elementary children ages 6-8 may be accepted into the program with a teacher recommendation, current report card, testing results, attendance report, and previous school's current records. If space permits, Elementary children grades 4 & 5 may be accepted into the program with the same records AND upon having completed a consecutive three years in a previous Montessori learning environment.

Upon receipt of the application form, we will arrange for your visit to the school and for your child's visit to the school at a time apart from the parent's observation of the classrooms. An interview is arranged between the parents and the Educational Director to discuss the school program and the student's needs. Children will be interviewed by the lead teacher.

Shortly after the interview, the Educational Director and teaching staff will review the application to ensure that Renaissance is the right setting for your child's developmental stage and individual needs. Again, the basic criteria for entry into the Primary program is that the child need no assistance in using the restroom. When placing newly enrolled children, the administration balances considerations such as number of students in each class, age of children and gender of children. Class placement is at the discretion of the administration.

New students are admitted for a six week trial period. At the end of this time, either the school or the family may decide that Renaissance is not the right setting for the child. If your child has a history of a behavior or learning problem, please discuss and share all pertinent information with us in order to assist us with your child's placement and learning strategies.

Once enrolled, program changes must be requested in writing and must be done through the office. Changes go into effect at the first of the month. A minimum of one week notice is required so teacher/student ratios will be in compliance.

NOTICE OF NON-DISCRIMINATORY POLICY
AS TO STUDENTS
Renaissance Montessori School admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students of the organization. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and other organization-administered programs.

REGISTRATION AND TUITION POLICIES
Please keep in mind that enrollment in the school is for the entire academic year. The tuition is an ACADEMIC YEAR tuition and no adjustments are made for absences or holidays. If you must withdraw your child from Renaissance, a 30 days written notice is required, or the tuition and fees for that month are due and payable. If your child is absent for two weeks and the school does not receive prior notification of absence, your space will be forfeited.

An application fee of $25.00 applies. This covers the administrative time devoted to interviews, student assessment, and obtaining records.

A $250.00 per child per academic year registration fee applies and is non-refundable. A materials fee of $100.00 per child per academic year applies.

Parents are responsible for supplying and maintaining accurate information on their child which may be required by the state and/or school.

Sending a child to an independent school is a significant investment. At the same time, all independent schools have expenses of a continuing nature that must be met such as lease and maintenance, professional salaries and supplies, licensing and association fees. To keep tuition as reasonable as possible, we have to operate on a carefully prepared budget for the entire year. It is essential that our income from tuition be assured. Renaissance will suspend students whose payments are more than ten days delinquent.

Tuition is payable in one of two ways:
Plan A. Two installments, due August 1 and January 1 (deduct 5% from tuition as a discount for using Plan A). Plan B. Nine installments, September 1 through May 1. Please remit tuition payments to the Office Manager and address all tuition/fee matters or inquiries to the same person.

Any payment is considered late if not received by the fifth of the month. A late charge of $30.00 will be due with the tuition installment. No partial payments of installments will be accepted. There is a $30.00 fee for returned checks. If an individual's check is returned, that individual will be required to make future payments in the form of cash, money order, or certified funds. All additional fees such as late pay fee, late pick-up fees, returned check fees or any other fee is due 5 days from date of invoice and Renaissance will suspend students whose fees are more than ten days delinquent.

If amounts must be collected by or through an attorney at law, reasonable attorney's fees will be added to the amount due.

New students are submitted for a six week trial period. At the end of this time, if either the school or the family feels this is not the appropriate setting for the child, tuition will be prorated for the time the child attended school.

A 10% discount is given to the first sibling enrolled.
A 15% discount is given to the second sibling enrolled.

Income from tuition is applied to the operational costs of the school and its educational program. We solicit contributions from corporations, foundations and individuals. Any contribution to us is a tax deductible expense and will help us in providing a quality program to your child. Records will be released for students transferring to another school if all financial obligations have been met.

SCHOOL CLIMATE AND SAFETY
It is Renaissance's policy to promote a genial and safe environment for its students, employees, parents, and visitors.

The school is committed to working with its students, employees, parents and visitors to maintain an environment free from abusive and threatening behavior, violence, harassment, intimidation, and other disruptive behavior. While this kind of conduct is not frequent or pervasive at our school, no school is immune.

Every school will be affected by disruptive behavior at one time or another. Abusive and threatening behavior, violence, harassment, intimidation, and other disruptive behavior in our school will not be tolerated; that is, all reports of incidents will be taken seriously and will be dealt with appropriately. Such behavior can include a show of anger or rage, swearing and argumentativeness, oral or written statements, other gestures or expressions that give alarm and communicate a direct or indirect threat of harm, and property damage. Such behavior includes all instances of corporal punishment of a child on the school grounds. Individuals who commit such acts may be removed immediately from the premise. Individuals who commit such acts will receive a warning upon the first offense and may have his/her access to the campus limited. Upon the second offense, the individual may be denied access to the campus.

If you observe or experience such behavior by anyone on school premises report it immediately to the Director. The Director who receives such reports should seek advice from the Board of Directors regarding investigating the incident and initiating appropriate action. We will support all efforts made by students, staff, parents, and visitors in dealing with disruptive behavior and will monitor whether this policy is being implemented effectively.

If you have questions about this policy statement, please contact the school's Board of Directors.

DISCIPLINE
One of the goals of the Montessori program is to help the child reach a level of inner discipline. Discipline is achieved by directing the child towards a meaningful or engaging activity. When the child is engaged with or concentrating on a task of his/her choice, he/she is in essence showing disciplined behavior. Discipline is not a matter of the adult controlling the child, but rather of the child directing his/her own energy into productive, practical tasks. When the child or adult is busy with a satisfying task, he/she does not engage in antisocial behavior.

Besides providing the proper environment for keeping a child constructively engaged, the Montessori classroom has ground rules set up to protect individual rights and to preserve the classroom cohesion and order. The rules are easy to understand and are few in number for the young child to grasp. When an individual's rights have been infringed upon or an action is disorderly or unsafe, the adult takes positive steps for correcting the actions. The adult acts not out of anger or an authoritarian posture, but in an effort to avoid power struggles and in an effort to teach a concept to the child that the child may not grasp. Often "misbehavior" is a result of the child having not arrived at an understanding of the appropriate behavior or having not arrived at the developmental stage that allows the child to control his/her own impulses. The Montessori philosophy of education forbids the corporal/physical punishment of a child, as well as verbal abuse or humiliation. Threats are not used as a method of controlling a child's behavior.

Disciplinary action may involve:
*positive example by the teacher

*reiterating the rule objectively (i.e." Pencils are for writing on paper not the table").

*set specific limitations for the child (i.e. instead of "Don't mistreat the book!", show the child how to handle a book. "Look how carefully I am turning the page, and when I'm finished I will put it gently on the shelf").

*providing a concrete consequence for an action (i.e. "If you choose to throw the puzzle pieces, you may not use the puzzles for the whole day"-teacher would remove the puzzles if necessary).

*"quiet time"-sitting by oneself in the classroom or on the playground

*removal from the classroom-reserved for defiant, disorderly, violent or persistent misbehavior.

If the behavior of a child poses any danger to that child or another child, the parents will be notified. We are a nonviolent school. Physical abuse such as hitting, kicking, or spitting will not be tolerated. The first offense will result in counseling by staff and prompt notification of parents. The second offense will result in suspension for one day. The same disciplinary action holds true for profanity or vulgar language, inappropriate touching, and deliberate abuse/breaking of individual or school property.

In the case of biting, the first and second offense will result in the prompt notification of the parents, who will be required to pick the child up from school immediately. The third offense will result in the removal of the child from the school.

If the parents are notified of a serious misbehavior 3 times, a pediatric evaluation is required to rule out physiological sources of the problem. A suspension is required to take care of this evaluation. Upon obtaining a medical/psychological evaluation and counseling and providing the school with written evidence of such evaluation/counseling, a specific time frame will be set for correcting the behavior. If the behavior is not corrected within the set time frame, the child will be removed from school.

If behavior seems to be a result of a physical or psychological condition, the teachers and parents will work together to determine what professional sources of help might be consulted. Parents will be notified of any behavior which is unusual or atypical for their child, or which is unusual or atypical for the developmental stage the child is in.

Behavioral and/or academic challenges must be managed by medical and/or counseling therapies in order to stay in school. Documentation of evaluations and/or counseling is required. The family, child, and school must all cooperate together to change the behavior affecting the student's ability to learn and to be a positive member of the classroom community.

ATTENDANCE POLICY
Good school attendance is essential to successful school progress. It shall be the responsibility of each student's parent or guardian to explain the student's absence. Students shall be temporarily excused from school for the following:
- the child's illness;
- illness or death in the family;
- religious holidays observed by the family's faith;
- orders governmentally mandated.

Any student who is absent from school shall present a written excuse, signed by one of his/her parents or guardians. A physician's statement shall be presented for all absences which exceed five consecutive school days in a school year, and for all absences that are due to communicable diseases. Students exceeding 15 absences in one academic year will repeat the academic year, effectively delaying the student a traditional grade.

Children are considered tardy if they arrive five or more minutes after the commencement of class. Students exceeding 15 tardies of more than fifteen minutes in one academic year will repeat the academic year, effectively delaying the student a traditional grade.

PARENT / TEACHER CONFERENCES
Two classroom observations and two parent/teacher conferences per academic year are required. During the school year, contact your lead teacher to arrange a classroom observation during the morning work cycle. Observations begin in October.

Parents should prepare for the conference by observing the class and then writing down two or more points they would like to discuss during the meeting. In choosing these points they should concentrate on academics as well as social development. The parent should also consider the child from the teacher's point of view and as a member of a classroom community.

Our aim is to measure the progress of the child as an individual against goals we set for that child, not in comparison to other students or groups of children. Rates of development vary widely among young children.

At the Elementary level, students may be invited to participate in the parent/teacher conference, which can be a positive experience for both the child and parent.

HEALTH AND EMERGENCY
Renaissance follows the Atlanta City School System when closing due to inclement weather and/or emergency. Listen to your local news cast for Atlanta City School Closings.

All children are required by law to have a Georgia Department of Human Resources Certificate of Immunization and a letter from their physician stating that they are found to be in good health. Must be submitted upon enrollment.

Accident
In the case of an accident, the parents will be notified immediately. If immediate medical attention is needed, the information listed on the child's emergency sheet on file will be followed. In the event that a parent cannot be reached, the medical release form on file will be used. Hospitals serving our area: Southwest Hospital and Medical Center; South Fulton Medical Center; Grady Hospital. One of the above facilities will provide emergency care in case of accident/illness needing immediate medical attention.

Illness
If a child becomes ill at school, the parents will be called to take the child home. In the event that the parents cannot be reached, the individuals authorized to pick up the child will be called. It is expected that the child will be picked up immediately.

In the event that the school detects a rapidly rising high fever in your child, and you wish children's tylenol or aspirin to be administered while you are in route to pick up, you are required to submit an authorization for this particular medication to be kept permanently on file.

Children who are suffering a fever, diarrhea, vomiting or other symptoms of a contagious illness should not be brought to school. Neither should children with a temperature of more than 100 degrees F. Children are not allowed in school if they have had a temperature within the last twenty four hours or vomited within the last twenty four hours. If the child is taking any medication that could possibly affect behavior, please notify the teacher. Let your teacher and the office know if your child will be out sick for more than one day. Please inform both of the nature of the illness.

Medications
The Georgia Department of Human Resources requires that all medicine to be administered at the school be accompanied by written instructions from the parent or the doctor. The prescription label is not adequate. DO NOT LEAVE MEDICINE IN YOUR CHILD'S BAG--IT MUST BE GIVEN DIRECTLY TO THE STAFF PERSON WHO RECEIVES YOUR CHILD. Should your child appear to suffer an adverse reaction to the medication, you will be notified immediately.

The school will administer 'off the counter' medication (non-prescription) with parent's written instructions for five days only. If non-prescription medications are to be administered for more than five days a written doctor's authorization is required.

Infectious Diseases
Please review the enclosed chart of infectious diseases. ** Parents are notified when a communicable disease is introduced into the school. Recovering children will be readmitted to school according to the recommendations outlined in the chart AND WITH A DOCTOR'S PERMISSION SLIP. NO EXCEPTIONS.

The school has in place emergency plans to protect the children in the event of fire, tornado, and physical plant problems, and these procedures are posted on the class bulletin board.

**Please acquire an infectious diseases chart from the office.

Each class needs a 'Room Mom or Dad' to help organize class projects, school functions, field trips, material making, or other classroom needs. Please contact your teacher to volunteer for this role.

GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE
Any questions, comments, or suggestions should be first taken to your teacher. She can then best serve the needs of your child. Should you not be able to reach an understanding with the teacher, contact the Educational Director. If you, the teacher and Educational Director do not arrive at a resolution, you may contact your parent representative on the Board of Directors to arrange a time for all parties to meet together for a solution.

Renaissance encourages parent feedback, involvement and participation. We advocate honest and clear exchange between all parties, adult and child alike. We are receptive to constructive criticisms and suggestions. The Montessori philosophy emphasizes honesty, directness and fairness, as well as cohesion and unity. It discourages unconstructive comments, gossip, or other behavior that generally does not serve to correct problems or make improvements.