Carpool Instructions

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Carpool Instructions

The following procedures, developed in the interest of safety, are in effect for drop-off and pick-up of students at St. Gabriel School.  Additional detail about carpool procedures can be found in the Parent Handbook.

Please see the carpool instructions, maps, and FAQs below to help you understand our traffic pattern. Always arrive for carpool drop-off and pick-up from the Providence Road entrance (not Sharon Lane). When you arrive, follow the directions from the police officer and teachers on duty in the parking lot. Once you’ve experienced carpool a few times, it will be a breeze!  

 

General Carpool Instructions 

  • Parking for school volunteers:   If you are helping in the school or attending a school event during the day, please park in the lowest lot (called the "lower lot") or remove your car from the school parking lot before 2 p.m. in order to make room for carpool and ensure you aren't blocked in.  Note that the parking lot adjacent to the church Ministry Center is also used for carpool.
  • Be a follower.  Please follow the car in front of you in the carpool line and watch for the carpool assistants.
  • No pets are allowed to attend carpool for their safety and the safety of the children at carpool.
  • Be courteous and safe!  Please do not talk on your phone when driving through the carpool line. We want to protect the staff directing carpool. Also, please return to your car promptly so cars may be released from the parking lot.
  • Be on time.  Children not picked up by 3:00 p.m. will be supervised in the school lobby, for which there is a $10 fee plus $1 for each minute after 3:00 p.m.  If you have an emergency and will be late to carpool, please notify the school office at 704-366-2409. 
  • Allow staff on duty to supervise carpool.  While we are most interested in communication with families, the staff on duty during carpool will not be available for discussions during these critical time periods.  Their focus must be on ensuring the safety of the children during carpool.
     

 Morning Drop off

 All students should arrive between 7:00 a.m. – 7:45 a.m.  
  • All cars must enter through the Providence Road entrance. Do not enter from Sharon Lane.
  • Proceed towards the stop sign.  Follow directions of the teachers on duty who will direct you where to pull up in front of the school to drop off your child. (Parents do not escort children into the school. During the first week of school, however, you may park in the lowest parking lot and escort your child into the lobby, if needed.)
  • To prevent traffic from backing up onto Providence Rd., the police officer or teachers on duty may direct you to loop through the Ministry Center lot before approaching the school.
  • At the sidewalk, the safety patrol (5th grade students) will assist children by opening the car door and helping them get out of the car. Please have children ready to exit your vehicle with all their belongings.  Parents should remain in their cars and allow children to exit quickly (by request of our traffic officers).    
  • Children will enter the school and head to the gym until 7:35 a.m. In the gym, they will sit in lines by class.  Students are to bring a book to read quietly until 7:35 a.m. when teachers will walk them to the classroom.
  • If you arrive after 7:50 a.m., the doors will be locked. Parents will need to walk students in and sign them in at the front office.  If you arrive during morning prayers, please wait outside until prayers have concluded, then ring the bell and proceed to the office.
  • For the children’s safety, do not pass the cars in front of you in the carpool line. The teachers on duty will direct you when it is safe to leave the school parking lot.
  • When leaving school drop off please exit between the church and Ministry Center or onto Sharon Lane only.  

Afternoon Carpool Instructions

Students are dismissed in two separate carpool groups.  "First carpool" is dismissed at 2:20 p.m. and is for sudents in grades K-2 who do not have an older sibling or carpooler in grades 3 - 5. "Second carpool" is dismissed at 2:40 p.m. and is for all students in grades 3-5 and those students in K-2 who ride home with someone dismissed in second carpool.

First Carpool - Afternoon     Arrive by 2:15 p.m.    Dismissed at 2:20 p.m.

First carpool is for students in grades K-2 who do not have an older sibling or carpooler in grades 3-5.   Instructions correspond to map below. 

1.       Enter from Providence Rd. only.

2.       Drive through the school parking lot, stay to the left, and form a line – with the first car parking in front of the Grotto. Continue the line along the school’s sidewalk until you reach the intersection. (shown in green - #1)

3.        When the 1st line is full , form a second line to the right of the first line (shown in purple - #2).

4.       Remaining cars will park in the center aisle (shown in orange - #s 3 and 4).

5.       Once parked, please turn off your car, lock the doors, and wait for your child to be escorted with his/her class to the orange cones in the parking area next to the flagpole (shown in blue). Note: on rainy days, your children will wait for you in the gym.

6.       When the horn is blown your child(ren) is/are released. Please return promptly to your car. The carpool will exit the parking lot once all children are inside their cars and the doors are closed.  A teacher will be at the front of the carpool line to release cars.

7.       Carpool exits onto Providence Rd. (from the exit between the Ministry Center and the church, and out the church exit on Sharon Lane.  (shown in pink dashes)

Note:   Please see instructions below for "Rainy Day" carpool dismissal.


 Second Carpool - Afternoon    Arrive by 2:35 p.m.    Dismissed at 2:40 p.m.

Second carpool is for all students in grades 3 - 5 and those students in grades K-2 who have an older sibling or carpooler in grades 3- 5.  Instructions correspond to map below.

1. Enter from Providence Rd. only.

2. Wait in the designated areas explained below while first carpool departs:

Cars arriving first may wait in the upper lot on the left in two parallel lines. (shown in pink – #s 1 & 2)

When those lines are full, cars may then form a single line next to the sidewalk. (shown in green - #3)

Remaining cars will enter the 1st opening on the right and form lines in the Ministry Center lot. The first cars will wait in the far right side. (shown in orange - #4)
Remaining cars will be directed to wait in lines in the lot (shown in purple - #5).

3. When first carpool clears, teachers will release each line in order to proceed to the lot in front of the school. See the instructions and map above for "First Carpool - Afternoon" for parking procedures.

Note: Please see instructions below for "Rainy Day" carpool dismissal.

 

Rainy Day Carpool Instructions

On rainy afternoons, first and second carpool dismissals are still in effect, but students wait for parents in the gym instead of the parking lot.  Please be patient, as rainy day dismissal takes a little more time. 

1.     Park your car in the usual carpool fashion, and enter the school lobby.  Please do not block the walk way for teachers and students, who are proceeding to the gym.

2.     Mrs. Broxterman or Mrs. Snoke will let parents know when all students are in the gym and ready to be released. 

3.     Parents will then enter the gym from the second entrance,  near the drink machines and blue picnic tables. 

4.    Students will be in lines with their teachers.  Please walk into the gym, find the front of your child(ren)'s class line, and gather your child(ren). Please do not have your child(ren) walk through other class lines.

5.     Exit the gym through the front gym doors (near the elevator) and return promptly to your car.

6.     Cars will be released from the parking lot once all car doors are closed.

7.     A teacher will be at the front of the carpool line to release cars.  Cars will exit as normal

8.     Carpool exits are between the Ministry Center and the church, as well as Sharon Lane. 

Carpool FAQs

What time should I drop off my child in the morning? 
Students may be dropped off each morning beginning at 7:00 a.m. Those arriving before 7:35 a.m. will sit with their class in the gym. Students are expected to bring a book to read (or look at). Teachers are on duty in the gym to supervise the students. 

When are students considered “late” for school? What should I do if this happens?
Our school day begins each morning with an uplifting song at 7:50 a.m. At that time, the school’s front door is locked. Any child arriving after 7:50 a.m. is considered late and must be accompanied by a parent to the school office to sign in. If you arrive during morning prayers (broadcast over the PA system), please wait outside until prayers are finished. You may then ring the doorbell and proceed to the office with your child.

What time do I pick up my child at the end of the school day?
Children in grades K-2 (who have no older siblings or carpoolers in grades 3-5) are picked up in first carpool at 2:20. You should arrive by 2:15 to get in line for first carpool. Most parents arrive by 2:10.   If you are carpooling with a child in grades 3-5, or you have an older child in one of those grades, you will use second carpool, which dismisses at 2:40. (Children in grades K-2 who go to second carpool will remain in their classroom until second carpool dismissal.) You should arrive by 2:35 to get in line for second carpool. Most parents arrive between 2:20 and 2:35.

 What happens if I am late to carpool?
If you are late for first carpool, please get in the second carpool line. Your child will be taken back to class and dismissed with second carpool. If you are late to second carpool and arrive around 2:40, teachers on duty in the parking lot will direct you to wait in your car in the Ministry Center parking lot until second carpool clears. You will then be allowed to pull into the school parking lot and pick up your child. Children who are not picked up in either carpool will wait in the school lobby with a designated teacher. Parents will be charged $10.00 when students are not picked up by 3:00pm, and an additional $1.00 for every minute after 3:00pm. 

Are children allowed to ride home with friends?
If you want to bring another child home with you, or allow your child to go home with a friend, you must send a handwritten note to your child’s teacher prior to carpool.