Carpool Preocedures

CARPOOL INFORMATION

The carpool system provides easy access for arrival and dismissal. For safety purposes, it is important that the rules below and traffic flow patterns and assignments detailed in this handbook be followed. State law mandates that cell phone use be prohibited in school zones. Additional information will be communicated with you regarding changes in procedure whenever necessary.

Campus Layout/Traffic Flow
The campus layout and traffic flow give an aerial view of the buildings and grounds. The traffic flow pattern will be followed at all times. ECC carpools will enter from Sweetwater Blvd. and exit via the South driveway onto Austin Pkwy for safety and expediency. Elementary and Middle School carpools will enter and exit via the North driveway. Please always observe the NO PARKING areas and refrain from using your cell phone while in the carpool line...it is the law!

Morning Drop Off
Do not enter the South driveway between the Parish Hall and Chapel during morning arrival (approximately 7:30-8:10 a.m.). Please be extremely cautious while driving on campus at all times, especially during morning arrival at Mass time. We ask parents on the main campus to cross under the portico when coming to the office. Please do not cross in between cars.

ECC Carpool
Carpools with ECC students (ECC students only and ECC carpools with elementary and/or middle school students) will enter via Sweetwater Blvd. and deliver ALL children (including elementary and middle schoolers) to the Parish Hall entrance and exit the campus via the South driveway onto Austin Parkway. Older students will be crossed to the main building.

Elementary and Middle School Carpools
Will enter via the North driveway and form a carpool line along the back fence, looping the parking lot, in order to drop off at the main entrance.

• Cars dropping off children must be in single file at all times and drive completely forward to all drop-off points, where a volunteer will open the car doors curbside.
• ALL students arriving between 7:35-8:00 a.m. (ECC begins drop off at 7:40) should be dropped off at the assigned carpool entrance. Preschool and Kindergarten staff meet students in the Parish Hall, and students then proceed to their classrooms. Elementary and middle school students report directly to their classrooms. With the exception of the main entrances, all other doors are locked at all other times for the safety of students/staff.
• Adults only should retrieve book bags from the vehicle trunk.
• Students should remain in their vehicle until a volunteer opens the car door.
• Before and After School Community students should refer to the Before and After School Community Handbook for arrival and dismissal procedures.
• Students dropped off early will be sent to the BASC room, and parents will be billed for the registration fee and time, as all students MUST be supervised at ALL times while on the school campus.

Afternoon Pick-Up
Please observe NO PARKING areas at all times. No one is permitted to enter the South driveway during afternoon dismissal (approximately 2:45-3:45 p.m.). Please do not arrive for afternoon dismissal procedures until 2:45 PM, as we need to keep the parking lot clear for business, and getting in line too early can cause a potential hazard.

• ECC CARPOOL: Parents of mixed carpools comprised of ECC students and elementary students will use the Sweetwater Blvd. entrance and pick up ALL children (including elementary students) in the carpool at the designated Parish Hall Entrance and exit the South driveway onto Austin Parkway.
• CARPOOL A: will enter via the North driveway to form a carpool line to pick up at the main entrance and obey the traffic manager’s directives to EXIT via the North driveway. Please form a line of cars in the middle lane of the church parking lot and then proceed to the traffic lane next to the school building. 
• CARPOOL B: will enter via the North driveway at 3:30 p.m. and stack in the faculty parking area only after the conclusion of the elementary carpool. Parents of mixed carpools comprised of ECC/Elementary and Middle School students are asked to join the Carpool B line and go through the Middle School carpool line.
• Students leaving at regular dismissal times leave the building through assigned exits to the carpool lines. Middle School students are dismissed 15 minutes later than preschool and elementary students. Siblings of Middle School students in grades 1-4 will remain supervised in a designated place until middle school dismissal. Cars must display a carpool card with large bold numbers that can be read easily. Cars picking up students must always be in a single file. Please follow the instructions of the adult traffic director at all times.

REMAIN IN YOUR VEHICLE
DO NOT CROSS CARPOOL LINES TO GET YOUR CHILD DURING DISMISSAL

Students will be brought to your car and assisted by an adult. Occasionally, parents may not be able to sit through the carpool line. In such cases, notify your child’s teacher (not through emails) or the school office early in the day. You may pick up your child in the office before 2:45 p.m. Students picked up after 2:45 must be picked up through the regular carpool line. Please be cautious of traffic at all times when crossing from the parking lot to the school.

• Students will not be allowed to leave with anyone other than their assigned carpool without written permission from a parent or guardian. In order to keep calls to the school office to a minimum, carpool changes must be of an emergency nature only. Calls to the school office for changes must be made before 10:30 a.m. for morning dismissal or 2:30 p.m. for afternoon dismissal.
• Students will not be allowed to walk to the public library. Students needing to work at the public library must arrange to be dropped off there with carpools.
• Students walking or riding bikes will be escorted to the Austin Parkway and Sweetwater Blvd crosswalk. Walkers and bike riders must file a permission form in the front office.
• A late charge of $1 per minute will be billed to parents when students are not picked up within the 15-minute window of time, which begins with the dismissal bell. Only one warning will be issued before charges begin. This policy also applies to dismissal from detention, athletic events, club activities, and after school classes.
• In severe weather conditions, students will remain in place on campus where they are currently situated. Children will not be walked to ECC from the Main Campus or vice versa. All after school activities will be suspended until a determination can be made as to whether the activity will take place. When weather conditions have been cleared, regular dismissal procedures will take place.

Walkers/Bikers
At the beginning of the school year, walkers’/bikers’ release forms should be signed by the parent and turned in to the school office for only those students who reside within one mile of the school and who walk or ride their bikes home. Students will be released at their dismissal time and will be escorted to their dismissal locations. Behavioral expectations extend to students while under the supervision of staff during arrival and/or dismissal.

Bicycle Safety
No riding of bicycles on the sidewalks or in the back parking lot is permitted. Students must wear helmets and are to walk bikes to and from the bicycle racks. Students may not ride through the car lines. Bicycle riders will be escorted by an adult to the intersection of Sweetwater and Austin Parkway for dismissal.

All walkers and bicycle riders must have a carpool number and alternate plans for inclement weather days. They will not be dismissed to travel in weather that is questionable to their safety.