Dear Parents,

Welcome to Desert Foothills Junior High School!  We are looking forward to a great 2019-2020 school year with you and your child. 

If you have moved over the summer and your child will not be attending Desert Foothills, please notify the school office at 602-896-5500 at your earliest convenience.  Also, please let us know which school they will be attending so records can be forwarded.

Walk-through Orientation                  Wednesday, July 31 and Thursday, August 1 from 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

                        School Begins              -           Monday, August 5, 2019

WALK-THROUGH ORIENTATION FOR REGISTERED STUDENTS

Walk-through Orientation gives you and your child the opportunity to pick up their class schedule and tour our beautiful campus to find your student’s classrooms and alleviate the nervousness and uncertainty of where to go on our first day of school, August 5, 2019.  All Desert Foothills students are advised to come to orientation on either one of the days designated prior to the opening of school to receive their class schedule and other important school-opening information.  You will also have the opportunity to purchase P.E. uniforms, the yearbook, DF tee shirts and get information about our parent group, B.E.S.T. and bus transportation.   

Walk-through Orientation will be held in our gym and for your convenience, we have multiple opportunities scheduled for you to attend with your child.  Please see the scheduled times below. 

Walk-through Orientation will be held in the gym:

Wednesday, July 31, 2019 from 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Thursday, August 1, 2019 from 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

*If you are purchasing items with cash on the day of orientation, no bills over $20.00 will be accepted.  Checks are accepted and payable to Desert Foothills Junior High School.

General Information:

Students are not assigned lockers.  Classroom teachers will have textbooks available for students to use in their classes.  Since students do not have books to carry between classes, backpacks are not allowed.  Students should only bring a 3-ring binder to school with dividers or folders, pencils, pens and paper.

Students are not allowed to ride their bike nor walk to school if they live across a major street, i.e. 35^th Ave., Greenway Rd., Thunderbird Rd.  Students who live in the Acacia attendance area and ride their bike to Desert Foothills will need to bring their own bike lock to secure their bike in the bike rack.  They may bring their binder in a backpack, but the backpack will need to be locked to their bike during the day.  Only students who ride a bike can bring a backpack to school.  Girls may have a purse that is small enough that a textbook could not fit in it. 

Our PTO, B.E.S.T. (Boosters of Education, Students and Teachers), will be selling Activity Cards to students for $10.00.  For two students in the same family, the cost is $18.00, and for three students in the same family, the cost is $26.00.  This card provides admission to all regular season sporting events as well as to two BEST-sponsored dances at school.  The Student Council/Leadership also sponsors other dances during the year.  There is a $5.00 charge for Student Council dances, but no Activity Card is needed.  There is a $2.00 replacement fee if a student’s Activity Card is lost or destroyed.

Listed below is an approximate breakdown of the value of the Activity Card:

            Home Games                          $ 1.00 per game (20)                                       $ 20.00

            Away Games                              1.00 per game (20)                                          20.00

            B.E.S.T. Dance                          5.00 per dance (2)                                           10.00

            B.E.S.T. Membership                 4.00 per family                                                  4.00

                                                                                                                                    $ 54.00

The Activity Card is the B.E.S.T./PTO’s major fund-raiser for the year and is offered in place of many candy, cheese and gift fundraisers that would otherwise be necessary.  The money raised helps to fund a variety of after-school activities for all students, and also helps to purchase much needed supplies and equipment to benefit our students and the school as a whole.  Please help to support the PTO with your purchase of the Activity Card.  Forms to purchase an Activity Card will be available at the walk-through orientation. Please make checks payable to BEST.  We are also in need of volunteers to work with the school during the year and at Walk-through Orientation.  If you have an interest in helping out, please call the office at 602-896-5500, or fill out a volunteer form and leave it at the PTO table.  We love parent volunteers! 

Students enrolled in P.E. are required to wear t-shirts, athletic shorts and shoes during P.E. class.  Desert Foothills P.E. t-shirts can be purchased for $10.00 and P.E. shorts can be purchased for $12.00.  PE Uniforms are optional.  If preferred, students can furnish their own plain white or grey t-shirts and athletic shorts instead of purchasing them through the school.

Students can also pre-order a yearbook if they choose.  The cost for the yearbook is $25.00. 

Free Meals – Breakfast and Lunch at Desert Foothills!  Desert Foothills is a recipient of the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) through USDA to provide free meals, breakfast and lunch, to all students for the 2019-2020 school year.  We will no longer be requiring meal applications to be completed by the families.  Students will still be required to use their ID cards in the cafeteria line.  If for some reason they do not have their ID, they will be asked to go to the end of the line, and we will count them manually at that time.

Student Pickup Procedures for WESD

Parents must call the front office or write a note giving permission for anyone other than the parent to pick up a student from school during the school day.  Please note this includes the people indicated on your child’s emergency contact information.

When you are shopping for school clothes this summer, please be aware of our dress code.

Dress Code

Students at DF should dress in a way that reflects pride in themselves and their school. The dress code is based on Washington School Board Policy.

• Students are expected to have their student IDs at all times for safety purposes. Replacement IDs must be purchased from the office for $5.  All students will be issued a WESD sticker to be applied to their ID as a bus pass to be worn with their student ID card. 

• Shirts/blouses must have sleeves that cover the entire shoulder.  No cleavage may be exposed. Sheer fabric and/ or lace may not be worn.

• Extra shirts may not be worn around the neck or draped over a shoulder.

• Pajamas, sleepwear, loungewear and slippers are not allowed.

• Clothing may not contain profane symbols or vulgar language or contain language or symbols relating to sex, drugs, alcohol, tobacco, gambling, weapons or violent behavior in English or Spanish. The language or pictures cannot interfere with the normal educational process, create disorder, or disrupt the educational program. Whether the condition exists shall be left up to the reasonable discretion of the administration

• Jewelry/accessories may not display profanity, provocative or suggestive statements, obscenities, advertising for drugs, alcohol, gang identifications, or weapons. Pierced jewelry must not be spikes and must conform to District guidelines.

• Sunglasses may only be worn outside of buildings.

• Belts may not hang down from the waist.

• Shoes must be worn at all times.

• Hats and head coverings are not allowed anywhere on campus unless for religious or medical purposes.

SchoolMessenger

The Washington Elementary School District has implemented a parent notification system called SchoolMessenger.  This program allows us to communicate with parents via phone message, e-mail and text – all in a matter minutes!  The SchoolMessenger system is designed to automatically notify parents regarding issues that impact the safety and academic performance of students.  SchoolMessenger will extend the District and school’s existing community outreach efforts and emergency preparedness procedures, as well as inform parents of upcoming school events such as statewide testing and parent meetings. 

We look forward to a wonderful school year with you and your child. 

Susie Smith                                   Steve Whynott

Principal                                        Assistant Principal