Regular attendance and punctuality are essential to a student’s progress and to the formation of good habits. A student is considered tardy at 8:01 AM
Students who are absent/or late in excess of 20 school days may be retained or required to make up work in summer school. In cases of 8 thgraders, participation in graduation may be in jeopardy unless work/summer school is completed. Extraordinary circumstances will be handled on an individual basis by the Principal.
If a student leaves before 12:00 p.m. the student is considered one half day absent.
For the safety of the children, parents are requested to call the school office before 8:15 a.m. if a student will be absent that day. Please let us know if you are requesting homework. Calls received later in the day make it difficult to gather work since the students change classes. Homework can always be checked through the teacher’s website.
Excessive absences: A student who is excessively absent will be reported to the school’s attendance officer and a parent conference may be requested by the principal. After three consecutive days a doctor’s note must be presented to the teacher.
The principal determines Excused and Unexcused absences.
Unexcused absencesare those absences whereby a student is absent, truant, on a family vacation or on a non-school trip taken outside of regularly scheduled school holidays,for which the school did not receive a note.
Excused absences: Are absences when children are ill, there is a death in the family, school sponsored activity, etc. During excused absences, class work is made up upon the child’s return to school. Work is not usually provided in advance. Take your Child to Work Day is a non- school sponsored event; therefore, if you choose to have your child participate in that event, your child will be marked absent.
Upon returning to school the student must present an absence note signed by the parent/guardian explaining the reason for absence. If no note is presented, the child will be marked as an unexcused absence. These notes are kept on file for one year. Three or more day’s absence requires a doctor’s note for re-admission to school. In cases of communicable diseases a physician’s note is also required. If your child does contract a communicable disease such as, strep, measles, lice, please call and report to the office so that we may issue a health alert to all parents. All such reports remain confidential.
Parents are asked to limit special appointments during school hours. If necessary, a note must be sent to the Main Office before 8:30 a.m. the morning of the appointment. Students will be released from class only through the school office to a parent or designated guardian. Students coming from a doctor or dentist appointment must bring a note from either one of the above when returning to school.
When students are absent they must make arrangements with their respective teachers regarding making up of missed work. This work needs to be made up within two days of the absence unless it is an extended absence. In this case special arrangements will be made with the teachers.
The school / principal retain the right to amend the online handbook for just cause. Parents will be notified if changes. Please see subcategory pages in this section for specific policies.
MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of St. Bernadette of Lourdes School is to provide an educational journey to excellence.
Building on the strengths, talents, and resources of students, educators, and community, we are committed to providing our students with a safe, positive, and challenging learning environment that cultivates Catholic faith and values.
Our partnership with parents and parish guides the education of the whole person: mind, body, and spirit, in nurturing an abiding relationship with Jesus Christ.
Our efforts are to empower students to meet the challenges and demands of their future lives.
BRIEF HISTORY
Saint Bernadette School was founded in 1948, when Monsignor Joseph A. O’Brien, the founding Pastor, completed the first building containing both church and school. Over the years, the school has undergone many changes. The Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur staffed the school from 1948 to1973 and laid its strong educational foundation. They were succeeded by the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Chestnut Hill who, for ten years, continued the work of educating the children of the parish until their withdrawal in 1983. The Oblate Sisters of Saint Francis de Sales staffed the school from 1983-2010. During that time, their foundress Leonie Aviat was canonized a saint due to a miracle that happened, through her intercession, to one of the school children. Presently the school is staffed by a devoted lay faculty.
Since 1986, Saint Bernadette School has been fully accredited by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and the Commission on Elementary Schools of the Middle State Association of Colleges and Schools.
Saint Bernadette School enjoys the support of the priests and families who comprise our parish community and who aid our efforts in providing quality Catholic education for all our students.
St. Bernadette of Lourdes School Philosophy
Saint Bernadette School is a Catholic elementary school of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, which serves the educational needs of children of varying intellectual abilities within the parish of Saint Bernadette from preschool through the eighth grade. It is under the direction of lay teachers who attempt to create for the school community an atmosphere enlivened by the Gospel spirit of freedom and charity in which the student is helped to reach his/her fullest potential as an individual spiritually, intellectually, socially, and physically in immediate preparation for entrance into high school and ultimately for life and life eternal.
In the achievement of its primary purpose, the school, as an integral part of the total parish community, assists parents in the task of educating their children. As they grow academically within the parish/school community, students experience the constant interaction of a living “community of faith” through the care, example, concern, and involvement of their parents, teachers, and priests. As a result, Christ and His message permeate all areas of the students’ experience of learning and living, and they grow to acquire a sense of responsible freedom as Catholics and to accept and appreciate the heritage of American democracy.
Saint Bernadette School, motivated by the love of Christ and committed to the pursuit of excellence in the apostolate of Catholic education, strives to achieve the following objectives.
1. To transmit the Catholic message and to assist the students to develop a mature personal relationship with Christ.
2. To help each student to fuse religious truths and moral integrity with life in contemporary society and the world of technology; basic to this task is instruction in the authentic doctrine of our faith.
3. To foster in the students a positive self-image and a spirit of inquiry and discovery that will inspire them to attain a mastery of the curriculum commensurate with their potential.
4. To provide the students with fundamental knowledge and useful skills.
5. To encourage the children to extend their interests beyond themselves into the total community with a desire to love and serve God.
6. To give witness to the meaning of Christian service by a dedicated effort to instill Catholic truths and wisdom creating a climate of warm-hearted concern, mutual respect, and joyful enthusiasm.
7. To encourage the students in the practice of respect, proper behavior, good manners, polite speech, and appropriate dress on a daily basis.
8. To initiate those changes and innovations that will improve the education of the students, better preparing them for life in today’s technological world.
9. To respect the cultural and intellectual differences of the students and to respond sensitively to them.
10. To encourage the involvement and active cooperation of parents as partners in education, aiding them to recognize, accept, and encourage the true abilities of their children.
The school / principal retain the right to amend the handbook for just cause. Parents will be notified if changes.
Each parent is asked to sign the Memorandum of Understanding (found on the School Forms page).
Every Catholic school student has a right to be treated as a child of God, with the love and respect that implies, regardless of family circumstances. In like manner, the believing community has the right to and education guided by Catholic teaching and identity, unimpeded by pressures contrary to Church teaching.
As parent/guardian of a student in a Catholic school, I understand, affirm, and support the following:
1. The primary purpose of a Catholic school education is two-fold: to strengthen the Catholic community in its faith, and to form students in the teachings of Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church.
2. Catholic schools are distinctive religious education institutions guided by the teachings of the Catholic Church. They are not simply private schools offering a positive moral code. Rather, they exist to advance the faith mission of the sponsoring Catholic parish(es), Archdiocese, or Catholic religious community.
3. While Catholic education places a high value on academic excellence and extracurricular achievement, its fundamental priority is fidelity to Catholic teaching and identity.
4. Attending a Catholic school is a privilege, not a right. The school and its administration have the responsibility to ensure that Catholic teaching and moral integrity permeate every facet of the school’s life and activity and that the school is able to function as a community of faith.
5. In all questions that involve Catholic teaching, morals, and Church law, the final determination rests with the Archbishop.