Q: How will I know if my child is eligible for bus transportation or not?
A: Transportation by bus will be provided for those children who live more than 8/10 of a mile from Hewitt School. After registering your child at Shepherd Street, you will automatically be notified by mail in August if your child qualifies for bus service. The letter will inform you of the bus stop nearest your home and the approximate time for pick up at that stop. If you have any questions, you may call the Director of Transportation at 255-8931.
Q: How will my child know what to do when he/she gets off the bus on the first day of school?
A: Hewitt personnel will greet each arriving bus on Hempstead Avenue. Your child will be directed to line up with his/her class.
Q: How does Hewitt dismiss bus children?
A: Bus children leave class and report to the auditorium. They are supervised by an aide and teacher assistants and dismissed in an orderly fashion when the buses arrive. Pick up is also on Hempstead Avenue. For safety reasons, therefore, no cars are permitted to park on Hempstead Avenue.
Q: What if I want to pick up my child myself or if he/she wants to go home with a friend?
A: Children who ride the bus will need written permission from a parent if they are not going to take the bus home at dismissal. This note should be given to the classroom teacher. Children may only ride the bus to which they are assigned.
Q: If my child will be walking to and from school, are there any crossing guards to help him/her to cross-busy streets?
A: There is a crossing guard before school and after school to cross the children at the DeMott and Hempstead Avenues intersection.
Please review the importance of crossing DeMott Avenue at East Gate or Hempstead Avenue. It creates a very dangerous situation if children walk between cars to cross the street.
Q: If I want to drive my child to and from school, where do I drop off and pick him/her up?
A: Caution and courtesy should be exercised when parking near Hewitt. Please be aware of our neighbors' property. Do not block driveways or park on the curb. Parents should not use Hewitt's rear parking lot as it is closed from 8:40-9:00 AM and from 3:20-3:30 PM. With children walking through that area at arrival and dismissal times, moving vehicles would be dangerous. The limited numbers of parking spaces in that area are for the faculty and staff who arrive earlier and leave later than the students.
Please remember to refrain from using the cut-ins in front of Hewitt during arrival and dismissal times because they are created for our buses. Finally, please avoid driving into the dead end streets adjacent to the school to drop off and/or pick up students.
We will identify a Drop Off Zone along DeMott Avenue. Cones will mark each of the outer borders. School staff members will be responsible for the area to insure the safety of the children as parents pull to the curb, allowing children to exit the vehicle, and escort them to the line area behind the fence by School Safety Leaders in the fifth grade.