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Arrival & Dismissal

ARRIVAL

Arrival windows are as follows:  

  • 7:45-8:00 a.m.: Middle School and Early Drop-Off (details below) 
  • 8:00-8:10 a.m.: Early Childhood and Lower School 

If you have more than one child at the school across multiple divisions, please drop your children off during your oldest child’s drop-off window. For example, if you have a child in Senior Kindergarten and a child in 5th Grade, drop them both off between 7:45-8:00 a.m. Alternatively, you may drop off your oldest child first, and then circle the block or stage elsewhere until it’s time to drop off your younger child(ren). 

Entrance locations are as follows: 

  • All divisions arriving at their regular time by carline: Main Entrance
  • Early Childhood early arrival from carline: Main Entrance
  • Early Childhood, if parent is walking up or walking in: North Alley Entrance
  • Lower School and Middle School walk-ups: Main Entrance
  • Lower School early arrival: Cafeteria Entrance

The north side of Schiller Street is used as the drop-off lane for all students. Drop-off occurs between North Park and Wieland (drop-off zone), and vehicles will be directed to pull forward as far as possible before unloading. School personnel will be positioned on the sidewalk to welcome children and escort them to their entrance if they need assistance. 

We ask that you be patient and follow directions from traffic control and school personnel.  For the safety of students and school personnel, all students should exit the vehicle on the curbside only. Parents/guardians will not be permitted to exit their vehicles or accompany children into the building. There is no standing traffic or parking allowed anywhere on either side of Schiller from Wells to North Park. Drop-off is not permitted anywhere other than the designated drop-off zones.

Early Childhood Drop-Off 
To help with a smooth transition, the Early Childhood team welcomes families to walk into the building through the North Alley Entrance with their child and drop off at the early arrival room, 114 or your child’s classroom door between 7:45-8:10 a.m. We ask that you allow your child the autonomy to say good-bye at the classroom door and allow the teachers to help your child get settled for the day. Please note, parents entering the school will be required to check in at the Security Desk using our Visitor Aware check-in system. If you are not already registered in Visitor Aware, you may do so here to expedite the check-in process.

Early Drop-Off 
The building officially opens at 7:45 a.m. Early Childhood and Lower School families that require early drop-off may do so between 7:45-8:00 a.m. Upon arrival, all students will report to a holding room with proper supervision. Classroom doors will open at 8:00 a.m. No students are permitted to be on campus prior to 7:45 a.m., as proper supervision is not available.

Late Arrival
Early Childhood and Lower School students that arrive after 8:10 a.m. will need to enter through the Main Entrance on Schiller. Students will walk to the Main Office and receive a tardy slip. Early Childhood students will be walked to their classroom by a team member. 

Middle School students that arrive after 8:00 a.m. will need to stop in the Main Office to receive a tardy slip. Students must get this pass before entering their period 1 class.

Vehicle Safety 
Use extreme caution when driving along Schiller during pick- up and drop-off times. Parents/guardians and/or school personnel will be walking across the street with students, and cars may be pulling out into the flow of traffic. The word “hurry” is a dangerous term during arrival and dismissal. Please be patient.

Before loading and unloading, please pull all the way forward in the line to keep traffic moving. Once students are safely loaded/unloaded, please signal, use caution, and pull out slowly into the center lane. Avoid backing up; some students are too small to be visible in rearview mirrors.

Please save conversations with teachers or friends for later; the flow of traffic will be interrupted. PLEASE STAY OFF YOUR CELL PHONES!  Our security team reported that several students, staff and even they were almost hit numerous times last year because parents/caregivers were on their cell phones. It is illegal to be on a cell phone while driving, and distracted drivers create unsafe conditions for our students and school personnel.

There is traffic support to help everyone understand how the traffic is supposed to flow. Please be courteous to the school personnel who serve you by helping to make dismissal an efficient, safe, and neighbor-friendly process.

 

DISMISSAL

Families are provided with a color-coded dismissal placard. Please make sure all caregivers, carpool buddies, and potential pick-up people are listed on the appropriate form and have an appropriate placard. Additional placards can be printed by sending a request to main.office@ccookschool.org, and the additional placards will be sent home in your child’s backpack.

Preschool Half-Day Dismissal Procedures 
Preschool Half-Day students will be dismissed from the Main Schiller Street Entrance at 11:50 a.m. Preschool Half-Day placards are green and coded with “PS-AM.” Students will wait inside their classroom and be dismissed from the Main Entrance to parents/guardians, who will need to show the dismissal placard. We ask that parents/guardians wait outside the school to pick up children from Preschool Half-Day.

Afternoon Dismissal Procedures - Carline 
With limited space available on the streets surrounding our school, we have implemented dismissal procedures that best serve the entire community. These procedures are specifically designed to promote a neighbor-friendly, efficient, and safe dismissal process.

Placards must be prominently displayed in the pick-up vehicle’s windshield before turning onto Schiller. The placard must remain visible until your child is safely in your car. School personnel will be notified as vehicles enter the carline. Students will wait in their classroom until their placard is called. When their placard is called, they will be dismissed from their classroom to their designated exit door location, where school personnel will be waiting to assist students to their vehicle. 

Dismissal traffic flows westward down Schiller Avenue. Parents/guardians should utilize both sides of the street, regardless of your child(ren)’s exit door location. No parking is allowed on either side of Schiller, or any school zone during dismissal for any reason. The Chicago Police Department often monitors our dismissal for safety and may ticket cars that are not in compliance with our dismissal procedures.

Pick-up times, exit door locations, and placard colors are outlined in the chart above. If you are picking up multiple children, please arrive at your oldest child’s dismissal time. For example, if you have a child in Senior Kindergarten and 5th Grade, arrive at 3:20 p.m. Younger children who wait for older siblings to be dismissed will be waiting in a designated staging area, with appropriate supervision.

It is very important that you arrive at your child’s designated dismissal time. DO NOT COME EARLY. There is not enough curb space to accommodate early-arriving vehicles. Each division needs both sides of Schiller, from Wells to North Park, for dismissal during their designated time. If you arrive too early, traffic control will require you to circle the block until it is time for your child(ren) to be dismissed.

Even if you arrive at your pick up time, there may be times when the pick-up line is full on both sides of Schiller. If this happens, we ask that you circle the block until curb space is available. Please do not block traffic at the Wells and Schiller intersection. If Wieland is available, traffic control may direct you to pick up there.

Walking Pickup 
Walking parents/guardians should stand just north of the corner of Schiller and Weiland Streets, along the east side of the school, being sure to keep the sidewalk clear. Please carry your placard and show it to school personnel positioned at that location. Please also keep your placard visible until your child is safely with you. 

Late Pickup
It is expected that all children will be picked up on time. Please call the Main Office if you are running late, and personnel will notify the homeroom teacher/advisor. This courtesy call does not absolve parents/caregivers of late fees, but may reduce stress and uncertainty for children and staff. 

If you arrive 15 minutes or more past your pick up time, you will need to come into the building to pick up your child. Do not park in the pick-up line. You will be instructed to find legal parking, walk to the Main Entrance security desk, check in, and wait for instructions on where your child is located. You will then walk to that location and sign your child out.

Early Childhood and Lower School students who are not picked up within 15 minutes of their pick-up time will be charged a $50 late fee through Tuition Management. Middle School students who are not picked up within 10 minutes of their pick-up time will be charged a $50 late fee.

We understand that emergencies happen. We are allotting for two emergencies per school year to accommodate these types of situations.

Extended Day, After School Adventures (ASA), and Athletics Dismissal
Please see the Auxiliary Programs Guide (available soon) for Extended Day and After School Adventures (ASA) dismissal procedures. Dismissal for Middle School athletic teams will be communicated by your student’s coach.

Emergency School Closings 
In the event of a school closing, communication will be shared with parents/guardians via text message, the homepage of the school website, and e-blasts. Make sure your email and phone number are up to date in the Cook Portal to receive these alerts.

Parking 
The school does not provide parking, and on school days between 7:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. the city does not permit parking in front of the school on Schiller (School Zone). During arrival and dismissal times, no parking is allowed on either side of Schiller (from Wells to North Park) or in any designated School Zone. Outside of arrival and dismissal times, parents/guardians may momentarily stand/park in the School Zone on Schiller and walk to the Main Entrance for late drop off/early pick up. Make certain to leave your vehicle’s hazard lights on. Double-parking is not permitted. The school will not reimburse parents who are ticketed for parking illegally under any circumstances.

When visitors are permitted on campus, the commercial parking lot at North Park and Schiller offers a discounted rate for persons visiting the school for two hours or less. Discount tickets are available at the Main Office and the Security Desk. Metered parking is available on many of the surrounding streets. Parking on Wieland and North Park is by resident permit only.

Campus Limits 
The safety of our students is paramount. During school hours, all students are expected to be inside the school building unless accompanied by a member of the Catherine Cook faculty or staff. The school cannot assume responsibility for students walking to and from school. Students are not allowed to wait unsupervised outside the building for their parents to pick them up, regardless of the student’s age. When athletics are offered, students who participate on teams will be dismissed to the coach or, if there is a gap between dismissal and practice, to Extended Day. Students who disregard these policies regarding safety and supervision jeopardize their participation in Catherine Cook activities.