April 30, 2013
Dear Parents,

“The safety of all students and staff in Baltimore County Public Schools is of utmost importance to all of us.  Our school is utilizing a system for checking in all visitors.  The system is called V-soft by Raptor Ware or Raptor.  When you visit our school for the first time, you will be asked to present a government-issued photo ID, or a driver’s license to a staff member in the school office.  The ID will be scanned and the following information will be collected: your photo, your name, and your date of birth.  This information will be utilized to check you in, create an ID badge, and compare your information against sexual offender databases throughout the country.  If your name appears on any lists or you refuse to allow the school to scan your ID, you will not be allowed to access the school.  The only alternative will be to allow the staff to see your ID, verify your first name, last name and date of birth to be entered into the system manually; however, this method does not store the information, and you must do this each time you visit the school. If you have your ID scanned, you will be asked to show your ID only on future visits, and your name will be selected from an existing list of previous visitors.  You will also be asked to check out with the office staff upon leaving the school so that we know you are no longer in the building.  You will be required to check into the system even if you are only coming to school to pick up your child.  The information collected will not be shared outside of the school and is kept on a secure server. Your assistance in keeping our students and school safe is appreciated.”  While I know change is hard and this is a huge change, please remember to grab your ID whenever you are coming to enter the building.  We anticipate that this system will be up and running in the next two weeks.  Any questions regarding this process should be directed to Dale R. Rauenzahn, executive director, Department of School Safety and Security at (410) 887-4360 or at drauenzahn@bcps.org.      

Thanks,

Mrs. Magness

MISSION

To maintain and refine the climate of an effective middle school, our mission is… To help all students experience success and reach their full potential in an environment that nurtures high academic achievement, positive self-esteem, good values, appropriate and responsive student behavior, and open, effective communication among students, parents, teachers, and community.  Their middle school experience will prepare them to move forward in becoming globally competitive students prepared for their chosen college and/or career path.

Our vision is clear…

To create, sustain and invest in a culture of deliberate excellence which helps to prepare our youth to become globally competitive students and contributing citizens. Our instructional outcomes are guided by three principles: (1) What children are expected to know and to demonstrate, (2) How our children can best be taught, and (3) How their learning will be assessed.  We affirm a multicultural approach, which supports that all children can learn, success breeds success, and we (parents, students, educators, and community) share in the responsibility of the learner’s success.

• Academic
• Safety
• Communication
• Organizational Effectiveness