Parents & Students

All Day Attendance Line

• 231.933.7752

Additional Information

• Attendance Procedures & Expectations

• Pre-Arranged Absence Form

If your busing needs change at any time, please contact your school office or call the transportation department at 231.933.1933 for more information.

• Bus Hotline (for closings and bus delays) - 231.933.1955
• District Boundary Map
• Transportation Department: for bus parking maps, shuttle schedules, half day dismissal and bus stop drop times, contact information, etc. 
• Transportation Request Form

New Student Enrollment Information

For enrollment information, please contact TC West registrar Amber Innis at 231.933.7702.

Before a student is actually enrolled at the high school we must have the following information:

• Birth certificate 
• Shot records 
• Proof of residency (i.e. gas bill or lease)
• Official high school transcript 
• Exit grades if leaving in the middle of a term
• Copy of IEP or MET if receiving special education services

Please contact Amber Innis at 231.933.7702 if your son/daughter will be enrolling at West Senior High School. An appointment will be scheduled after all above information has been provided.
 
For additional information and enrollment forms, please visit the TCAPS Enrollment Information webpage.

Information for parents of freshman/new students at West Senior High

After School

• The Library Media Center (LMC) is open to students for quiet study Monday-Thursday after school until 3:00 PM.
• Students that are being picked up later, must wait in the commons. Parents should note that students are not supervised if waiting for pick up after 3:30 PM. Students on campus after 3:30 must be in commons, unless they are being supervised by a staff person (sports, music, clubs, tutoring, driver's education).
• Students taking the bus after school should report immediately to the bus stop after school dismissal at 3:01 PM. Buses pick up and leave as soon as possible as they have elementary school routes to drive after taking care of high school students.

Attendance Expectations

• Consistent daily attendance is one of most critical leading indicators to a student’s academic success in the classroom as well as successful completion of high school. Even excused absences take students away from valuable instructional time and can set them back. National research shows that Freshmen who miss just five days of school per semester, reduce their chance of graduating high school in four years by more than 35%. 
• The TCAPS Board of Education considers the following factors to be reasonable excuses for time missed at school: 1. illness 2. recovery from accident 3. required court attendance 4. professional appointments 5. death in the immediate family 6. observation or celebration of a bona fide religious holiday 7. attending returning or farewell service for military parent,guardian, or sibling 8. such other good cause as may be acceptable to the principal. 
• The attendance line connects directly to voicemail and is to be used only for an all day absence. Please leave the name of your student, grade level, reason for the absence, your name and a phone number where you can be reached. The spelling of your last name is also helpful in some cases.
  • 231.933.7752
• Please do not email any student absences.
• When checking students out, please call as early in the day as possible to enable us to have your student ready when you requested (last minute requests can not always be filled). If you call ahead, you do not need to come into the building. Your student will be given a pass directing him/her to go to their neighborhood grade office to sign out and watch for you to arrive.
• Please make every effort to have your child in school all day, every day, and schedule appointments outside of school hours whenever possible.
• For students leaving for athletic events, music activities, or other school activities, attendance will be taken care of by the athletic department or music teacher, and there is no need to call to verify the absence.
• Prearranged absence forms:  If you know in advance that your student will be gone from school for two or more days, please have them stop by their neighborhood office and pick up this form. The student will then take it to all of his teachers for their signature and to obtain any work they will miss. The form will then need to be signed by the parent and returned to their neighborhood office before the student leaves on their trip.
• PowerSchool Parent Portal should be operational by the end of September.
• Homework Requests:  Please call your neighborhood office directly and as early as possible if requesting homework for your student. If you think they will only be out for one day, please do not request homework; students may see their teacher when they return the next day (or email your child’s teachers). The earlier in the day we receive your request, the better chance we have to supply the homework at the end of the day. Sometimes it might take 24 hours to obtain the work.

Athletic Eligibility

•  https://tcwestathletics.org/
• Athletic Office 231.933.7780
• Jason Carmien, Athletic Director
• Amy Rickenberg, Assistant

Bus Transportation

• Access TCAPS transportation Information
• Bus Passes can not be issued on a day-to-day basis and are reserved for emergencies only due to rosters and seating capacity on buses. All students using bus transportation are assigned to a particular bus stop based on the address of their home residence. Students are expected to use this bus stop to board their morning bus and get off of their afternoon bus. Changes in this procedure are reserved for emergencies only. The bus driver cannot accept verbal requests from students or handwritten notes. For after school parties and other events, students are expected to ride their regular bus home. Parents and families should make all other transportation arrangements. Bus passes cannot be issued for providing students rides to friend’s homes due to bus capacity issues.

Cell Phones

• Smart phones and other communication devices can be useful tools, but can not be allowed to be distractions to learning in the classroom. 
• Cellular Phone Use during State/Federal Testing – strictly prohibited (MSTEP, PSAT, SAT, Workkeys). State/Federal testing guidelines stipulate that students using phones during testing periods (including breaks) are to have their tests for the day and for the entire testing window voided.
• A student may possess or use a cell phone and/or other electronic  communication devices in school however, use of a cellular telephone and/or other electronic communication device is prohibited  while in the classroom or engaged in a learning environment such as  a field trip or assembly unless the use is instructed by instructional staff.  (Board Policy 5136)
• Possession of a cellular telephone and/or other electronic communication  devices by a student is a privilege, which may be forfeited by any student  who fails to abide by the terms of this policy, or otherwise engages in  misuse of this privilege. This includes taking picture with electronic devices  to harass or intimidate students or staff. At all times in school, on school  property (including school buses), at after school activities, and/or at  school related functions, when a student is directed to discontinue use  or put away cell phones or other electronic communication devices  , students are expected to comply. Failure to do so will be considered insubordination and is  subject to disciplinary action. Violations of this policy may result in the  confiscation of the cell phone or other communication device (including  net books and IPad, IPad like devices) and held for a parent/guardian  to pick up.
• A student who possesses a cellular telephone and/or other electronic  communication devices shall assume responsibility for its/their care.  At no time shall the district be responsible for preventing theft, loss or  damage to cellular telephones and/or other electronic communication  devices brought onto its property.

Closed Campus

• West Senior High School has a closed campus policy for all students. This means the students are not allowed to leave the school campus at any time unless leaving on school transportation, being picked up by a parent/guardian, or with permission of an administrator.  In addition, the school parking lots are off limits once a student has arrived. Students should also not be on the athletic fields, Lone Tree Subdivision property, or Williams property before or after school hours unless under the supervision of staff for school-related activities.
• Please be aware that the back road off of Cedar Run has a gate up near the school that is locked during the school day (typically from 10:00 AM to 2:30 PM). During these hours, all traffic must enter and leave the school via North Long Lake Rd.

Clubs, Sports, Music and other Student Programs

• West Senior High offers a number of programs for students to get involved in. Visit the Student Programs webpage to learn more and identify who to contact regarding clubs and extracurricular programs your child may want to participate in.

Concerns

Who to contact when you are concerned about your child:

• Academic concerns should be directed to your child's teacher, counselor, or principal.
• Social or emotional concerns can be directed to your child's counselor, or principal.

Counselors

• Appointments: Students or parents can make an appointment with their counselor, by seeing Mrs. Roy in the Counseling Center, or call 231.933.7700.
• A student is assigned a counselor based on the first or first few letters in their last name.  Please visit the student services webpage for the counselors’ alpha list assignments. 

Handbook: Student Handbook

• View the TCAPS Secondary Student Handbook
• The Student Handbook contains the most critical information for students and parents to know regarding rules, procedures and requirements.
• Students  review the handbook during the first week of school and sign an acknowledgment form noting that they have reviewed it.
• Please take some time to review the handbook at home.

ID Card

• Students are issued an ID Card at registration and must carry it with them daily at school.
• ID cards are used for lunch accounts, computer repairs, library materials and security purposes.
• Students can get replacement ID cards in the Main Office for a $3 replacement fee.

Illness

• If your student becomes ill during the school day, they should go directly to their neighborhood office or notify their teacher if they are in class (Please note that we do not have a nurse in our building). You will be contacted to decide if you need to pick up your student at that time. Please advise your student not to go to the bathroom and call you on their cell phone. In doing this, we are not aware of the illness nor do we know where they are and are not able to assist them if an emergency arises.

Lockers

• Your freshman has been assigned a locker with a combination. Students are encourage to keep some of their books in their lockers during the day to prevent laptop computer damage and strain on their backs. Valuable items should not be brought to school, but when they are, their hallway locker is the safest place to store items. Items stored in gym lockers should not be considered safe.
• Upperclassman can obtain a locker by seeing the receptionist in the Counseling Center. 
• Students should bring a lock to use in the Athletic Locker Rooms -- locks cannot be left on overnight. TC West High School is not responsible for any lost or stolen items from athletic or locker room areas. 

Medications

• If your student has medicine they need to take during the school year, a Medication/Treatment authorization form has to be signed by the physician, the student and yourself each school year. The form can be located in WSH Counseling Office or on our website. This form must be turned in before a student can have medication on campus. No exceptions.

Laptop Computer Information (copy from old parent presentation)

• Laptops are a tool to support student learning
• 9th-12th grade students pick up laptops at registration and return it at the end of each school year for updates (same laptop all 4 years)
• Freshmen will pick up their laptop during the first week of school.
• Student laptops work on any wireless network and have an internet filter (even if used outside of school)
• Electronic communication is encouraged, student printing at school is limited and students will have trouble printing from their laptop at home.
• Battery management is important. Students should leave charger at home and charge their netbook nightly. If students come to school with a charged laptop, the battery should last them all day. Students are not allowed to plug their laptops in during class due to limited outlets and safety concerns. 
• Proper care of laptops is each student's responsibility. When damages occur, students will share some of the cost of the repairs.
• Tech support (aka, the Greek Squad) is located inside the LMC, to the right. The Greek Squad can trouble shoot most issues students experience.

Interpreter/Translation Services

Interpreting during any meeting or translation of any documents will be provided for any parent who requests interpreting or translating. The process to request these services is:

• Contact your school and make a request. The school will then make the request through the Human Resources Department, and an interpreter will be provided.
• A school may use the Tele-Interpreter Service if no interpreter is available, or if interpreter/translation services are an immediate need.

Liaisons

• Nueva Intérprete e Intermediaria de TCAPS
  Welcome Letter Spanish Liaison - Giuliana Mullen
   
• Координатор переводов и связи для украинскоязычной и рускоязычной общины Системы Штатских Школ Района Города Траверс Сити (TCAPS)

  Welcome Letter Ukrainian & Russian Liaison - Alicja Power

Throughout the school year, West Senior High School looks for parent volunteers to help in various positions. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact the main office. All volunteers will need to complete the district's online volunteer application and a background check before volunteering at the school. To complete the application and for more information on volunteering, please visit the district's volunteer page. Thank you for your support!