Once students are on campus, they are not allowed to leave during the school day from 7:50 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. without the permission of the Dean’s Office, even if it is a 7:50 a.m. optional activity period or a student free period. Students needing to leave campus prior to this must procure a Release Slip from the Dean’s Office. This slip must be presented to a parking lot supervisor if the student is leaving in a vehicle (whether the car is parked in a lot or on the street).
Students are not allowed to go to a vehicle (parked in a lot or on the street) between 7:50 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. to obtain belongings, including books, lunches, projects, etc. In an emergency situation, the student may request a Release Slip from the Attendance Office.
The Truancy Abatement Program is conducted by the County with law enforcement assistance to curtail truancy among high school students. All students who leave campus for appointments during the day must carry their I.D. in order to avoid detention by an officer while off campus.
No student may leave campus between final exams without permission from a parent/guardian. The assumption is that the student will be going home during this interim period. The parent call and note to the Dean’s Office must be received prior to the student leaving campus, at which time a Release Slip will be issued to the student.
Students may leave after their last class of the day on the following occasions: the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, the Thursday before Easter, and when a special schedule designates that classes are held for only half of the day.
Parents should make arrangements to have your student picked by 4:30 (unless involved in athletics), as this is when the library and main building close and students must wait outside.
With the exception of dances, campus activities that involve students are to end by 9:30 pm. Access to campus is restricted Monday-Friday between the hours of 10:00 pm and 6:00 am, including to retrieve belongings from lockers or to retrieve vehicles. Security personnel will not unlock gates or allow admittance to students or parents during those hours. Campus is closed to student access on Saturdays after 3:00 p.m. unless an event is occurring.
AMHS activities that involve students will not take place on campus on Sundays. Therefore, the campus is closed all day on Sundays. These norms apply to, but are not limited to, academic review sessions, athletic team practices, performing arts rehearsals, ASB meetings and work sessions, yearbook or newspaper activities, and activities sponsored by Campus Ministry. These norms do not apply to athletic contests or performing arts performances, and particular other activities. Exceptions to this policy require the permission of the Assistant Principal.
An Emergency Situation is a circumstance that results in a potential threat to the health and safety of the students and staff. Such situations would include, but are not limited to, the following: fire, earthquake, explosion, emission of toxic fumes, bomb threats, weapons and/or intruders on campus.
The school is prepared to deal with such situations; a copy of the current AMHS Emergency Operations Plan is available in the Dean of Students Office. The plan outlines administration, staff, student, and parent responsibilities in an Emergency Situation. Drills are executed throughout the year to allow the campus to practice its readiness for a real emergency.
Students who are on campus during an emergency situation will remain on campus until they are released by authorized AMHS personnel or emergency response/law enforcement personnel. When prudent, such personnel will release students or retain them on campus in keeping with the instructions given by individual parents on the current Emergency/Disaster Release Information Form that is on file with the school and which is updated each summer.
AMHS faculty and staff members will remain on campus during and after an emergency situation to supervise those students who have not been released to go home or picked up.
Instructions for Parents
What not to do:
- do not call the school. In the event of a significant event, this will simply tie up lines needed to communicate with emergency relief agencies.
- do not come to the school, unless at the time you normally do so to pick up your student, or unless you have been contacted by the school or your student. You will need to formally sign out your student.
What to do:
- discuss with your student what he/she should do in an Emergency Situation (as you have indicated on the current Emergency/Disaster Release Information Form). Determine a phone number at which you can be reached or at which messages should be left.
- if your student transports him/herself to and from school: go home and wait for him/her to arrive. He/she will be released from school when it is safe and in keeping with the instructions given by you on the current Emergency/Disaster Release Form.
- if you normally pick up your student: come to school at the normal time or when contacted by school personnel or your student to come pick him/her up. Although many students carry cellular phones, the school will make available regular and cellular phones so that students who need to may contact parents.
Instructions for Students
Drills are conducted throughout the year to practice preparedness for real emergencies. Students are reminded of the procedures to be followed in the following circumstances:
- When the general alarm sounds
- When the campus is notified over the P.A. system or in-person contact of an emergency situation that warrants evacuation of buildings, drop to the ground, or CODE RED procedures.
- When an emergency situation occurs away from the campus that impacts an AMHS group
If you are with a class/team/group
1. Follow instructions of P.A. system, teacher, staff, coach, or moderator in charge.
2. If the building is shaking or it is clear that an earthquake is taking place:
- take cover under desks, tables, or other type of protection and face away from windows;
- take a protective position by bending your head close to knees, cover back of head with one hand;
- use other hand to hold onto table leg (if earthquake) or protect eyes with other hand;
- stay under cover until directed otherwise;
- be silent and listen to or for instructions;
- check yourself and your neighbors; evacuate once shaking has stopped.
3. Once instructed or it is safe, report to the appropriate evacuation site. If on-campus evacuation sites are unsafe, the designated off-campus evacuation site is John Mise Park.
4. If instructed CODE BLUE, students are brought into or kept in a classroom, office, or other secure area pending further instruction.
5. If instructed with CODE RED, students are brought into or kept in a classroom, office, or other secure area:
- lock doors and cover door windows;
- close drapes/blinds;
- barricade doors;
- turn off lights;
- move away from windows and doors;
- create an interior barricade and get down on the floor behind the barricade;
- remain quiet and ignore the clock;
- a red Emergency Pack is located in every classroom and office;
- do not open the door for anyone;
- wait to hear the ALL CLEAR or until an administrator or police officer enters your room with a key.
If you are on campus but not with a class
1. Follow the instructions of any staff member that takes charge of the situation in that area and follows procedures outlined above.
2. If you are outside school buildings and DROP is warranted:
- move away from buildings, poles, trees, and overhead wires.
- take a protective position by crouching close to the ground and putting your arms over your head.
3. Go to the nearest evacuation site unless directed otherwise (off-campus evacuation site is John Mise Park).
If you are walking to or away from school
1. If DROP is warranted due to earthquake,
- move away from buildings, trees, and exposed wires;
- take a protective position by crouching close to the ground and putting your arms over your head;
- when it is safe, continue walking to school or walking home.
2. If DROP is warranted due to a nuclear or terrorist attack:
• take a protective posture, or get behind any solid object (ditch, curb, tree, etc.);
• lie prone, cover head and face, and as much of the skin surface as possible;
• close eyes and cover ears with forearms.
If you are off-campus with a school group/team/class
1. Follow the instructions of the staff member in charge of your group.
2. Return to campus with the group unless you are released to the custody of your parents or unless the campus is unsafe and you are instructed to go directly to your home.
If you are off-campus and not with a school group/team/class
1. If the school day has been completed, go home.
2. If the school day has not been completed, return to campus. Then report to the nearest Evacuation Site and Evacuation Site Coordinator.
Emergency/Disaster Release Form (pdf)
Medical and Emergency Information Form (pdf)
Students must submit the following information to the main office before school begins.
Health Information
1. The Parent Consent Form (to protect the student in a medical emergency)
2. The Immunization Survey Form (required by state law). New students must provide proof of immunizations. California law mandates that students be sent home if immunization records are not up-to-date and on file in the school office. Information regarding booster inoculations, etc., should be sent to the school promptly to assist the school in maintaining current records. If this information has not been filed before school begins, the student is assigned detention every day until the form is submitted.
It is the responsibility of the parent to administer or act as the custodian of prescription medicine for students. In rare cases, with the permission of the Associate Principal, the Dean can be authorized to aid a parent in these tasks.
If a parent wishes the Dean to administer prescription medication to his or her student, the following steps must be taken:
- the Dean must receive a signed typewritten statement from the physician detailing the method, amount, and time the medication is to be administered. This should be kept on file in the Dean’s Office.
- the Dean must receive a written request for assistance from the parent. The request must clearly state that the Dean is not obliged to remind or caution the student. This should be kept on file in the Dean’s Office.
- the medication must be delivered directly to the Dean in a clearly labeled bottle with the student’s name and must be stored in a locked, safe place in the Dean’s office.
No prescription medication may be stored at any location outside the Dean’s Office and no other school personnel may administer prescription medication.
No school personnel may administer an injection. In the event this is necessary the parent should take the student to an urgent care center or emergency room at the parent’s expense. In the case of an emergency school personnel should call 911.
Students are not allowed to administer or give medications to any other students or staff for any reason.
In the event a student is injured, involved in an accident, or becomes ill, school personnel will do the following:
- notify the parent or other emergency contact indicated on the Parent Consent Form; and
- call 911 for professional emergency assistance if needed.
If a non-school individual asks to question or interview a student on campus during school hours, the parent or guardian is contacted before permission is given. A law enforcement officer may interview a student without parental permission. AMHS adheres to the guidelines published in the Diocese of San Jose Administrative Handbook. Agents of AMHS may not hinder a police investigation.
Searches are necessary at times for maintaining order, security, health, and welfare of students and the rest of the school community. AMHS reserves the right to examine the contents of school lockers and personal student property including but not limited to backpacks, cell phones, and student vehicles when there is reasonable suspicion of a violation of law or of school policy wherein dangerous, stolen, or illegal goods may be present. As a safety precaution, all student bags and purses will be searched as they enter school dances both on and off campus. A student’s refusal to cooperate with such an examination may be considered sufficient reason to suspend the student and to refer him/her to the Student Review Board or to immediately dismiss the student from AMHS.
Mitty High School has provided for visitors to the campus who are in the admissions process. A guest must be an eighth grade or high school student seeking admission, in which case the parents of such a student must arrange for the visit in advance by calling the Admissions Office. Social visits, baby-sitting, etc., are strictly prohibited.
Parents and alumni should check in at the Main Office, Advancement Office, or Dean’s Office when visiting campus.
Students who have been dismissed or asked by the Administration to disenroll from Mitty are not welcome guests on campus or at Mitty-sponsored activities.
Uninvited students, loiterers, and students who should be at school on other campuses (or are on vacation from other campuses) are not welcome visitors and will be required by the supervisors to leave campus. Anyone who has been asked to leave the campus and refuses to do so, or continues to return without approval, will be charged with trespassing.
