Good evening, Eagles. This is Mr. Quigg with some important and exciting information:
Monday, we trained our Aberdeen High School staff on a new platform that we will begin using school-wide for the rest of this school year. We will be referring to it as “EAGLE PASS.” This platform will be the new method that students will use to request access to the hallways and travel to and from destinations while at school, including the restroom, to get water, to go to the nurse, to see a counselor, or any other reason/destination for which they might have a need.
Students received information about this during homeroom. Beginning on Thursday, May 9th, students will no longer ask a teacher to write an actual physical pass. Students will request a pass from their teachers in the web-based platform from their student device. If the requested location is available (restroom or hallways aren't too busy), teachers will have an opportunity to respond to the request through their online dashboard.
The rationale behind implementing this change is to continue to place the focus for students on remaining in the classroom and focused on instruction. Aberdeen High has shown significant growth in student achievement over the past few years, and this will only aid in our efforts to continue to have our students R.I.S.E.
This new EAGLE PASS platform will allow us as a school to set limits on the number of active passes at any given time, the number of passes that a student has access to during a day, as well as limits for the number of total students in the hallway at a given time, and the number of students that are permitted in any one location at any given time. The most immediate impact that this will have is this: students must have their charged devices with them in school every day. Passes will only be able to be requested through the online portal on their HCPS issued device. There will be consequences for students who access the hallways without having been granted an active pass on the platform.
Please know that our philosophy and focus is not to deny students the basic needs that they may have, but to increase the level of accountability and safety in our hallways throughout the day when students should be focused on learning in the classroom. The implementation of this new tool represents a shift that will have an impact academically and culturally and will allow our Eagles to R.I.S.E to new heights.
This short video is one that we shared with the students. https://vimeo.com/689487777/1f437d7bf6
The E Hall Pass company’s website with public information is https://eduspiresolutions.org/e-hallpass/
In addition, I want to reinforce the new board policy pertaining to portable communication devices (PCDs) and wearable communication devices (WCDs or Apple watches) that has already been signed into action by our board of education. The new policy prohibits the use or display of portable communication devices or cell phones and wearable communication devices during instruction unless directly authorized by a teacher or staff member for a specific learning opportunity. Additionally, the wearing of headphones, earbuds, or air pods will also be prohibited at all times, as this interferes with students’ ability to hear explicit directions from staff members or hear emergency announcements.
We recognize this will be a significant change for some of our students but must remain in compliance with board of education expectations and policies. Students need to begin taking action to adhere to this new policy, as it will be fully enforced at the start of next school year.
Thank you for your support as we transition to this new system of monitoring our hallways, keeping our building safe, and maintaining our priority on instruction and post-secondary readiness.
Remember...Eagles always R.I.S.E.!
Thank you for your support and have a wonderful evening!