Monthly tuition is collected through Brightwheel Services on the 5th of each month. Before a child enters the school, parents must pay a deposit of one month’s tuition to be applied to the May tuition upon completion of the school year. Tuition is calculated on a yearly basis and equally divided into nine monthly payments; therefore, there is no change in tuition due to shorter or longer months.

Families who travel overseas for extended periods of time MUST continue to pay monthly tuition to hold their child’s spot in the program.  If a family chooses not to unenroll their child while traveling, they will only be re-enrolled if a space is available.  A re-enrollment fee of $75.00 will be charged.

There is no fee if the tuition payment is deducted from your checking account.  A 2.9% fee will be assessed if payment is made through a credit card.

A registration fee is charged each year in the amount of $75.00. The registration fee must accompany the Application and is non-refundable. There is a one-time Events Fee of $75.00 which is due when a deposit is made. A Deposit consists of one month’s tuition which is applied to the last month that the child is enrolled, usually May.  30-day notice must be given, in writing, to the Director when a child is unenrolled. All Deposits are NON-REFUNDABLE.

A copy of the child’s birth certificate and a completed Fairfax County Health Form is required before a child can start preschool.

St. Paul’s Lutheran Church Members will receive a 25% discount on monthly tuition. Second siblings will receive $25.00 off per monthly tuition.

>> Please Click Here for Tuition and Fees

One of the best features of our preschool is the wonderful support and encouragement families offer the staff and each other. There are many ways to get involved, such as helping in your child’s class, helping on field trips and getting involved in our fundraising efforts.

When parents get involved in the child’s preschool it enables the child to see their parents as important and concerned members of the preschool environment. It also provides parents with opportunities to view the child with teachers and other children.

Parents may gain valuable insights and techniques from the expertise of the staff, and at the same time, share their own talents to maintain the excellent quality here at St. Paul’s. School then becomes a shared experience, which hopefully will continue throughout each child’s educational process.

Our Preschool uses Brightwheel for both payment and as a form of communication. Brightwheel has a messaging feature that both teachers and parents can send text like messages.

Teachers will provide a monthly newsletter that will be posted on Brightwheel. There will also be a daily schedule posted outside of the classroom door on the class bulletin board.

We also have a Parent Resource Center, located at the bottom of the stairwell when you enter. Please look at this board for important information.

Our teachers are more than willing to talk with families about their child’s progress, however the teachers DO NOT provide families with email access. Requests for a meeting, or information about a child should be made in writing and given directly to the teacher. Families are welcome to use the Preschool email address (SPLPreschool@aol.com) as a means to communicate with teachers.

We are always willing to share our observations of your child with you. Most often, these will be informal conversations or phone calls. However in November a report will be sent home that will show how your child is progressing. Should you have concerns or questions, the teacher at that time would be willing to meet with you. In April parent-teacher conferences will be held. Through the use of our Portage Curriculum Assessments, we will discuss your child’s ability in the preschool environment and discuss his or her growth in the main developmental areas. If at any time prior to the April conference you wish to talk to your child’s teacher, please make arrangements to meet before or after school. Drop off and pick-up times are not conducive to discussing something as important as your child.

All cars will enter the property at the top driveway and exit at the lower driveway.

The pick-up procedure is strictly enforced and has been devised to ensure the safety of your child. The carpool line begins forming at 1:15 each afternoon. We will begin taking children to cars promptly at 1:30 with a goal of being finished at 1:45 daily. A teacher will walk your child to the car. You will be asked to properly secure your child into his/her car seat.

Virginia law requires that all children under the age of 8 be restrained in a child safety seat that meets federal law. Children will not be released to you if you do not have a car seat. Not complying with this procedure could be cause for termination from the program.

Late Fee Policy

We try hard to finish on time, and the children expect to be picked up on time. Not only do the teachers have a lot to do at the end of the day, but your child becomes worried, no matter how hard we try to comfort him or her. Unfortunately there are people who are frequently late because they apparently try to squeeze in “one more thing”. The late fee rate is as follows:
After 1:45 PM – $1.00 per minute

Please abide by our scheduled hours of 9:30 AM – 1:30 PM. Continual late pick-up will be grounds for requesting removal of your child from the program. IF THIS OCCURS YOU WILL NOT BE REIMBURSED FOR ANY PART OF THE MONTH’S TUITION.

Please remember that in your child’s eyes, being late picking them up is very serious and scares them. Please plan to arrive on time and remember we live in a very congested area.

Withdrawal

The Preschool Committee reserves the right to ask for the withdrawal of any child for any cause deemed reasonable, or if tuition payments fall two months in arrears. The school reserves the right to cancel any class and/or registrations if there is not sufficient enrollment to justify its continuance. A written notice is required for parents to withdraw a child from the program, a 30 day written notice is required . DEPOSITS ARE NON-REFUNDABLE.

Refund Policy

Tuition is NOT REFUNDABLE OR PRO-RATED due to vacations, illness, snow or ice days, or any other closing beyond the control of the Director. Weather related closings ARE NOT MADE UP unless there are extenuating circumstances. The decision is made at the discretion of the Director and Preschool Committee.

If the school is closed temporarily due to health precautions, weather conditions, or any other reason beyond the control of the Director, normal tuition fees will continue to accrue.

If a child is absent from school for an extended period for any reason, but expects to return to school, tuition will be charged to reserve the child’s place in the program. Otherwise the vacancy will be filled.

Termination

The Preschool reserves the right to require the withdrawal of a child either on a temporary or permanent basis if:

• The child’s behavior endangers the physical or mental health of the other children.
• Tuition and/or other fees are late.
• The parents fail to abide by school policies and procedures.
• Parents and/or caregiver do not abide by carpool procedures.
• The child is repeatedly late.
• The child fails to adjust to the school, as determined by the Director.

Children With Special Needs

If a child with special needs can be accommodated at St. Paul’s Lutheran Preschool, the child will be considered for enrollment. As with any enrollment there is a 30 day probationary period. Parents of any special needs child will be informed that our staff is not trained in Special Education and will not be making special provisions within the classroom to accommodate the child. Any changes that might be made must be done with the consideration of every child in the classroom. If a large portion of any staff member’s time is spent dealing only with the special needs child, the Director will be notified. It is the policy of the Preschool that all children shall receive equal amounts of time from the teachers. If the special needs child is preventing this balance of staff and child interaction, the parents of the special needs child may be asked to look for another program that better meets the needs of the child.

Effective June 1, 2007, all religious exempt programs that choose to administer prescription and non-prescription medication, must successfully complete a medication administration training program provided by the Virginia Board of Health. St. Paul’s staff members have all received this training. Therefore we will continue to administer “emergency” medications only.

All medications that are kept at the Preschool require a Written Medication Consent Form. THIS FORM MUST BE COMPLETED EVERY SIX MONTHS. The medication administration consent form requires the signature of the parent (or guardian) as well as the prescribing physician.

Medication containers must be labeled in permanent ink with the child’s name and the dosage amount.

Prescription medication must be in the original container with the prescription label attached. EPI-Pens should be brought to school in their boxes, as the prescription label is attached to the box. St. Paul’s requires two EPI-Pens at all times.

Due to changes in the Virginia Board of Health regulations, we are no longer permitted to administer Benadryl, we are ONLY certified to use an EPI-Pen.

The parent must bring the medication to the Preschool Office in a zip-lock bag labeled with his or her child’s name on it. DO NOT send medication in your child’s backpack. Emergency medications will be kept by your child’s teacher and taken with them wherever the child goes. Any back-up medications will be kept in the Preschool Office.

Please remember to pick up medication from your child’s teacher and the Preschool Office on the last day of school.

If Fairfax County schools are closed, we are closed. When Fairfax County schools opens two hours late, the Preschool will be open from 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM. Announcements are made on most local radio (WTOP 1500 AM or 103.5 FM) and TV stations (Channel 21 –FCOS, NBC, ABC, CBS, or FOX). Additionally, families can receive email notification of FCPS closings by enrolling in FCPS’s “Keep In Touch” system at: http//www.fcps.edu. The Preschool will send all families who have an email address on file notification when a change in opening time is made.

All children ages 2.5 – 5 MUST be toilet trained. Pull-ups are not permitted as they do not promote toilet use. The Preschool and teachers do understand that at times young children have accidents and we are happy to change them into dry clothes. If a child has repeated accidents, the teacher will notify the Director who will then contact the parents to discuss a plan of action.