ABOUT

Philosophy and guiding principles

Friends School philosophy is one that celebrates our differences in an increasingly diverse world. Our school is founded on the following guiding principles:

• The positive growth and development of the whole child socially, academically, physically and emotionally, according to his or her own needs.

• The utilization of an integrated, hands-on and challenging curricular approach that focuses on the individual needs, interests and skills of each child.

• The cultivation of a heterogeneous population of children that includes those of different races, abilities and economic backgrounds.

• The opportunity to learn, while respecting and honoring one another’s unique characteristics, and appreciating that which we have in common.   

• To strengthen self-esteem, and provide children with the ethical framework and practical capacities which allow them to make appropriate and responsible decisions.

• To encourage active parental involvement in the education and learning environment of their children.

History

Nut-Free School

Please remember that several children attending Friends have severe, life-threatening allergies to peanuts and tree nuts (walnuts, pecans, cashews, etc.), including nut oils and nut flours found in pre-packaged processed foods. These children must carry an Epi-Pen (shot of epinephrine) with them at all times, as well as Benadryl. These allergies can be so severe that children may have a reaction not only to ingestion but also from skin contact and inhalation. For example, simply picking up a fallen tree nut on the playground or doing an arts-and- crafts project that contains food allergens (sunflower seeds, birdseed, etc.) is enough to cause a reaction. Anaphylaxis (severe allergic reactions affecting the heart, throat, and lungs) can occur within minutes of contact or up to four hours later, and may be life-threatening if medicine is not administered promptly.   

While at times it may be difficult to find nut-free foods that you or your children will eat and you might feel frustrated with this policy, always remember that a child could potentially die from exposure to these types of foods.

Meals and Snacks

It is Friends School policy that under no circumstance is there to be sharing of any foods. This applies to daily instruction as well as for parties and holidays.

Students provide their own nutritious snacks and beverages from home each day. Full-day students also bring a lunch. Children staying for after care should also bring an additional snack and beverage. Please use recyclable or reusable containers clearly labeled with the child’s name. Soft drinks should not be sent to the school.

Snacks and lunches may contain fresh fruits, cheese cubes and crackers, hard-boiled eggs, celery with cream cheese, rice cakes, applesauce, pretzels, lunch meat, bread, soy butter, etc. Please be sure food that requires refrigeration is placed in a refrigerator or accompanied by an ice pack.

It is IMPERATIVE that families send HEALTHY snacks and lunches to school. Please be certain that your child has a protein, a complex carbohydrate, a fruit and a vegetable in their snacks/lunches. Friends School will NOT allow cans or bottles of soda. Friends School will supplement any snack or lunch that is deemed unhealthy with appropriate foods and the family will be charged for the food so provided.

Friends School provides refrigerators and microwaves for students to utilize. Space and time are limited, so food warm-ups should be restricted to forty-five seconds or less. For example, if you are sending your child a Kraft Macaroni and Cheese individual meal for lunch, you should prepare that at home and we will simply re-heat it at school. Otherwise, your child will not have enough time to cook the macaroni, wait for it to cool and then eat it. Additionally, other students in the class will also be heating food, further impacting the amount of time available for lunch. Again, please send food items that require warm-up only, never preparation.

All children and teachers, parents or co-ops must wash their hands before and after preparing or eating foods.

Governance

The governing board at Friends School, called the Friends School Board, is composed of at least nine selected members of the corporation, each appointed for a term of two years. The selected members will consist of six or more parents of children enrolled in the school, and three ex-officio teachers and staff members. Parent members of the Board may not be teachers or staff members, but teacher members may be parents of children in the school. Parent and staff membership must represent the entire school and be devoted to its best interests. The Board shall also consist of five or more community members selected from the Corporation or from outside the Corporation. The Head of School shall be an ex-officio member of the Board, and shall not count in constituting a quorum or determining consensus of the Board.  

The primary responsibilities of the Friends School Board are fiduciary and strategic, concerned with the school’s financial health, strategic planning, and adherence to mission.

Friends School Board

Faculty

LOCATION

contacts

Main Office: 502.899.1822

Privacy Policy

Your privacy is important to us. To better protect your privacy, we provide this notice explaining our information practices. Our privacy policy is simple: we collect no information about you unless you choose to provide that information to us. In addition, we do not give, sell, share, or transfer any personal information about you to any third parties. To prevent unauthorized access, maintain accuracy, and ensure the correct use of information, we have put into place appropriate physical, electronic, and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure any information that we collect. If you have questions about our privacy practices, you can contact us at the postal or email address provided in this document or stop into the office.