Arrival, Dismissal, & Car Line

For arrival and dismissal, parents and other caregivers must approach the building from the west along MacArthur Boulevard. You should drive past the building, turn right into the public alley adjacent to it (there is no right turn permitted onto Elliott Place from MacArthur Boulevard during arrival time), and then turn right again into the parking lot behind the building. There is an entrance to the building from the parking lot, which students will use at arrival and dismissal times. Additional details are available below. 

For Whitehaven Campus arrival and dismissal, parents and other caregivers should approach Whitehaven Parkway only from Foxhall Road and enter the driveway at its western end, as directed. Parents and other caregivers should pull as far up along the driveway as they can before having their children disembark. Please remain in your vehicle as your child disembarks, either with or without the assistance of the faculty and staff on duty. Cars may exit the driveway toward either MacArthur Boulevard or Foxhall Road. At arrival time, do not drop your children off at any location other than in the driveway, where there is appropriate supervision. Do not approach the School from MacArthur Boulevard and drop your children at the curb or attempt to turn right into the driveway. At dismissal time, do not park your car and walk into the School for your children, or have them walk to the street to meet you. Parents attempting this form of pickup will be directed to join the carpool line.

7:45 – 8:20 am - the Head of Early Childhood Division, administrators, and teachers are on duty at the Church Courtyard entrance until 8:20 am. Parents can assist the faculty and staff on duty at both arrival and dismissal times by placing their child’s car seat on the passenger side of the vehicle. Parents of PK3/PK4 children who arrive at school before 7:45 am, perhaps with older children, should drop older students in the regular carpool flow, proceed to the top of the driveway, and await the arrival of a faculty member providing PK3/PK4 arrival supervision. Late Arrival: PK3/PK4 children arriving after 8:20 am must be escorted to their classrooms by parents after signing in with the receptionist at the main Day School entrance.

Dismissal for all PK3/PK4 students occurs with the Lower School, beginning at 2:50 pm. Parents or caregivers may enter the driveway beginning at 2:40 pm. PK3/PK4 teachers will help children into their cars and buckle them into their car seats. PK3/PK4 teachers will not put a child into a car without a car seat or booster seat.

7:30 – 8:10 am (8:00 am in Grades 4 and 5) in the driveway, supervised by administrators and faculty. Students are welcome in homerooms at 8:00 am. Students arriving between 7:30 and 8:00 am will wait in designated areas with an adult. Homeroom classes in Grades 4 and 5 begin at 8:05 am, and students arriving in their classrooms after that time are marked tardy. Homeroom classes in Kindergarten to Grade 3 begin at 8:15 am, and students arriving in classrooms after that time are marked tardy.

 All dismissals occur through the carpool line in the driveway, with students accessing the driveway via the main school door. In order to stress the school’s commitment to carpooling, St. Patrick’s has established the following preferential dismissal times, based on the number of students in a carpool. Cars arriving earlier than these times will be directed to leave Whitehaven Parkway and return at the proper time. 2:50 pm – Cars retrieving three or more Lower School students and/or any PK3/PK4 students. (Arrive beginning at 2:45 pm.) 3:00 pm – Cars retrieving at least two students. After 3:15 pm – Cars retrieving one student. 

Students in Grades 6, 7, and 8 may arrive each morning either directly at the MacArthur Campus or at the Whitehaven Campus, for shuttling to the MacArthur Campus. Students may be dropped off at the MacArthur Campus beginning at 7:30 am—and only according to the guidelines stated below. Students arriving at the Whitehaven Campus must do so by 7:50 am in order to take the 7:50 am shuttle to the other campus. Students may, of course, walk, bike, or take a bus to the MacArthur Campus, but they should plan to arrive no earlier than 7:30 am. The D6 Metrobus stops near the building. Classes on the MacArthur Campus begin promptly at 8:00 am.

• When students end their day in after-school athletics, please pick up your child at the location of the sports team practice (the Whitehaven Campus Gymnasium & Performance Center or the Foxhall Campus athletic field). 
• When students end their day at the MacArthur Campus, parents and other caregivers must follow the procedures described above for arrival.
• Students not participating in athletics (other than PE) should be picked up at the MacArthur Campus beginning at 3:15 pm. All students not picked up by 3:45 will be sent to Extended Day and charged the “Drop-In” fee.

Middle School students who have written permission from their parents to walk from school must leave campus upon being dismissed at day's end. Once they leave school at that time, they may not return to campus.