Expectations and Culture

Every student meets daily with their “Learning Family” of approximately fifteen students in the same grade and is mentored by a staff member. The mentor monitors progress, helps develop supportive learning relationships and teaches organizational skills.

Dress Code Policy

What Skinner Scholars Wear – PERMITTED

• Bottoms: Jeans, shorts, pants, skirts, dresses, athletic pants/shorts, sweatpants and leggings are allowed. Any color/pattern/print is allowed. The length of all bottoms must fall to the student’s fingertip length or longer.  If bottoms have shreds or tears, shreds can be any size as long as shreds fall below the fingertip length. There can be no visible skin above a student’s fingertips. 
• Logos of any size are allowed.
• Tops: Any color/print/pattern is allowed.  Sleeveless shirts are allowed but need to be at least 2 inches (3 finger-width) 
• Outerwear: Jackets and sweaters that do not have a hood may be worn in the classroom. Any color/pattern/print is allowed. 
• Headwear: Hijabs, headbands, headscarves, durags, hair wraps, cultural/religious headwear are allowed. 

What Skinner Scholars DO NOT Wear – NOT PERMITTED

• No hoodies are allowed in the building. 
• Underwear as outerwear. 
• Inappropriately sheer, tight, loose, or low-cut clothing that bares or exposes the stomach, back, side, breasts, buttocks, or genitalia.  (For example, the following items are prohibited under this section: garments made of fishnet, lace, mesh, or similar material, and midriffs, halter tops, crop tops, backless clothing, tube tops, muscle tops, revealing tank tops or dresses, etc.) 
• Sleepwear (bathrobes or pajamas). 
• Inappropriate footwear, including bedroom slippers.  Some classes may require that students wear closed toed shoes for safety reasons. 
• No hats, bandanas, sunglasses are worn in the building . Bandana print is also not allowed. 

Personal appearance and dress that violate reasonable standards, demean, slur, or harass others through symbols, words or images, and/or substantially disrupt the educational process shall not be tolerated.

The following items are deemed disruptive to learning and are not acceptable on school grounds in school district vehicles, or at school functions or activities:

Any clothing, paraphernalia, grooming, jewelry, hair coloring, accessories, or body adornments that are or contain any words, symbols, or pictures that: Refer to drugs, tobacco, alcohol or weapons, Are of a sexual nature, Are obscene, profane, vulgar, lewd or legally libelous, By virtue of color, arrangement, trademark or other attribute denote membership in gangs, associations or clubs which advocated drug use, violent or disruptive behavior, Threaten the safety or welfare of any person, Promote any activity prohibited by the student code of conduct, Pose a threat or potential threat to the safety or welfare of any person, Otherwise disrupt the school’s mission in delivering educational services. 

**The appropriateness of student dress will always be up to the discretion of Skinner Middle School staff**

Students who fail to follow the dress code will need to contact a parent to bring the appropriate item.  If a parent cannot bring the item, a loaner item will be provided by the school. * If a shirt is loaned to a scholar and not returned, the cost of the shirt will be added to the student’s end of year fees.

• Morning supervision begins at 8:00 am.  Students need to be picked up by 3:35pm.
• Students can enter the building at 8:10 am.
• 6th grade:  Please drop off/pick-up your child at the 6th grade Entrance on the corner of 40th and King Street. 
• 7th grade: Please drop off/pick-up your child at the 7th grade Entrance on the cross streets of 40th and Julian. 
• 8th grade: Please drop off/pick-up your child at the 8th grade Entrance at the Main Entrance on 40th Street. 

*If you are dropping your child off late or need to pick them early, come to Main Entrance and ring the buzzer.

All students who are in the building after 3:30 p.m. MUST be in an after school program or activity.  You need to pick up your child up by 3:30 pm.  Students may attend attend Office Hours with a teacher 3:20 – 3:50 pm (except Wednesday), and/or be involved with Athletics. We don’t have supervision after 3:50 pm unless students are in tutoring, clubs, Affinity groups or Athletics.

All Skinner students and staff adhere to the Skinner Family Values as they are the foundation of a healthy school community. The Skinner Family Values represent our core values. All Skinner Scholars are expected to follow the Skinner Family Values to ensure our learning environment is a place where everyone feels safe, welcome, and happy. The Skinner Family Values also help us make choices that lead to personal and academic success. In order to reach our goals as a school and as individual scholars, we live and love the Skinner Family Values each and every day!

Community – Being part of a community gives us a sense of belonging. It is a feeling that people within the community matter to one another and share common interests and goals. Members of a community support each other and connect in ways that build pride in a shared identity. 

Equity – Equity means recognizing that we do not all start from the same place, so we need to make adjustments in order to overcome barriers and provide opportunities for all to meet their highest potential. We will strive for equity by empowering individuals with differentiated supports they need to thrive. 

Growth – Personal growth is the act of developing as an individual. It can be used to describe personal development in several areas including mental, physical, and emotional health. It can encompass academic progress or strengthening a skill or practice. 

Ownership – Taking ownership is important because it builds trust, support, and bonds with people you care about. Ownership involves taking the initiative to bring about positive results. A team cannot thrive without a culture of accountability because it keeps everyone working together toward a collective school mission. 

Respect – Respect means that you accept somebody for who they are, even when they’re different from you or you don’t agree with them. Respect in your relationships builds feelings of trust, safety, and wellbeing. Respect doesn’t have to come naturally – it is something you learn.

Teachers will present formal awards at monthly Grade-Level Family Meetings in several categories, including:

• Outstanding academics
• Outstanding improvement
• Outstanding citizenship (awarded by each learning family mentor)
• Perfect attendance

Enjoy this video created for our November, 2020 Family Meeting.

Office Hours are designed to assist students who have not completed their homework, have failed to participate in class work/activities, or have not made up work after an absence. The purpose of the program is to provide students the time and teacher resources to complete their work and move toward proficiency and/or academic accountability in the given subject area. If a student is assigned an Office Hours session, he/she is not in trouble; Office Hours sessions are designed to help students improve their academic standing.

Please click here to see the 2022-2023 Office Hours Schedule

In addition to these formal Office Hours sessions, teachers may schedule individual or small group Office Hours sessions with students after school. If a teacher assigns a student Office Hours, he or she is required to attend. Failure to attend a required Office Hours session will result in further action in accordance with Skinner Middle School’s Prevention & Intervention Manual. Students are encouraged to attend Office Hours sessions on a voluntary basis to get extra help and practice.

Students who receive 2 more tardies in one day will be assigned and must attend TAP (Tardies Are Not Permitted) after school the following day.  Students will be marked tardy if they are not in the classroom with classroom materials. Parents/guardians cannot excuse students from serving TAP.  Skinner student-athletes will not be excused from serving TAP even if it impacts tryouts, practice, or games. Students who take after-school DPS bus transportation are permitted to serve TAP during lunch.

If students need to miss school over three consecutive days (vacation, funeral, etc), Skinner Main Office needs to be contacted at least 3-5 school days prior to the extended absence.  Vacations during the school year will not be excused. Students will need to check Schoology for missing assignments. When students return to school, students should plan on attending Teacher Office Hours in order to get caught up.

Continuation is a special time for students, and we always look forward to celebrating how much they have grown and achieved during their time at Skinner. As part of Skinner’s continuing commitments to equity and holding high standards to set students up for high school and beyond, we have made some changes to our Continuation celebrations and eligibility requirements. 

Students will need to earn eligibility to participate in celebration activities including (but not limited to) a trip to Elitches, student BBQ and field day, incentives, and 8th grade dance. Eligibility for these celebrations requires: 

• 94% attendance or higher
• 2.5 GPA: we will use Semester 1 or current GPA for all Semester 1 incentive days or celebrations during Semester 1 and the Semester 2 GPA for all end of year continuation events/celebrations.
• No Fs
  • Students who receive an F first semester will need to complete and earn a satisfactory grade on a credit recovery assignment(s)/individual growth plan with their teacher
• Significant/repetitive behavior incidents may disqualify students from participating in Continuation events (including Ceremony). All disciplinary incidents are subject to review. In some cases, students may be asked to complete a restorative plan to repair harm to the community. 
• A minimum of 5 hours of community service.