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Parent Commitment Hour Guidelines
There are many gifts, but one spirit. There are many kinds of service, but one Lord.
The Commitment Hour Program
Holy Rosary School depends on the gifts of many community members for its success. The contributions of our pastor, principal and faculty are obviously essential, but we also rely on family members to maintain the quality of our school program through their service to the school. All families are expected to volunteer for school and/or parish-related activities, as described in this policy.
Hours
The minimum hours required for each school family (in-parish or out-of-parish) is 50 hours per year. Hours must be completed by May 30. A family that fails to complete this number of hours by the end of May is expected to pay for uncompleted hours at the rate of $35.00 per hour. This payment is due on the last day of school. Failure to pay for outstanding hours will result in the child’s report card and/or graduation documents being held.
You will receive periodic emails during the school year advising you of the number of volunteer hours that you have reported. If you have questions about the number of hours you have reported, please contact the parent hour tracker based on your last name, listed below. If you have questions about the Parent Commitment Hour Program and/or policy, please direct those to the School Commission Vice President.
Fundraising Hours
At least one-half of the required volunteer hours must be completed in fundraising activities approved by Parents’ Club or School Commission. The approved fundraising activities are listed in the Volunteer Opportunities page. Other activities may be approved upon request to the School Commission Vice President. Fundraising hours over the required number may be counted as general hours; only approved activities may count toward fundraising hours
Single Parent Families
Qualifying single parent families must complete 30 volunteer hours, of which least 15 must be in Parents Club or School Commission fundraising activities. To qualify as a single parent family, there must be no other parent, step-parent or guardian to help complete the hours. To apply for treatment as a single parent family, mark “single parent family” on your registration agreement. This will be regarded as a request for treatment as a single parent family, but you must receive confirmation that the request has been approved in order to be treated as a single parent family. If you do not receive the confirmation by the end of September, or if you wish to request treatment as a single parent family at some other point in the year, please contact the School Commission Vice President.
Families Entering During the School Year
Families who come into HRS during the school year will be required to complete a prorated amount of hours based on when they start school. The proration will be the number of months they will have attended at the end of the year divided by 9 (example: a family joins HRS in January, they would be required to fulfill 5/9 of the hours - 14 fundraising and 14 general)
Who/When
Adult (i.e. over the age of 18) family members, such as parents or grandparents, may contribute to a family’s hours. Extra hours may NOT be transferred to another family or held for next year. The current commitment hour year begins June 1 and ends May 30. All hours must be reported by May 30.
Volunteer Requirements
Note that all volunteers are required to complete background checks and to complete Safe Environment training in accordance with Archdiocesan policy, as well as regular training updates. Time spent in this training may be counted as general hours.
Reporting
Each family is responsible to report its own hours and families are expected to use good judgment in reporting hours. Hours must be submitted via the online submission form. Once family has met the expected commitment, you do not need to report additional hours, although we encourage everyone to volunteer beyond the minimum 50 hours.
The deadline for reporting volunteer hours will be May 30, 2013. Any volunteer hours earned in June of 2013 will be credited toward the next school year.
Parent Hour Trackers
| Parent Hour Trackers (by first letter of last name of oldest child): | |
|---|---|
| A - H | |
| I - Q | |
| R - Z | |
You will receive periodic emails during the school year advising you of the number of volunteer hours that you have reported. If you have questions about the number of hours you have reported, please contact the parent hour tracker based on your last name, listed below. If you have questions about the Parent Commitment Hour Program and/or policy, please direct those to the School Commission Vice President.
Starting 2011-2012, there are no more exempt positions. Everybody needs to turn in a reporting form, including fundraising chairs, Parent’s Club officers, and School Commission members. The only exceptions to this are the CYO director, full-time Holy Rosary teachers, and full-time school/parish staff. This change is a result of the change in how we structure the leadership of our primary fundraising events. Instead of being chaired by one person, several of our primary fundraisers are being managed by committee, with oversight from school administration. This also eliminates the hours spent in debate over which positions are worthy of “exemption,” and why one position is considered exempt, but another (equally time-consuming) is not.
Part-time school/parish employees should report on a prorated portion of the required hours, and should indicate this on their reporting form.
Issues with Reporting
Volunteers will tabulate the hours reported, and will notify the school if any questions arise regarding a family’s reported hours. The School Commission may request an explanation of the family’s reported hours and if necessary, may reject hours reported.
Payment Deadline
Families must pay for the uncompleted hours by the last day of the school year. Student transcripts and/or graduation materials may be withheld until a family pays for uncompleted hours.
Counting Hours
FundRaising
Only Parent’s Club fundraising activities or School Commission approved fundraising activities count toward fundraising hours. The reporting form includes the list of approved activities.
Liturgical Support
Time spent as a liturgical minister, such as a Eucharistic minister, lector or dismissal catechist may be counted as general hours.
Playground Duty
One hour of playground duty counts as two non-fundraising commitment hours.
Attendance at Meetings
Time actually spent at Parent’s Club, School Commission, CYO, and any Parish Commission or Commission committee meeting may be counted as non-fundraising commitment hours.
Babysitting
Adults who baby-sit for another family so that family can volunteer at school may count babysitting hours toward your non-fundraising hours. Baby-sitting done by minor children or other family members of the same family does not count.
Refreshments & Food
Kindergarten snacks and class party snacks cannot be applied to hours. A family may claim one hour for any food item, e.g. baked goods, contributed for any school or parish activity and a family may only claim four hours per year for such items, unless other arrangements are approved by an event chair or the School Commission Vice President. This limit applies to any items contributed for a cake walk, dessert auction, Parent’s Club hospitality, bake sales (including WestFest), Manna from Heaven, PATS, sacramental receptions, funeral receptions, and other fund-raising or non-fundraising activities. Hours for such items may be counted as fundraising hours if the activity to which they are contributed is an approved fund-raiser.
Auction
Time spent making items donated to fulfill a family’s auction donation requirement cannot be counted toward hours. Time spent on making school or classroom projects for the auction may be counted in full.
Approved Activities
A list of approved activities that may be counted toward volunteer hours is available on the school website or on the reporting form. If you wish to count hours in any other activity, please contact the the School Commission Vice President to request approval for the activity. The hours may not be counted until approval is given. Be sure to note on your hours report that approval was given.
Donations
The responsibility to fulfill volunteer hours is separate from any tithing or charitable giving. A family is not exempted from reporting volunteer hours simply because of its donations to the school. Contact the school with any questions regarding this.
Problems/Special Arrangements
We realize that problems may arise during the school year. Contact the School Commission Vice President as soon as problems arise so a resolution can be reached. Please do not wait until reporting of hours is due to request a resolution. Remember it is your responsibility to notify the school of any impediment to completion of your hours. Any special arrangements are granted for the current school year only.
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