Volunteering

The St. Jerome School Parent Volunteer Program needs help each year to support the work of the school in various academic, extracurricular, and fundraising activities.

The opportunities are virtually limitless; there are many jobs to be filled, and help is needed in filling gaps not only in established positions but also in offering suggestions for new areas.

The school relies on the help of volunteers. The teachers, staff, parents, and especially students are grateful for the generous amount of volunteer time given each year. Please see the Student and Parent Handbook for the Volunteer Guidelines.

Need Volunteer Hours?

Every school event needs volunteer assistance. Email or call Mrs. Burgess and help make our events a success! The Office always has a volunteer sign in sheet to keep track of your hours.

 Archdiocese link to the Protecting God's Children Program

If you will be a new volunteer, working with children or youth in the parish or school, now is a great time to sign up for Protecting God's Children, a one-session workshop required of all volunteers or employees who will have substantial contact with children in the Archdiocese of Washington. Just go to www.adw.org and click on "Protecting God's Children" for a schedule, plus lots of information on the Child Protection Policy of the Archdiocese of Washington. Sessions are offered in English and Spanish. The Office of Child Protection Services may be contacted at 301-853-5328.

Sex Offenders Locator Link(s)

This is one of several locators to give parents an awareness of the predators in their area so that they may be more vigilant to protect children.

 Maryland Department of Public Safety & Correctional Services

 www.familywatchdog.us

Emergency Preparedness

In the rare event of a biological or chemical incident, the safest and most prudent action for the principals will be to create safe spaces in the schools so that children and staff can be "sheltered in place". There will be no evacuation or movement outside of buildings. (This is different for us, because we have been trained to evacuate and flee in emergencies.) The schools will be locked, with all staff and students in safe places. If this should occur, parents would not be permitted to pick up children, because opening the building will jeopardize the safety of all students. Pick up will follow when local authorities determine the area to be safe. We have been instructed that this kind of response will last from 4 to 8 hours and not days. The principals are ready for this contingency. We hope that parents will be "sheltering" in safe places at home or at work, because the most prudent response for everyone is to stay inside in secure spaces. Let us pray that this will never be a reality.

Your continued support for our principals, teachers and staff is critical to maintaining a safe, secure, stable and predictable environment for your children. If something should happen, we need our parents to remain calm, listen to the radio and follow the instructions given by the local authorities. If the Archdiocese makes any special decisions or announcements these will be broadcast on the local news/emergency channels and posted on our website at www.adw.org.

If our children are to be prepared with physical needs. the following is a basic list that can be assembled into an Emergency BackPack for schools:

3–3600 Cal Food Bars
30–Packs of Water
1–Portable Toilet
4–Rolls of Toilet Paper
2–Toilet Disinfectant
100–Moist Toweletts
4–Toilet Liners
1–AM Radio w/Batteries
1–Whistle
1–Roll-Duct Tape 10 yds
1–Large Mylar Blanket

 www.ready.gov/america/index.html