Mount Laurel Schools

"The speed of communications is wondrous to behold. It is also true that speed can multiply the distribution of information that we know to be untrue."
Edward R. Murrow

We are proud to welcome you to the Mount Laurel Township Schools' website. As a district, we have long recognized the World Wide Web as a valuable communications tool. In fact, our first site appeared in 1991, before commercialization of the medium began. A website's worth, however, is only as valuable as the information it shares.

Mount Laurel's Board of Education and Administration have established policies and procedures that dictate transparency in all aspects of our operation. You will find board of education meeting agendas, exhibits and minutes posted here each month. Our annual district budget, guides to the curriculum used in our programs and our complete district policy manual are also posted.

But, as Edward R. Murrow noted long before the advent of the Internet, misinformation often travels swiftly. We hope that our website opens the door to conversation with those who use it. If ever you come to this site to confirm information you have heard and are unable to find that validation, please use this link to contact us and pose the question directly. As partners in the education of the children of Mount Laurel, it is incumbent upon each of us to make intelligent use of the tools we have at our disposal.

Attention Athletes:

Sports Physicals for students in Grades 5-8 in Mount Laurel will be administered on two dates in August. Both sessions will be held at the Harrington Middle School. Physicals will be given on a first-come, first-serve basis on August 15 and August 22 from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. in the School Nurse's office.

Parents: Please share this important information with your friends and neighbors if your children will play sports in our 5-8 schools this year. The laws governing sports physicals have changed at the state level this year and are extremely stringent. Gone are the days of being able to whisk your child to the doctor for a physical the day before the first practice. Implementation of these laws may actually preclude some students from participating if guidelines are not followed.

This year, the complete sports physical packet must be returned to our schools and reviewed by the school physician for final sign-off. This process may take 10 days to 2 weeks. The school physician's signature is required before a student is cleared for try-outs or practice.

 

Here's an explanation of each of the forms:

1. A note to the examining healthcare provider. Take this to the doctor.

2. A Pre-Participation History Form. You fill this form out and take it to the doctor also.

3. A Supplemental History Form for athletes with special needs. You fill out and take to doctor, if appropriate.

4. The Physical Evaluation Form. Your doctor will complete.

5. The Clearance Form. Your doctor will complete.

6. A Sports-Related Concussion and Head Injury information sheet. Parent and student read and sign-off on the second page.

7. A Sudden-Cardiac Death in Young Athletes brochure. Your read this.

8. Sign-Off sheet for Sudden Cardiac Death. Sign-off after you have read the brochure on that topic.

9. This is an update form. You may need this in the future. If, for example, you play soccer in the fall and track in the spring, you would complete this form prior to starting track. It is used to update your health information and must be submitted anytime you start a new sport if it has been 90 days since your annual sports physical.

Over the weeks of summer break, new residents and those wishing to register students for the first time in our schools may do so at a central location. Beginning on Monday, July 7, through Thursday, August 21, Central District Registration will be held at the Transportation and Learning Center at 354 Mount Laurel Road. Before July 7 and after August 21, new students should be registered at the school they will attend.

Mount Laurel's Summer Reading Program includes suggested books for students in Grade 1-7. Students are encouraged to create a log of books read for discussion in class in the Fall. Please recognize that your child may select a book that is not on the suggested list that fits his or her individual interests and reading level. Should you have questions about the Summer Reading Program, please contact your school office, which will be open throughout the summer. The following letters to parents detail the program by grade level. The suggested list is also linked below.

Suggested Summer Reading List

Mount Laurel Schools have joined with TenMarks, an Amazon Company, to provide a summer math program at no cost to our families. Research shows that summer learning loss in Math is an issue that impacts all students, with students losing an average of 2-3 months of math comprehension every summer. TenMarks offers families a proven,scalable, online summer math program to reverse the summer learning loss and help students build a strong foundation in core math skills. Learn more about this exciting program here.

Here is the Registration Form.

Here are some questions that have come in so far.

More than 100 community members participated in the district's 2014 Education Summit on May 15. Discussion centered on the transformation facing our schools, namely the new Common Core Standards, the new PARCC Test to be administered in 2015 and student attendance rates. The resulting group discussion led to a number of suggestions for better communication within the community. Check out our 2014 Summit webpage here to view the presentation and check for frequent updates.