Visiting a School

Introduction

Arlington Public Schools facilities, programs and schools use an enterprise-wide visitor management system to screen and log all visitors, volunteers, and contractors.  All visitors, volunteers, and contractors are required to follow the directions posted at the facility, program, or school on where to report.  School Division employees are expected to report to the facility, program, or school main office when not in their daily assigned work location.  Interested in volunteering with Arlington Public Schools, visit the Volunteer and Partnership page to learn more.

Requirements

Visitors, volunteers, and contractors are required to provide a valid government-issued photo identification and identify the nature of their visit (e.g., parent-teacher conference).  Individuals must produce one of the following forms of valid United States or foreign government-issued identification, containing full name, date of birth and photograph (listed below):

• United States or foreign issued driver’s license
• United States or foreign government identification
• United States or foreign military identification
• State Department of Motor Vehicles’ photo identification card
• United States or foreign government-issued passport
• Permanent Resident Card (i.e,. Green Card)
• Re-entry Permit, or
• Arlington Public Schools Alternate Parent Identification Card*

All individuals seeking entrance into an Arlington Public Schools facility, program, or school are not permitted to have a record in the Commonwealth of Virginia, another state, or Federal sex offender registry(ies).  Individuals who are parents or legal guardians of students in Arlington Public Schools seeking to enter schools who are on a sex offender registry should contact Administrative Services prior to attempting to visit a school.

Process

1. Request Entry – Visitors, Volunteers, and Contractors must request entry into the school using the Ai-Phone (i.e., Buzzer) at the main entrance to the facility, program, or school.  Note that the Trade’s Center and Syphax Education Center main entrances are open to the public.
2. Report to Designated Location – Visitors, Volunteers, and Contractors must enter the school and report to the designated location posted on security signage at the Ai-Phone.  Most facilities, programs, and schools the designated report location is the Main Office.
3. Sign-In
   • First Time Visitor, Volunteer, or Contractor – First time visitors, volunteers, and contractors are required to sign in with the Main Office reception employees and present their valid government-issued identification.  Individuals who may not be able to provide a valid government-issued identification may be eligible for an Arlington Public Schools Alternate Identification Card.
   • Return Visitor, Volunteer, or Contractor – Return visitors, volunteers, and contractors should proceed to the sign in kiosk and scan their valid government-issued identification.
4. Screening
   • All visitors, volunteers, and contractors are screened against the Commonwealth of Virginia and United States sex offender registries using verified information from their valid government-issued identification.
5. Entrance
   • Visitors, volunteers, and contractors who are cleared against the sex offender registries receive a temporary identification associated with their reason for gaining entrance to the school.  Temporary identifications include a photo of the individual, full name, facility/program/school, date of entrance, affiliation (e.g., visitor, volunteer, contractor, etc.), identification barcode, and location they are visiting (e.g., cafeteria, gymnasium, parent-teacher conference, library, etc.).
   • Temporary identification or Arlington Public Schools employee identification must be worn at all times in a manner, which makes them readily visible above the waist to students and staff in the facility, program, or school.
6. Exit
   • Visitors, volunteers, and contractors who have completed their visit at the facility, program, or school must report back to the designated report location and use the visitor management kiosk to check out.  In order to check out the visitor, volunteer, or contractor may use the barcode on their temporary identification or search for their name in the text box.

Exceptions

Visitors to facilities, programs, or schools who are not required to sign in or obtain a temporary identification are:

• Emergency Services Providers (e.g., law enforcement, firefighters, emergency medical technicians), when in uniform and/or prominently displaying their badge of authority, are not required to obtain a temporary identification when responding to the school as the request of emergency service.
• School Resource Officers, when in uniform and/or prominently displaying their badge of authority who are assigned to the school for that school year or on temporary assignment are not required to sign in using the kiosk.  School Resource Officers on temporary assignment are required to check in with facility, program, or school administrators to identify themselves as the individual on temporary assignment.

*Alternate Parent Identification is available for use with the Arlington Public Schools visitor management system only for parent(s) and legal guardian(s) who are listed on a student’s Synergy account. Parents and legal guardians may request to go through the alternate identification process at the school their student(s) are enrolled in. Individuals listed as emergency contacts are not eligible unless they are also the parent or legal guardian of an enrolled student.  For example, an aunt who is the emergency contact for an enrolled student who is not the parent or legal guardian would not be eligible.

SUMMER 2019 – Summer School Pilot
Starting with Summer School 2019, five schools will test drive/pilot the implementation of an enterprise-wide visitor management system for Arlington Public Schools.  Summer school parents, administrators, volunteers, etc. will be provided instructions and communication to the pilot program at these schools prior to summer school starting.  The schools that have a summer school program that have been selected are:

• Taylor Elementary School
• K.W. Barrett Elementary School
• Abingdon Elementary School
• Kenmore Middle School
• Washington-Liberty High School*

Washington-Lee High School will be officially renamed starting July 1, 2019 prior to the start of Summer School 2019.