Upcoming Events
News & Notes
Reporting Social Media Threats
The Greenville County Schools Superintendent Dr. Burke Royster and Greenville County Sheriff Hobart Lewis ask for parents’ help in ensuring effective reporting of potential threats.
The Superintendent and Sheriff ask parents to monitor your child’s social media accounts closely, help control the spread of false threats and misinformation, and ensure effective reporting occurs. Having your child follow the See Something, Say Something protocols by reporting potential threats directly to the school or law enforcement will maximize the effective use of both school and law enforcement resources and ultimately create a safer environment for all students.
We understand the tragedy in Winder, Georgia has created great concern among students, parents, educators and the community. After such a horrific incident, it is common to see an increase in reports of potential threats locally and across the nation. The District and the Sheriff’s Office continue to work closely to fully investigate all reports and diligently follow established safety protocols. In order to effectively utilize school district and law enforcement resources, we ask parents closely monitor their children’s social media accounts to ensure that students report concerns directly to the school or to law enforcement and not repost them on social media or share with classmates. The single most effective preventative tool regarding school safety is the See Something, Say Something protocol, which all schools in the district utilize. If your child sees or hears something that is concerning, they should say something to an adult or report it online using the See Something, Say Something icon on their Chromebook. Both the district and law enforcement are seeing the same messages shared repeatedly on social media, and often the same message is edited to replace the school name and then reshared again. When students or adults repost messages on social media and don’t report through the appropriate channels, it perpetuates fear and creates additional safety issues. It diverts resources from the school and law enforcement, complicates investigations, and makes it challenging to share accurate information with parents in a timely manner. Threats made towards schools, whether intended as a joke or not, are a crime in South Carolina and can result in serious legal consequences for students or adults.
Superintendent Royster shares, “The District, school administrators, and staff take all potential threats seriously and continue to work alongside law enforcement to fully investigate all reports. When addressing school safety across our district, it is critical to have a layered approach with multiple measures. We appreciate the Sheriff’s Office and other local law enforcement agencies working with us to ensure we have the most effective safety measures and protocols in place. We thank parents and the community for helping to address this issue.”
Sheriff Hobart Lewis assures the community, “We are fully committed to maintaining the safety and security of all students and faculty within Greenville County schools. Our School Resource Officers are present in every school, working diligently to ensure a safe learning environment. In light of recent nationwide threats, we remain vigilant in our duties and take all threats seriously, investigating each one to the fullest extent. We are grateful for the strong relationship and communication we have with the Greenville County School District, and we will continue working together to protect our schools and keep our children safe. Remember, if you see something, say something.”
The Chiefs of the following law enforcement agencies join us in the above efforts:
Chief Patrick Fortenberry, Fountain Inn Police Department
Chief Howie Thompson, Greenville Police Department
Chief Matt Hamby, Greer Police Department
Chief George Miller, Mauldin Police Department
Chief Michael Hanshaw, Simpsonville Police Department
Chief Benjamin Ford, Travelers Rest Police Department
Birthday Shout Outs
For $10.00 you can have a birthday shout out added to our digital sign located in front of our school. Simply pay through MySchoolBucks or you can stop in the front office to pay. Be sure to submit at least five days before birthday to guarantee addition to sign.
Updated Heritage Parent/Student Handbook
Parents please review the 2024-2025 Heritage Parent/Student Handbook. The following policies have been UPDATED since last year! Please read carefully.
• Attendance
• Discipline Code
• Dress Code
• Personal Electronic Devices
2024-2025 Parent-Student Handbook
Attendance
Regular attendance is crucial in the success of every student. Here are a few reminders to help you and your student have a successful year at Heritage Elementary:
• The building opens for students at 7:00 am.
• School starts promptly at 7:45 am.
• No early dismissals after 1:45 pm.
• School is dismissed at 2:15 pm.
• Students should be picked up from school no later than 2:30 pm.
• Students are allowed to miss 10 school days each year.
• Any absences beyond the 10th absence require a doctor's note.
• A parent must send a note within three days of any absence or it will remain unexcused.
• A student must attend at least 3 hours or 180 minutes to be counted present for the day.
Submit a note for your child's absence.
Doctor's notes or parent notes can also be faxed to 864-355-6046 or emailed to cawalker@greenville.k12.sc.us . For more information please call Chryse Walker, our attendance clerk, at 864-355-6001.
Visitor and Volunteer Guidelines
Do you plan on volunteering or chaperoning on field trips? If so, Greenville County Schools has implemented additional security checks for school volunteers. All volunteers must submit an online application to the district and receive clearance from the district before volunteering or chaperoning any school field trip.
Please visit GCS School Visitor and Volunteer Guidelines page for complete details. There you will find links to apply for Level I or Level II clearance. Anyone who wishes to be considered for chaperoning on field trips MUST be approved as LEVEL II.
Parent Backpack Signup
Parents are encouraged to sign up for parent backpack. You will need your student's school ID number to add your student once you have enrolled as the parent. Please visit the GCSD link below for information to get started.
MEDICATION / HEALTH SERVICES
Please visit GCSD Student Services - Health Services webpage for up to date information pertaining to health room and medication policies.