15-16SY: Start Date Information for 10-Month Staff

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

10-Month Employees

When is my first day?

All new staff will begin on Monday, July 27th for Summer Institute. Any returning staff will begin on Thursday, July 30th at our All Staff Retreat. Beginning on Monday, August 3rd, all staff will convene for Summer Institute.

Where do I go on my first day?

All new staff will meet on Monday, July 27th promptly at 8am at the Mississippi Avenue Elementary Campus. Due to limited parking, we ask that during Summer Institute (July 27th through August 21st), Mississippi Avenue staff park in the 2nd (farthest) parking lot behind the building in any non-designated spot. Wahler Place staff should park on 15th street, not in the parking lot. Wahler Staff will typically go to the Wahler Place Campus for afternoon sessions, and we want to ensure that this daily transition can be carried out as seamlessly as possible.

If I am not a new staff member, where do I go on my first day?

If you are not a new staff member, your first day of Summer Institute will be our All Staff Retreat on Thursday, July 30 to Friday, July 31.

Where do I go for the All Staff Retreat?

All staff (new and returning) will meet for departure to the retreat at the US Post Office by Union Station on Thursday, July 30th, PROMPTLY at 7am!

We will return from the retreat at 3pm on Friday, July 31. The bus will return us to Union Station.

What are the hours during Summer Institute?

As an organization, we have planned for our hours from July 27th – August 7th to be 8am – 4pm and from August 10^th – August 21^st to be from 7:30am – 5pm. However, if your specific position, department, and/or manager require hours outside of those summer office hours, that requirement supersedes organizational hours. Please check directly with your manager regarding your specific obligations.

Should I bring a lunch during Summer Institute?

Lunch will be served Monday, July 27th, Monday, August 3rd, and Friday, August 14th. You should prepare a lunch for any other days. We have refrigerators and microwaves available for use in our staff lounge.

What is the expected dress code during the summer?

During the summer, we follow our casual Friday dress code (see below). Please feel free to dress casually on your first day.

What is the expected dress code during the school year?

The dress code is business casual Monday through Thursday.

• For women: short-sleeved (fully covered shoulders) or long-sleeved shirts, blouses and dresses; slacks and skirts; casual and dress shoes.
• For men: long-sleeved dress shirts and ties; slacks and khakis; casual and dress shoes with socks.

The dress code is casual on Fridays: jeans, sneakers, T-shirts/sweatshirts acceptable – we often wear shirts representing our alma maters on Fridays. Sweatpants, leggings, tank tops, and flip-flops are never worn. Sneakers are only worn on Fridays.

We suggest you bring a sweater or jacket, as the rooms can get cool when the AC is running.

Do I need to prepare anything for my first day?

For returning 10 month staff, you do not need to prepare anything, unless your bank account information has changed, then you should bring a voided check from your new bank (please see “Direct Deposit” below).

For new hires: To expedite the processing of your HR paperwork, please provide in advance, or arrive on the first day with, the following documents and information:

• Identification: valid passport OR a valid government-issued identification AND social security card
• Official transcripts: for both undergraduate and graduate degrees (if applicable)
• Direct Deposit: Achievement Prep issues paychecks via direct deposit. Please bring either a voided check or letter from your bank (with logo) containing your name, routing number, and account number. If you wish to split your deposit between multiple accounts, you must bring the required documentation for each account.
• Healthcare: If you plan to enroll in our insurance plan, please bring social security numbers and birthdates for you and all who will be enrolled on your plan as well as the name of primary care physicians for all who will be enrolled.
• Results from TB test: You can visit any CVS Minute Clinic, Patient First center, or your primary care physician to have a TB skin test or chest x-ray performed.  You will need to return 2 days later for the skin test in order for them to read the results and provide you with paperwork certifying a negative test result.   These results must be current – within 6 months of your start date.
• Receipt from MPD background check and fingerprinting: You must submit to a background check and fingerprinting at DC Metropolitan Police Department Headquarters (Henry J. Daly Building, 300 Indiana Ave., NW, 3rd Floor). The total cost for both (be sure to stipulate that you need both fingerprinting and a background check) is $42. Please write your name on the background check receipt and bring it with you. This check must be current – within 45 days of start date. MPD requires 2 forms of proof of identification to complete a background check: a government-issued identification AND an original birth certificate/social security card.
• Praxis test results: only applicable to teachers
• Official transcripts: for all conferred degrees

All of this information can be provided to our Director of Human Resources, Ms. Shayla Nealy (snealy@achievementprep.org).

Where do I park and how do I access the campuses?

Please refer to specific directions regarding accessing that campus below.

• Accessing the Mississippi Ave. Elementary Campus: If driving, Mississippi Avenue Campus staff should park in the 2^nd (farthest) parking lot behind the building in any non-designated spot. You will then need to walk around the building to the front and be buzzed in. Wahler Place staff should park on 15th street, and proceed to the front of the building to be buzzed in. If not driving, please simply proceed to the front of the building to be buzzed in.
• Accessing the at Wahler Pl. Middle School Campus: Due to construction, if you are driving, please park on the street (either Wahler Place or 8^th Street) and proceed to the front of the building to be buzzed in

After the first day, you will receive a key fob that provides you with access to your building from the parking lots (when in operation). At Wahler Place, you can also use your key fob to access the building from the front door. Key fobs are used to move between floors, as well.

How do I get there on public transportation?

Mississippi Avenue Elementary School: Bus lines [W2 and W3] arrive at the corner of 10^th Pl. SE & Mississippi Ave. SE down the street from the school. Please use Google Maps or the WMATA Trip Planner to verify timing and your exact route.

Wahler Place Middle School: Bus lines [A6, A7, A46, and W1] arrive at the corner of Wheeler Rd. SE & Wahler Pl. SE down the street from the school. Please use Google Maps or the WMATA Trip Planner to verify timing and your exact route.

What are my options for lunch?

All full-time employees have a 30-minute lunch break (teachers have this time built into their prep) during the school year. There are not many options in the neighborhood for lunch, so we encourage staff to pack a lunch and utilize our staff lounge refrigerators and microwaves. Please note that refrigerators are cleaned out each Friday evening, therefore, please take all food home over the weekends.

What time does school start?

• Staff hours during the school year are from 7:30am – 5pm. Please note that we start promptly at 7:30am with a staff Morning Meeting in the auditorium. Therefore, we suggest that staff arrive by 7:25am in order to be in the auditorium ready to go at 7:30am, not arriving to the campus or parking at that time. Note that there may be instances, depending on projects and responsibilities, when individuals may need to stay beyond 5pm.
• Scholars begin arriving at 7:45am; school begins at 8:00am; scholars are tardy at 8:01am; and dismissal is at 4:15pm. On Wednesdays, scholars have an early dismissal of 1:30pm.

Where can I find the school calendar?

An internal school calendar will be provided to you on your first day. Our external calendar is available on our website.

When can I expect to receive my contract?

Employee agreements for new hires are delivered on the first day of employment. Employee agreements for returning staff were delivered in the spring.

When are pay dates at Achievement Prep? When will benefits go into effect?

We are paid twice a month on the 15^th and last day of each month. Should either of those dates fall on a Saturday, Sunday or federal holiday, pay is delivered on the most immediate business day before. You can expect to receive your first paycheck for the 15-16SY on August 15^th, 2015. For new hires, benefits will go into effect the first business day of the month after you elect to participate. So if you sign up for benefits on the 6^th of July, they will go into effective on August 1^st. All Achievement Prep staff is paid via direct deposit. Remember to bring voided check(s) or bank letter(s) with account information.

What does a typical school day look like for me?

Wahler Place Platinum Teachers: At the middle school, you typically teach four (4) class periods per day and one (1) “Results” (small group tutoring) period each day (for a total of 5 instructional obligations – 4 classes, 1 tutoring). You also have 2 planning periods per day. In addition, each Platinum Teacher serves as an advisor (with another staff member) to a class of scholars and holds common-area responsibilities like hallway posts, lunch duty, or recess supervision.

Mississippi Avenue Platinum Teachers: As a K – 2 Lead Teacher, you teach core content areas to your class. As a K – 2 Associate Teacher, you begin the year teaching Reading Mastery, grammar/handwriting, and math facts/counting. As your skills develop, you take on more teaching responsibility. Both Lead and Associate Teachers are in the classroom supporting learning for the entire day. Both teachers also have planning periods during their scholars’ co-curriculars and during some of their scholars’ lunch periods. As a 3^rd Grade Teacher, you teach in a departmentalized model, like the middle school. Your schedule varies slightly, but you also have two periods of planning per day. Elementary school teachers have additional responsibilities similar to Wahler Place Platinum Teachers.

Oxygen Team Members: As non-instructional school-based staff, in addition to the responsibilities outlined in Oxygen Team members’ job descriptions, Oxygen staff also hold a common-area responsibility, run an advisory, and/or support school-wide efforts in other ways.

Network Team Members: Network Team members are also part of Oxygen. While Network Team members may or may not have specific day-to-day school-based responsibilities, Network staff is expected to support school-wide efforts at critical times during the year or when there are all-hands-on-deck events that take place on one or all campuses.

Will I be required to work breakfast/lunch duty?

Yes. In the beginning of the year, all school-based staff support breakfast and lunch – regardless of role in the school. Once our year is established and if culture is strong, we will strive to have a rotating lunch and breakfast schedule. Because of the need for network office staff to travel between and off campuses regularly, they do not hold these types of recurring responsibilities.

Why do you refer to staff as Platinum Teachers? And what is Oxygen?

Achievement Prep teachers are worth more than gold; we are PLATINUM!! As you know, platinum is a very expensive metal and coveted by many. At Achievement Prep, every adult in the building, regardless of whether you are or are not in a classroom, is considered a Platinum Teacher. We are all teachers and have the responsibility of working with scholars to achieve our mission. But we’re not just ordinary teachers – we’re expensive, PLATINUM teachers.

Although we refer to all staff as Platinum Teachers, we designate non-instructional staff (i.e. Deans of Operations, Scholar Support Coordinators, Deans of Solutions, etc.) as Oxygen because they help our teachers breathe by giving the necessary supports to ensure that teachers can remain focused on scholar achievement.

We know there are probably many more questions. We will begin to answer them starting on your first day promptly at 9am. Please write them down so you don’t forget! You can also email or call us anytime before then.

We are excited about this school year and look forward to working with you! Below is our information. Please call or email as needed. Welcome to Achievement Prep!

Contact Information