1. Will my students be able to attend Solano Community College if they are enrolled in Independent Studies (IS) and/or Buckingham Charter Magnet High School (BCMHS)?

Yes to both, students will be able to continue to enroll at Solano.  Please refer to the VUSD ISP site, which will be posted the first week of school, if your student will be enrolled in the VUSD Independent Study Program.  This program is separate from the BCMHS program, and will continuously be updated with information for your ISP student.  For your convenience, a link to ISP site is now posted on the BCMHS main web page, and is currently being developed.

2. Will my student still be able to accelerate to catch up on credits or pursue an early graduation?

Yes to both, students may continue to accelerate under the same criteria as they currently do.

3.  Will my students still have enrichment opportunities in the Independent Study Program?

Yes, probably more then currently offered because the funding base will now be secured. A survey went out to parents the week of 4/7/2003. It is very important to communicate the type of enrichment programs that you would like to see continued and added on the survey.  Again, please refer to the VUSD ISP web site for all information regarding this program.

4. How will my students do P.E. next year?

More information for the BCMHS P. E. program will be given to students and parents when school begins.  Independent Studies will be the same as this year and BCMHS will "probably" run on the same platform as IS.  More information for ISP P. E. will be posted to the VUSD ISP web site.

Students currently attending will have "priority" enrollment for both programs. IS should not have a waiting list but BCMHS will probably fill up very fast. It is strongly recommended that you sign up as soon as possible. Currently enrolled students will have one week prior to open enrollment to register for BCMHS.

Student schedules will be distributed during first period on Tuesday, September 3rd.  Additionally, class schedules and room assignments will be posted outside of the main office, on the window at 188 Bella Vista on Friday, August 30th.  Class schedules will also be added to the WEB during the first week of school.

7. Will there be traffic control in the parking lot for the students for safety?

Yes.  Please follow the flow of the directed traffic -- staff will be out there guiding them.  Crosswalks have been established between building 1 and 2.  Since safety is a focal point, we ask that crosswalk and traffic safety considerations be adhered to at all times, both by students walking back and forth between buildings and those who are picking up and dropping off students at BCMHS. 

8. Since there are 2 school buildings with offices, where do I go if I have questions or difficulties?

All students/parents/visitors need to direct questions at Building #1, 188 Bella Vista (Suite B).  This is the main office.  Please do not go into Building #2 during the school day, as students will be in classes.  As this has always been a top priority at Buckingham, we want to make sure that the student environment is safe.  Even though you may be a parent, our staff may not know you.  Permitting entrance to student campus areas by anyone is not only unsafe for our students, but also causes disruptions to the normal schedule and routine.

9. I understand the concerns for question #8, however I may want to visit my child(s) classroom at some point during the school year for legitimate reasons, such as dropping off lunch money or forgotten homework for my child. 

Any questions or concerns regarding this needs to be directed to the main office in Building #1 as explained in question #8, above. You can contact the office in person or telephone @ 453-7300.

10. Will I need to send a lunch with my child to school or will my child be able to purchase lunch?  How much time is allotted for my child to have lunch?  Is there a place designated for my child to eat their lunch?

Students can bring a bagged/boxed lunch or purchase their lunch at the school.  Lunches will begin service first day of school. Purchased lunch counts will be taken in the classroom, in the morning, when students first report to school.   Lunch will be 30 minutes, Monday through Friday, according to the student(s) schedule.  The cost is $2.50 per lunch.  Students will be given direction and instructions at school as to the on-campus place and time for their lunch period.

11. Will there be a school newspaper to keep parents and students informed at BCMHS?

Yes.  The first BCMHS Newsletter will be coming out in October.

12. Will there be a BCMHS "Back To School Night", and if so, when will it be scheduled?

Yes. " Back To School Night" is scheduled for the 8th of October.

13. Will there be notices sent home other than the school newspaper during the school year, and is there a specific day that I need to look for these notices?

Any new information or notices for the student and/or parent will be sent home on Fridays.

14. Will I be able to contact my child's instructor/teacher by e-mail or telephone?

Yes.  Direct phone lines have been set up for you to contact teachers/instructors for messages or concerns.  Additionally, all teachers/instructors have a direct e-mail address, which is located on the BCMHS web site STAFF page. (Http://BuckinghamCharterHigh.org/staff.htm)  These may be down the first week of school but will be operational starting September 8th.

15. Will the instructors/teachers at BCMHS have individual web sites for my child or I to visit to find information about the classes that students are enrolled in?

Yes.  Individual Web sites for all instructors/teachers will be up by September 15th.   We encourage you to review these weekly for current classroom updates, teacher assignments, testing, etc..  These web sites can be accessed by browsing to the STAFF page (Http://BuckinghamCharterHigh.org/staff.htm) and clicking on the WEB PAGE link next to each staff member listed on this page.

16. The Buckingham Charter Web site has a very long web site address, and is hard to remember.  Is there an easier way for me to browse to the Buckingham Charter Magnet High School web site?

Yes.  This summer, we purchased a specific domain name for our school to make it easier and more convenient for parents/students/visitors to access our web site.  You can still type in the entire VUSD/Buckingham web site address:
(http://internal.vusd.solanocoe.k12.ca.us/Buck/index.htm).

However, you will now be able to type BuckinghamCharterHigh.org in the address line of your browser, which will bring you directly to the main web site page of BCMHS  (http://BuckinghamCharterHigh.org).