Hello, Hill Community!

As the start of school is inching ever closer, we want to ensure you have the information you need for a smooth first arrival and dismissal at Hill School. A separate letter is going out with more general information for the upcoming week [included in the post above]. Please ensure you let your teachers know how your student will be getting home for the first week of school and beyond!

First of all, we want to remind everyone of the big changes to the Austin Woods and Amy Circle area. We want to again emphasize that you should avoid the Austin Woods and Amy Circle area for parking and walking. You can click here to see an updated map of what the street will look like in the mornings and afternoons. As you can see, there is virtually no legal or available parking from the hours of 7:00a-9:00a, then 2:00p-4:00p. You can click here to see what the street signs look like which have now been installed. There will be enforcement there the first weeks of school to ensure this is a successful transition as it is a huge change. If you are driving your student to campus, please use our carline or a different area to park/walk. If you would like to park and walk your student to school, there is more parking on Robbie Lane or Hyridge, all with available sidewalks. Thank you for avoiding the Austin Woods and Amy Circle area if you commute to school so we avoid congestion on the now more narrow street.

Arrival

There are several options for you and your family to choose as you commute to Hill each day. As a reminder, families will not be walking students inside the building to assembly/their classes this year (except for the first day of school):

• Walking/Riding your Bike: This is a great option for families that live in the Hill neighborhood. We have added connected sidewalks these past few years, including the shared use path on Hyridge that connects to Tallwood. We also have ample bike rack space up front and on the south side of the school. If this is an option, it is highly encouraged!
• Buses: For families outside of our immediate neighborhood, the school bus will run to your location if you are in our Hill Zone. If you need more information, you can visit https://www.austinisd.org/transportation.
• Car Line: If you will be commuting in a vehicle, we highly encourage the use of our Hill Car Line! We again have students and staff supporting us to ensure it runs smoothly. You can reference the picture below for where to enter and exit. It begins on Tallwood and the line wraps around to Cima Serena drive. Please do not turn left into the carline. All cars enter by turning right. You can join the queue on Tallwood or Cima Serena coming from Robbie Lane/Greenslope.
• Parking and Walking to the Front/Back Doors: For families that would like to park and walk, we highly encourage you to use Robbie Lane if there are no spots directly in front of the school on Tallwood. The shared use path on Hyridge is an option as well. Parents/guardians should park and walk with their students if using this option. Parents/guardians should not drop off students at the curb. As stated before, Austin Woods and Amy Circle are no longer a viable choice for parking. Thank you all for respecting our neighborhood community and obeying parking signs at all times.

Dismissal

Caregiver Pickup can happen in several ways. Teachers may also work with you on more specifics:

• Carline: Please use the arrival map and description above for directions on entering and exiting our front carline. Staff and safety patrol members will be present to assist students to their vehicles. We will plan to use the traditional carline waiting area. This is toward the end of the carline, just before exiting, under our North Portico (blue) area. Pre-K and some kinder students may begin at the South Portico. 4th grade families: Your students will be waiting at the South Portico (Orange) so we can better space our students. This area is shortly after you enter the car line at the first set of double doors.
• Parking and Walking Pickup: For caregivers who want to park and walk (reference best practices under the arrival section), you can begin waiting in our front door area at 3:00 to retrieve students in 1st and 2nd grade. Pre-K and Kinder students can be retrieved from their carline for walk-up parents as well. Staff will walk students out at 3:10 for a safe dismissal. Parents/guardians will not enter the building until further notice during this time for pick-up. Parents of 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders can meet them outside their class areas for pickup beginning at 3:05.
• Students walking home: Please ensure your student has a safe plan and is aware of best practices.

We will update everyone if our practices need to be updated so we have the safest plan for our students. It takes all of us working together! Thanks for ensuring you represent us by supporting the above plans.

Principal Drummond