Uniform Policy & School Merchandise
Brent’s school uniform policy offers flexibility and limited choice. Students may wear khaki, green or white bottoms, jumpers, or dresses, and white or green tops. Any green is permitted, though our school color is hunter green and most families choose that shade. All school merchandise, past or present, may also be worn as part of the uniform. Students should wear closed-toe shoes whenever possible; closed-toe shoes are required on PE days. The school keeps a stock of uniforms on-site if a student forgets their uniform or requires a change at school.
Brent does not have a specific uniform vendor. French Toast, The Children's Place, Lands' End, Old Navy, Target, Walmart, and Amazon are some of the options that Brent families commonly use.
The school offers regular opportunities to purchase Brent merchandise on CustomInk.com. See the Tues News for updates on these offerings. For delivery, you can have your items sent to Brent, where they will be organized and sent home with your student, or for an additional fee, choose direct shipping to your home for a faster delivery.
For ECE students, families must provide an extra change of clothes - sent in a labeled plastic bag - in case of bathroom accidents. ECE students are also strongly encouraged to wear elastic waist pants without buttons, snaps, or belts that require assistance, and Velcro or zipper shoes to prevent accidents from untied laces.
The PTA hosts regular uniform swaps, including at the fall welcome picnic. See the Tues News for more details on these events and how to donate your gently-used items.
Brent does not have a specific uniform vendor. French Toast, The Children's Place, Lands' End, Old Navy, Target, Walmart, and Amazon are some of the options that Brent families commonly use.
The school offers regular opportunities to purchase Brent merchandise on CustomInk.com. See the Tues News for updates on these offerings. For delivery, you can have your items sent to Brent, where they will be organized and sent home with your student, or for an additional fee, choose direct shipping to your home for a faster delivery.
For ECE students, families must provide an extra change of clothes - sent in a labeled plastic bag - in case of bathroom accidents. ECE students are also strongly encouraged to wear elastic waist pants without buttons, snaps, or belts that require assistance, and Velcro or zipper shoes to prevent accidents from untied laces.
The PTA hosts regular uniform swaps, including at the fall welcome picnic. See the Tues News for more details on these events and how to donate your gently-used items.
School Hours & Attendance Policy
Brent's school day runs from 8:45 am – 3:15 pm. School doors open at 8:35 am, and attendance is taken at 8:45 am. All students who are not in their classroom by 8:45 am will be marked tardy. All students arriving at school after 8:44 am must sign in at the security desk to prevent being marked absent.
If your student is absent, please email brentelementary@k12.dc.gov and your student's teacher. Please include the student's full name, date, and reason for absence. For an absence to be excused, you must notify the school within 5 days of the absence. All absences for 5 or more days consecutive days require documentation such as a note from a medical provider.
Early dismissal requires sign out at the security desk. Early dismissal concludes at 2:45 pm.
Starting in SY24-25, DCPS will be required by OSSE to track days when elementary students attend school for less than 60% of the day, known as "60/40 absences." Examples of 60/40 absences include:
If your student is absent, please email brentelementary@k12.dc.gov and your student's teacher. Please include the student's full name, date, and reason for absence. For an absence to be excused, you must notify the school within 5 days of the absence. All absences for 5 or more days consecutive days require documentation such as a note from a medical provider.
Early dismissal requires sign out at the security desk. Early dismissal concludes at 2:45 pm.
Starting in SY24-25, DCPS will be required by OSSE to track days when elementary students attend school for less than 60% of the day, known as "60/40 absences." Examples of 60/40 absences include:
Arriving at school after 11:00 AM and staying for the remainder of the day.
Leaving school before 1:00 PM and not returning for the rest of the day.
Arrival & Dismissal Procedures
Arrival:
Arrival is orchestrated by door following the grade level of the youngest K-5 sibling for all students in a family:
Arrival is orchestrated by door following the grade level of the youngest K-5 sibling for all students in a family:
ECE: Blacktop Table (for check in) and Classroom Doors
K, Upper School Homerooms Arbuckle and Webne: Playground Doors
1, Upper School Homerooms Thomas and Ullo, JBAB Bus, OSSE Bus: Front (North Carolina Avenue) Doors
2 and 3: Back (D Street) Doors
Arrival times are as follows:
8:30 am: Check In begins (regardless of arrival time, please supervise children until check in is complete)
8:35 am: Students Enter the Building
8:44 am: Arrival Stations close; students who are tardy must check in with a caregiver at the security desk inside the front door
8:45 am: Classroom Morning Meetings begin
Breakfast is free, collected from grab-and-go points past arrival doors, and eaten in classrooms. Students who choose to eat breakfast should arrive by 8:35 am so that they can fully participate in morning meetings.
For the first week of school, kindergarten students will be escorted from arrival doors, and members of the Brent faculty will be stationed in hallways to make sure all students find their way to classrooms safely.
Please note that the playground is closed before school to allow for the space rented by our Before Care program.
Dismissal:
Your student's dismissal door is the same as his or her arrival door. Students in aftercare programs will transition from their classrooms. All other students will be dismissed once their caregiver arrives and checks in. All caregivers other than those listed on enrollment forms will need to provide the last four digits of the student's ID number.
Students in grades 4 and 5 can self-dismiss (with or without siblings) but require permission. The self-dismissal permission form is available here.
Like before school, the playground is closed for community use until 6 pm to allow for our After Care program's exclusive use. X-Park or one of the many surrounding public playgrounds are great post-school gathering places. Families are welcome to play until 3:45 pm but must exit the space once After Care arrives.
Lunch Menu & Food Policies
Aramark is Brent's food service vendor. Breakfast and lunch menus for SY24-25 can be found here.
Lunch costs $3.00 and the payment platform is LINQ Connect. Visit https://linqconnect.com to create an account. Note that after registering on the site, you will need to add your student to your account, which requires a student ID number. The front office can provide this number if you do not have it on file. Meal accounts function like debit accounts, and the account holder will receive email notifications if the balance runs low. If a student's balance goes below zero, the account holder will receive communication with the amount due and instructions to add funds. There is no limit to the negative balance a student can accrue, and students will not be refused a lunch because of a negative balance. FAQs about the LINQ Connect platform and registration process can be found here.
A Free And Reduced-price Meal (FARM) application is required to qualify for free or reduced-price lunch based on family income. You can return completed forms to the main office or email them to brentelementary@k12.dc.gov.
Breakfast is free for all students, collected from grab-and-go points past arrival doors, and eaten in classrooms. Students who choose to eat breakfast should arrive by 8:35 am so that they can fully participate in morning meetings.
Students eat lunch in their classrooms, monitored by a consistent grade-level supervision team, and those who requested school lunch at morning arrival will be escorted to the kitchen to collect their meals.
For students who bring lunch from home, families are encourage to send in fresh fruits, vegetables, proteins, and whole grains. Brent is a nut-free school - please do not pack any nuts or nut-containing products. We also ask that you leave the food experimenting for home meals and send your child to school with healthy foods you know they will eat and enjoy. Please be sure to pack any utensils your child will need to eat his or her lunch. Lunches are not able to be refrigerated or microwaved, so please utilize ice packs and a thermos as needed.
If your student has food allergies, please notify brentelementary@k12.dc.gov and their classroom teacher. Brent is a nut-free school, but classrooms will make additional accommodations for individual student allergies.
DCPS does not serve meals that contain pork, peanuts, or tree nuts, and a vegetarian option (will not contain meat, poultry, or fish, but may contain dairy and/or eggs) is available with every meal. If your student has a food allergy or other medical condition that requires further accommodation, please submit a Medical Dietary Accommodations form to dietary.forms@k12.dc.gov. DCPS does not require a new dietary accommodation form to be submitted each school year. If your student requires vegetarian meals, you do not need to complete a dietary accommodation form.
Lunch costs $3.00 and the payment platform is LINQ Connect. Visit https://linqconnect.com to create an account. Note that after registering on the site, you will need to add your student to your account, which requires a student ID number. The front office can provide this number if you do not have it on file. Meal accounts function like debit accounts, and the account holder will receive email notifications if the balance runs low. If a student's balance goes below zero, the account holder will receive communication with the amount due and instructions to add funds. There is no limit to the negative balance a student can accrue, and students will not be refused a lunch because of a negative balance. FAQs about the LINQ Connect platform and registration process can be found here.
A Free And Reduced-price Meal (FARM) application is required to qualify for free or reduced-price lunch based on family income. You can return completed forms to the main office or email them to brentelementary@k12.dc.gov.
Breakfast is free for all students, collected from grab-and-go points past arrival doors, and eaten in classrooms. Students who choose to eat breakfast should arrive by 8:35 am so that they can fully participate in morning meetings.
Students eat lunch in their classrooms, monitored by a consistent grade-level supervision team, and those who requested school lunch at morning arrival will be escorted to the kitchen to collect their meals.
For students who bring lunch from home, families are encourage to send in fresh fruits, vegetables, proteins, and whole grains. Brent is a nut-free school - please do not pack any nuts or nut-containing products. We also ask that you leave the food experimenting for home meals and send your child to school with healthy foods you know they will eat and enjoy. Please be sure to pack any utensils your child will need to eat his or her lunch. Lunches are not able to be refrigerated or microwaved, so please utilize ice packs and a thermos as needed.
If your student has food allergies, please notify brentelementary@k12.dc.gov and their classroom teacher. Brent is a nut-free school, but classrooms will make additional accommodations for individual student allergies.
DCPS does not serve meals that contain pork, peanuts, or tree nuts, and a vegetarian option (will not contain meat, poultry, or fish, but may contain dairy and/or eggs) is available with every meal. If your student has a food allergy or other medical condition that requires further accommodation, please submit a Medical Dietary Accommodations form to dietary.forms@k12.dc.gov. DCPS does not require a new dietary accommodation form to be submitted each school year. If your student requires vegetarian meals, you do not need to complete a dietary accommodation form.
School Calendar
Brent follows the DCPS calendar which can be found here. Please make special note of days off for staff professional development, parent teacher conferences, ends of terms, and holiday breaks.
The school hosts frequent events for families and the Brent PTA also organizes many community-building activities and gatherings. More information about these will be included in the weekly Tues News. Information about grade level- and classroom-specific events will be communicated primarily by teachers and room parents.
The school hosts frequent events for families and the Brent PTA also organizes many community-building activities and gatherings. More information about these will be included in the weekly Tues News. Information about grade level- and classroom-specific events will be communicated primarily by teachers and room parents.
Admissions & Enrollment
Please visit the Admissions & Enrollment page for more information.
Mental Health Services
If you have mental health concerns about your child and would like to explore options, please fill out this Mental Health Referral form to be connected to a member of our mental health team, who will set up a time with you to speak in greater detail. You can also of course catch them in-person at Brent or by sending an email to the School Behavioral Health Coordinator, Adam Backels, at adam.backels@k12.dc.gov.
Bullying Prevention
Bullying has become a significant issue with young people nationwide. It affects students at every level, from elementary to high school. To proactively address the issue of bullying the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) has created a Bullying Prevention Policy. The policy clearly outlines the definition of bullying and the steps required by schools to address it.
The definition for bullying in DCPS is:
“Bullying,” means any severe, pervasive, or persistent act or conduct, whether physical, electronic, or verbal that:
May be based on a person's actual or perceived race, color, ethnicity, religion, national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, intellectual ability, familial status, family responsibilities, matriculation, political affiliation, genetic information, disability, source of income, status as a victim of an intrafamily offense, place of residence or business, or any other distinguishing characteristic, or on a youth’s association with a person, or group with any person, with one or more of the actual or perceived foregoing characteristics; and
Shall be reasonably predicted to:
Place a student in reasonable fear of physical harm to his or her person or property;
Cause a substantial detrimental effect on the student’s physical or mental health;
Substantially interfere with the student’s academic performance or attendance; or
Substantially interfere with the student’s ability to participate in or benefit from school activities or services; or
Materially and disrupts the education process or the orderly operation of a school.
Bullying also occurs when a student or group of students organize a campaign against another student or when a student or group of students maliciously spread rumors about another student.
Please read the DCPS Bullying Prevention Policy in English or in Spanish. Should you have questions or need to report an issue related to bullying, please contact Brent's Bullying Point of Contact, Assistant Principal Sara Ewbank at sara.ewbank@k12.dc.gov.
The definition for bullying in DCPS is:
“Bullying,” means any severe, pervasive, or persistent act or conduct, whether physical, electronic, or verbal that:
May be based on a person's actual or perceived race, color, ethnicity, religion, national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, intellectual ability, familial status, family responsibilities, matriculation, political affiliation, genetic information, disability, source of income, status as a victim of an intrafamily offense, place of residence or business, or any other distinguishing characteristic, or on a youth’s association with a person, or group with any person, with one or more of the actual or perceived foregoing characteristics; and
Shall be reasonably predicted to:
Place a student in reasonable fear of physical harm to his or her person or property;
Cause a substantial detrimental effect on the student’s physical or mental health;
Substantially interfere with the student’s academic performance or attendance; or
Substantially interfere with the student’s ability to participate in or benefit from school activities or services; or
Materially and disrupts the education process or the orderly operation of a school.
Bullying also occurs when a student or group of students organize a campaign against another student or when a student or group of students maliciously spread rumors about another student.
Please read the DCPS Bullying Prevention Policy in English or in Spanish. Should you have questions or need to report an issue related to bullying, please contact Brent's Bullying Point of Contact, Assistant Principal Sara Ewbank at sara.ewbank@k12.dc.gov.
