Vista Murrieta High School

Philosophy

It is the responsibility of every VMHS student to know and follow school rules. By doing so, you will be a productive and successful member of the learning community. Student behavior is expected to reflect the VMHS mission of C.L.A.S.S. If students make poor decisions, they will be held accountable for their actions.

General Policies 

Messages & Deliveries   

Please make travel, lunch, clothing, and other arrangements with your student before he/she arrives at school as these items are no longer accepted at the front office. While we join with you in the celebration of special occasions, bouquets of flowers, balloons or other gifts should be delivered elsewhere and will not be accepted at the front office. Calling in or delivering messages and non-emergency items to classrooms is disruptive to the learning environment and students should be responsible for remembering their own work, lunches, clothing, sports equipment, or other necessities; therefore, we no longer deliver any items to classrooms. Students should be encouraged to accept the consequences if they neglect these responsibilities. We appreciate your assistance in helping us to reserve this function for true emergencies.

Visitors

Parents, guardians, and community members are welcome to visit the school. Please make an appointment 24 hours in advance to make an appointment. All visitors must check in, first at the Campus Security Station aka, Guard Shack, to receive a parking pass, then at the front office reception desk, where a guest pass will be issued. We guard our learning time intensely; therefore, it is important not to disturb teachers during class time. To maintain a safe and orderly learning environment, students’ friends or visitors without approval are not allowed on campus at any time during school hours.

Parking Regulations

To ensure student safety, VMHS has implemented a parking program. Please review the regulations and print the attached Parking Permit form, here. Students must obtain a parking permit (at the bookkeeper’s window) before they park a car in the student lot. At that time, they will receive specific regulations which will require parents' signature. Students who do not follow parking regulations may be ticketed and assessed a fine or denied parking privileges. The student lot is off-limits during the school day. Students may not loiter lots. MVUSD is not liable for any loss, damage, or theft in parking lots. 

Traffic Flow Map 

To view entrance and exit locations at our school, please click to view the map here.

Homework & Finals

Homework

Homework philosophy is relevant and directly related to course objectives. The purpose of homework is one of the five examples listed below:

• Introductory Homework:  Introduce a new concept of information to be used later in class.
• Learning Homework:  An assignment that adds to a student’s knowledge base that can be done independently.
• Reinforcing Homework: An assignment that strengthens a student’s knowledge base.
• Assessment Homework: An assignment to be graded that then helps guide instruction.
• Performance Homework:  An assignment designed to allow the student an opportunity to demonstrate their understanding/learning

Although the Murrieta Valley Unified School District recognizes that quality is more important than quantity, the following guidelines are suggested in our Board Policy: Grades 9-12 may have 75 – 120 minutes of homework up to four days per week.  It should be noted that in grades 7 – 12, the homework time may vary according to type and number of subjects a student is taking.  AP Courses also may require homework/reading beyond the four days per week. Many times, AP exams are given immediately following spring break, which would require students to study and prepare over spring vacation.

Make-up Homework Policy

When a student is absent from school, it is his/her responsibility to contact teachers upon returning to school regarding make-up work.  (The teacher may also be contacted via email. The student may also refer to the assignment sheet on their Canvas student portal prior to returning to school to get homework assignments.)  The time allotted for making up missed work will vary depending on the circumstances surrounding the absence, the actual time out of school, and the teacher’s classroom policy.  Each student will arrange with his/her teachers to turn in this work.  If a student is absent for three (3) days or more, the parents should call and request the work.  Teachers will be given a 24 – hour notice to provide make-up work.

The make-up policy for missing assignments when a student is not absent is at the discretion of the individual teacher. Please read individual teachers' guidelines for their specific homework policy.   Some teachers, although not all, accept late work which may be turned in during the unit/chapter of study or within a specific time with a penalty such as a reduced grade based upon the lateness of the assignment.  Assignments may be corrected/resubmitted at the discretion of the teacher.  Students are encouraged to correct/resubmit assignments when the opportunity arises.

Finals 

Each semester ends with a final exam or culminating activity in each subject area.  These exams are usually scheduled for the last 3-4 days of the semester.  Final exam grades do not become semester grades but are usually an important component of that semester grade.  Make-up exams are permitted for excused absences only.  Final exams are to be taken on the day scheduled (see the current school calendar for scheduled dates).  On the rare occasion that a final needs to be taken early, it must have the approval of Vista Murrieta High School Administration, i.e.., the student is moving to another state and it is not feasible to take the final at the appointed time or due to acute medical conditions.  The expectation is that all students take their final exams on the dates scheduled by district/school administration.

Late Start/Early Release

Seniors and juniors may have an early release schedule. Students are not to be on campus after their last class. They need to report to the reception desk if they need to be on campus outside of their scheduled day.

Closed Campus

VMHS is a closed campus. During the break/lunch periods, students must remain in the Quad area. All other areas are considered out of bounds/unauthorized. Students are not permitted off campus at any time unless a parent/guardian provides a written request. Attendance personnel will verify all requests. Any student leaving campus must sign out at the Attendance Office and must be met by a parent/guardian at the front office. Students are considered truant if they leave campus without following this process.

Emergency & Disaster Preparedness

Click here for emergency procedures.