Requiremets for Class
Required Age and Selection Process
Must be 14 Years and 6 Months Old When the Class Starts
When applying, the student must provide their date of birth and grade. Students that have met the age requirement will then be sorted first by what year they are enrolled in high school and then by their date of birth. Higher grades, such as Senior and Junior will have first priority over lower grades, then birthdate will be used.
Must Apply Every Session
If you are not selected for the current Traffic Education class, you must reapply to the next session. Old applications are not saved.
Non-Enrolled Students
Students not enrolled at Polson High School can take the Polson Traffic Education class if they live within the Polson School District. They will need to provide the same information listed above and will be sorted the same way.
Traffic Education Classroom Requirements
Hours
Students are required to attend 60 hours of instruction, 42 hours in the classroom, and 18 hours in a vehicle. When school is in session, there will be a class. Class starts at 7 am and goes until 8 am. Summer classes will start later. Most sessions have 3 hours of makeup time built into the session. Those three hours are the only amount of time a student can miss during the session. If a student misses more than three hours, they will be excused from the program without a refund.
Early Is On-Time/ Absences
Students are required to be in their seats before 7 am to be considered on-time. A student may only miss 3 hours of instruction. If they are tardy to a class, three tardies equals one hour of instruction. Any combination that adds up to more than 3 hours of instruction will result in excusal from the class without a refund.
Grades
Students are required to have at least an 80% to graduate the Traffic Education program. Students who are close will be given an opportunity to earn extra credit to reach that 80%. Grade checks to parents are sent home during the session. If a student does not reach the 80% by the cutoff date in the current session's calendar, the student will be excused from the session without a refund.
95% or Better!
We give a bonus to those students who have maintained a 95% or better. They must earn this 95% without extra credit. If they achieve this they do not have to take the final written exam at the end of the session.
What to Bring to Parent and Student Orientation Class
Original Primary Documents Accepted:
1. State Birth Certificate, no photocopies
2. Passport
Original Secondary Documents Accepted:
1. Student ID
2. State ID
3. Tribal ID
* Bring Two Primary Documents OR Bring One Primary and One Secondary Document
Payment Needed at Meeting
Payments allowed:
Checks made out to:
1. Polson High School
2. PHS
-memo: Traffic Education or T.E. Class
OR: CASH
No Credit Cards, PayPal, or VENMO types of programs are currently accepted.
Parents or Guardians Bring:
A state issued ID and a black or blue pen.
Typical Weekly Schedule
Class Everday
When school is in session, there will be class in the morning starting at 7 am. Summer session classes start later. Students need a folder for paperwork and a notebook to take notes.
Driving Make-up or Changes
It is important for the student to be at their drive session when scheduled. When you go to orientation night, you will inform the instructors what days/times you can drive. Later in the session, if a conflict happens, let the classroom teacher know at the start of class, so they may be able to schedule another drive.
Driving
Students will typically drive one time a week. Most of the drive sessions start after school. Depending on the session, some drives times may start after the first group is done after school. Also, there may be times offered on Saturdays to drive, depending on the time of the year.
Missed Driving Session
If a student misses a driving session, they must arrange a make-up session. There is an additional cost of $30. The student must bring a peer with them for the session. If they can't schedule another session before the next drive, or miss the make-up session, the student most likely will be excused from the class without a refund.