Student Professional Development Guidelines

All students must commit to and follow the Student Professional Development Guidelines during their enrollment at Paul Mitchell The School Arkansas. These guidelines were established to assist in creating a safe, focused, and enjoyable learning experience.

Attendance and Documentation of Time

  1. The school records attendance in clock hours and gives appropriate attendance credit for all hours attended. The school does not add or deduct attendance hours as a penalty. Attendance is calculated using a computerized time clock.  This device may consist of an app that can be used on your phone, a biometric scanner in the school, or similar device. To ensure proper credit for clock hours, full-time students are required to clock in/out 4 times a day: when they arrive at school, when they leave for lunch, when they return from lunch, and when they leave at the end of the day. Part-time students are required to clock in/out 2 times a day: when they arrive at school and when they leave at the end of the day.  If a student fails to clock in or out for their schedule on the student time clock, the student will not receive hours.  If the student wishes to dispute any hours they feel earned, the student must provide documentation to verify attendance on the missing time form.  
  2. The school is open from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Monday - Thursday.  
  3. All courses require continuous attendance.
  4. The prescribed attendance schedule must be maintained each week. Alternate schedules are available to those students who qualify. 
  5. Students must be on time, as tardiness inhibits the learning process. Students who are late for theory, a specialty class or a guest artist class may attend the class, but must be accompanied into the classroom by a learning leader. Students are never excused from mandatory theory class to work in the clinic classroom.
  6. Paul Mitchell The School Arkansas’ theory hours are as follows: Creative: Wednesday: 8:00 AM–12:00 PM, Adaptive: Wednesday: 12:30 PM - 5:00 PM.
  7. Students who are late or cannot attend school must contact the school and talk to the school service desk immediately. Day students must call in by 7:30 AM. 
  8. Students must request time off from school from the Education Leader. 
  9. Students are required to be in attendance a minimum of eight and a half (8.5) hours per day, 34 hours per week for the full-time 4-day schedule. Holidays such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day will be set according to the calendar each year. Students are only allowed to makeup hours missed and may not bank hours for attendance of 100% or more.  The available times and days for the makeup hours are at the discretion of the school. Hours and availability are limited and are on a first come bases. The makeup hours must be approved and scheduled in advanced by the Future Professional Advisor.  Students must complete a Future Professional Make-Up Request Form indicating the date, time, activity completed, and the name and signature of the Learning Leader who supervised the make-up time. Hours missed will count against the hours allowed to miss and overtime charges can occur. 
  10. Lunches and breaks are scheduled for all students. Day students will take 30 minutes for lunch between 12:00 noon and 1:30 PM. Students should communicate with their instructor if they have not had lunch by 1:30 PM.

Observe the appropriate breaks for your school schedule. Breaks are as follows:

Student Schedule Breaks Lunch
8 or 7 hr/day 10 min. in the morning & 10 min in the afternoon 30 min.
  1. Documentation of time: Students may not leave the school premises during regular hours without an instructor’s permission. 
    1. Students who leave school premises or those wishing to leave early must document their time by clocking out on the time clock, signing the sign-out sheet, and having an instructor book them out
    2. Day students must clock out on the time clock for lunch for 30 minutes every day. 
    3. Students will not receive credit for hours if they fail to clock in and out. 
  2. Students may not clock in or out for another student. 
  3. All worksheets are due by the end of the last day of the month.

Professional Image/Dress Code

All Future Professionals must adhere to the following professional dress code while in attendance:

  1. Clothing must be professional and clean.  Clothing may not contain any political messages, branding, profanity, or any other beauty  industry related branding/logos.
    1. Jeans and clothing made of Jean materialize are acceptable. Rips/tears/distressing must fall below mid-thigh, unless opaque tights or leggings are worn as well.
    2. Printed tops, T-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, and/or jackets may be worn but may not contain any political messages, branding, profanity, or any other beauty industry-related branding/logos.
    3. Tops must cover the midriff (belly) when the arms are resting at sides.
    4. Skirts, dresses, and shorts must be no shorter than mid-thigh, unless opaque tights or leggings are worn as well.
    5. Pajamas/Sleepwear of any kind are unacceptable.
    6. Sportswear, athletic wear, athleisure wear, and/or gym clothes are not acceptable.
  2. Shoes must be professional, practical, and comfortable. Closed-toe shoes are recommended, but not required, to protect the feet from spilled chemicals, hair splinters, and for overall cleanliness  and general health.
    1. Rubber flip flops and house slippers/house shoes are not acceptable.
  3. Hair should be styled before arriving at school.
  4. Any cosmetics worn should be applied before arriving a school.
  5. Baseball hats, caps, stylish hats, head wraps, or beanies are acceptable but may not contain any political messages, branding, profanity, or any other beauty industry-related branding/logos.
  6. If worn; smocks, and aprons must be gray and/or black and may not contain any political messages, branding, profanity, or any other beauty industry-related branding/logos.
  7. Name tag, as provided by the school. All Future Professionals are required to wear a name tag while in attendance.
  8. Sunglasses worn indoors are not acceptable.

Future Professionals who fail to comply with the Future Professional dress code may be coached and may receive an advisory.

Sanitation and Professional Services

  1. Future Professionals must keep workstations and classroom areas clean, sanitary, and clutter free at all times.
  2. Future Professionals must clean their stations in the clinic classroom, including the floor, after each service. 
  3. Hair must be swept up immediately after a service is completed, before blow drying. 
  4. Clinic stations must be cleaned at the end of the day, prior to clocking out for the day.
  5. Future Professionals may have their hair or other services done Tuesday through Thursday. To receive a service, Future Professionals must do the following prior to starting the service:
    1. Seek permissions and approval from Learning Leader according to criteria below:
      • Be maintaining Satisfactory Academic Progress.
      • Be current in practical skill assessments, theory attendance and tests.
    2. Be scheduled off the service books by a Learning Leader.
    3. Pay for service supplies including perms, tints, bleaches, rinses, conditioning, treatments, manicures, nails, etc. 

Personal services must be rescheduled when the student is scheduled to take a guest. Students    must re-schedule their personal service and complete the service appointment assigned to them. Personal services are considered rewards and scheduled for students who are up to date with all projects, tests and practical skill assessments. School assignments and successful learning are the   priority.

Communication Guidelines and Professional Conduct

  1. Visitors are allowed in the service reception area only. Visitors are not allowed in the classrooms, student lounge, or clinic classroom area.
  2. Only emergency calls are permitted on the business phone. Future Professionals may use the Future Professionals phones for a limited time. Please keep your calls to three (3) minutes or less.
  3. Cell phones are permitted in the school in assigned areas of the school.
  4. Future Professionals may not visit with another Future Professionals who is servicing a client.
  5. Future Professionals may not gather around the service desk, service reception area, or offices. 
  6. Food, drinks, and water bottles are allowed only in the lunchroom.
  7. Paul Mitchell The School Arkansas is a smoke-free campus.
  8. Stealing or taking school or another’s personal property is unacceptable and grounds for termination.
  9. School administration has the right to access and inspect a Future Professionals locker at any time, refer to the locker policy.

Learning Participation Guidelines

  1. Peer teaching and tutoring are encouraged. Taking credit for another’s work or cheating during exams is unacceptable and grounds for termination .
  2. Future Professionals will be expected to maintain an average of 80% on all theory tests and assignments.
  3. Future Professionals may not be released from required theory class to take a client.
  4. Only service desk personnel may schedule or change client service appointments.
  5. All services must be checked and the service ticket initialed by a Learning Leader.
  6. Future Professionals are expected to be continuously working on school-related projects, assignments, clinic practical worksheets, reading theory, or test preparation during school hours. 
  7. Future Professionals will receive clock hours during the times they fully participate in their learning experience.
  8. When  Future Professionals are not scheduled with service appointments or are not scheduled to attend theory or a specialty class, they may focus on the following:
    1. Completion of practical skill assessments through CourseKey
    2. Completion of theory review worksheets
    3. Performing a service on another  Future Professionals
    4. Listening to or reading school resource center materials, including educational videos, audiotapes, and books
  9. Future Professionals must comply with school personnel and Learning Leaders’s assignments and requests as required by the curriculum and  Future Professionals guidelines and rules.
  10. Future Professionals may not perform hair, skin, or nail services outside of school unless authorized to do so by school administration. Conducting unauthorized hair, skin, or nail services outside of school will be reported to the state board and may result in your inability to receive a professional license. 
  11. Future Professionals are responsible for their own kit and equipment and may use a clinic station drawer only while working at that clinic station. All kit, equipment, tools, and personal items must be secured in the Future Professionals their assigned locker. The school is not responsible for any lost or stolen articles.
  12. Parking is allowed in assigned parking areas only or cars may be towed at the owner’s expense.
  13. If a Future Professional fails to complete the practical skill assessments or required weekly theory hours they will be placed on the Back on Track List. Future Professional have one week to get caught up before they receive a coaching advisory.
  14. If a  Future Professionals fails to complete a worksheet 100%, the Future Professionals will be placed on the Back on Track.
  15. Future Professionals fails to pass the Core written and/or practical exam on their second attempt, they may be asked to withdraw from the program and re-start in the next Core class start date.
  16. Theory Class: The school requires a Future Professional to complete all theory hours as part of their graduation requirements. Refer to the graduation requirements.