Weekly Update: July 31, 2020
Weekly Update: July 31, 2020
Dear Grinnell-Newburg Board of Education, Staff, Families and Friends,
It is hard to believe that tomorrow will be August 1, 2020. This weekly update has important information for our families. Please be sure to take a look at our updated start and end times for schools, registration information, extended notification for online learning date commitments for families, new guidance from the Department of Education and the Iowa Department of Public Health, and new information that can be found on the virtual backpack. Each week, I will be providing critical information regarding the start of school. Your building principals are also providing updates to families that will assist you as your students either return to school campuses or continue their learning online. I want to thank our community for their continual patience, support and understanding as we “reinvent how we do school” during this pandemic.
New Start and End Times for Heading Back to School: For the fall of 20-21, in order to accommodate staff the time needed to assist those who will be learning onsite or online, we have modified the start and end times for this year only. These are challenging times for everyone, and we appreciate your flexibility as we navigate our response during this pandemic.
Elementary Schools start time will begin at 7:55 am and they will dismiss at 2:30.
Middle School will start at 8:00 and dismiss at 2:45.
High School will start at 8:25 and dismiss at 3:00.
These staggered times enable us to transport students safely. All students will need to have a mask or face covering on while riding the bus. Families will be able to sit together on the bus. There will be assigned seats.
The first week of school will have modified times at all buildings in order to bring back children gradually to school campus and online. We believe that this is critical to create and foster connections between students and staff. It will afford students opportunities to learn new protocols to ensure safety and routines to ensure that we limit the spread of the virus. I thank you for your patience as we navigate these challenging times. We will publish the first week of school times next week through a voice reach and the weekly update. The elementary and middle school scenario will more than likely be earlier dismissals, while the high school is working out grade level days. The specifics of these days are forthcoming as we attempt to work out bussing details.
First official day of school is August 24, 2020.
The prek-8 schools will meet daily and High School will meet 50% on an A/B schedule. All students and staff will be required to wear a face mask, face shield, or sit behind a plexiglass system for breaks. It is critical that our families begin to practice having their students wear a face covering. The district will be providing a mask and a shield to each student and staff member.
Registration:
Online Registration: Please complete the online registration for your student attending on campus or online only. All students must register whether you are online or on site.
We have officially opened Online Registration for the 20-21 school year! Please log in to your Parent Portal and on the left hand side of the screen click the "More" button from the menu, then click "Online Registration" to complete registration for next year! Please see the screenshot below to assist you.
Online Registration is open for the 2020-2021 school year. Free and reduced applications are also available online at this time. Online Registration must be completed before free and reduced forms can be completed.
All families need to register for school whether you choose onsite instruction, or online virtual only. Please contact your building principal if you are choosing the online method of instruction for planning purposes by August 10, 2020. This has been extended to assist families to make decisions.
If you need assistance with registration, you may seek assistance at your school during regular business hours (7:30-3:30). We will also be hosting an on-site assistance session to register for all families on August 3 from 4-6 PM in the High School Cafeteria. Masks will be required in order to enter all buildings.
Meal Plans for students this Fall:
Meals can be provided to enrolled students learning in the school building (classroom, cafeteria, etc.); or learning remotely (full or part-time) through curb-site pick-up at schools, community locations, or home delivery. Meals provided will be charged based on student eligibility (free, reduced, and paid). We will be providing more specific information in the coming weeks about meals for our families.
The CDC has put out new guidance as well as our Department of Education and the Iowa Department of Public Health. I have shared and reviewed these documents with Dr. Graham on Thursday of this week. We will be creating a protocol for communication between the Department of Public Health and our local physician. This flowchart communication plan will further assist our school district in knowing at what percentage of infection rate is current in our school community. I have expressed with the Department of Education that we may not be the first to know if a student or staff member is positive for COVID-19. I have requested that the document be edited to reflect this scenario. The communication flow chart will assist us with navigating promptly.
Questions regarding air ventilation system:
We have had some public concern about our ventilation systems. Although our systems are old, it is important for the public to know that they do bring in fresh air into each of the buildings and spaces in all of our buildings. If the outside air quality is poor it may affect the fresh air intake, however this is out of our control.
Baseball and Softball PostSeason Awards:
LHC First team softball- Kate Kriegel
LHC Honorable Mention- Lindsey Hollibaugh, Hannah Behrens
LHC First Team- Owen Coffman, Colin Gibson, Parker Johnson
Second team- Alex Smith, Jake Hull
Honorable Mention-Brock Beck, Cole Johnson
Baseball 3A Central District
1st Team Colin Gibson, Alex Smith
2nd Team Owen Coffman, Parker Johnson
Congrats!!
Don’t forget to check the Virtual Backpack! Community youth activities are beginning to open up such as flag football, soccer and much more. Please check out the virtual backpack. You will find other community resources here too.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Sincerely,
Janet