Grinnell-Newburg CSD Logo

Weekly Update: December 11, 2020

Weekly Update: December 11, 2020

 

Dear Grinnell-Newburg Board of Education, Staff, Families, and Friends:

 

Happy Friday! I hope that this weekly update finds you well! It is hard to believe that with our recent weather that the Holiday season is just around the corner. Remember this is Iowa and with rapidly changing temperatures, we need to be prepared for the potential for inclement weather that will impact our school schedule. 

 

How can you prepare for a snow event?  Here are a few tips for parents, staff, and students:

 

1. Be sure that your Infinite campus email and emergency phone numbers are up to date.

2. A voice reach will be sent as early as possible in the morning of the snow day to indicate if it is a virtual online school day or a closure in the event of loss of power. If we know the evening before, I will send out a voice reach then.  Virtual online schedules may be for a portion of the day online in combination with asynchronous activities.  

3. There may be a reason to host a late start day. In that case, the school day will count and there will be no reason for a make-up day.  It may be a one hour or two-hour late start called depending upon weather conditions. 

4. If there is a call for a full snow day, we plan to continue instruction on this day so that it will count as a school day. This means to remember your devices, emergency lesson plans, and remote learning schedule each evening. Elementary staff will send items home as needed in the event of a storm prediction. 

5. In the event that the community loses power and we are not able to connect with students, then we will have to make up those hours.   

6. A snow virtual day, to count as an attendance day, will have to include staff and students connecting. A portion of the day may include additional activities for students to complete when not connecting in with their teacher. The building principals will be sharing scheduling information with families to plan. It will not be too much different than a remote learning day.   Staff will be working remotely so that we can clear snow on school sites.   We ask that staff do not travel to school if it is not safe to do so.  Custodians will report on-site once deemed safe to travel to clear snow. 

7. Breakfast and lunch will not be served on a full snow remote learning day.  

 

COVID Recovery Support:

The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services with support from FEMA has established a free resource for families who need counseling assistance during these challenging times.   Take a look and I hope this resource will be a benefit to you if you are looking for assistance. 

https://covidrecoveryiowa.org

 

Elks Club Presents a $5500.00 to the Grinnell Newburg School District!

We are grateful for our partners at the Elks Club who donated this money to help support some of our COVID efforts to install more water bottle stations to students and to support additional chargers to keep our devices working! Thank you Grinnell Elks Club for your support during these difficult times.   

 

Grinnell-Newburg School District to receive the first Diversity Equity and Inclusion Grant from the Greater Poweshiek County Foundation! 

We are pleased to announce, “Your request has been funded in the amount of $6,500 for the REDI project activities. Please review, sign and return the attached grant agreement and we can issue your grant award”. These dollars will be allocated for our training and curriculum projects that are underway! Thank you to our Greater Poweshiek Leaders for selecting our grant to be funded!   

 

Knocked your Socks Off Nominations.

This has become my new favorite pastime. Having the opportunity to talk with staff about their efforts and to tell their stories brings such joy. If you would like to nominate a staff member please email me at janet.stutz@grinnell-k12.org.  Thank you to everyone who is sending these stories my way!   

 

Bailey Park 1st Grade Team Knocked their sock off:

I enjoyed talking to this amazing first-grade team at Bailey Park this week as they were nominated for our fun award! Socks are on the way to keep your feet warm, as you have Knocked Your Socks Off! Here is an excerpt from the nomination. “The Bailey Park 1st grade team has made virtual learning an easy process for my family and many other students in the district. They have created a Google Site that has made it easy for parents and students to navigate. While we know that achieving independence with learning in 1st grade is difficult, these three have put the time in to ensure our families have the support and the infrastructure to make that work in our time away from school”. This first-grade team works well together and praised their students for navigating masks, routines, and expectations. They highlighted the recent Thanksgiving activity and were pleased with the students’ progress. Morgan Collum, who is new to the team, stated “ As a first-year teacher I am grateful for the support and expertise from my colleagues. I could not imagine navigating this first year without their support”!  Way to go BP 1st grade team!
 

 

Dee McKeever Success Coach Paraprofessional at GMS you have “Knocked your Socks Off”.

Dee describes her 14 years of experience as one of Joy! She shared with me how she has found joy in her work every day. “I love the families that I work with and how my students share their interests. We have an awesome connection. I am hooked on Marvel movies and Transformers! Her nomination stated, “A big shoutout to Ms. Dee who has been working with a student who has had challenges in the past to be successful! What we do matters! I am honored to be on a team that is dedicated to student success, and I am extremely thankful to have Ms. Dee working with us! Dee ensures that she checks in with students before they leave for the day, she provides breaks for students who may be having a difficult time, and her ability to build relationships with her students should be an example for us all.  Way to go Dee!   

 

 

Lisa York, Instructional Coach at Bailey Park has Knocked her socks off! 

I had the wonderful opportunity to talk to Lisa about her nomination.  Lisa supports all students and staff members. Her nominator stated, “Lisa stepped up to help her colleagues in connection with online learners and serves as a liaison for our online families. She brings Tiger Time to our online students. This is a time used to build relationships for all students (Online and on-site) and Lisa does a tremendous job connecting with online learners”. Recently, Lisa has worked to secure additional books and resources to support teachers and students in our transition to online learning for all students. Lisa also wrote and secured a grant to get staff trained by Challenge to Change to further the implementation of Yoga for K-8 students. Lisa is also a mentor and coach for the district.   Way to go Lisa!

 

 

Students Better Together!  

 

An online student and an on-site student playing a Bill of Rights game together.

 

 

Tigers are Back in Action!!!

 

Upcoming Events:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sincerely,

 

Janet