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January 2022 Return from Winter Break
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Dear SEL School Community,

I hope this communication finds you safe and well. Tuesday is the close of the first semester.  I am proud of our entire staff for their diligence and commitment in providing in person instruction thus far this school year. It has certainly been a challenging time.

I write today to communicate next steps as we continue to navigate our way through this pandemic. This past week we saw an increase of positive COVID-19 student cases in our school buildings. One main data point I look at when deciding between in person instruction and remote learning is the percentage of positive cases relative to the number of students and staff in a school building. This past week we did not reach a threshold to switch to remote learning in any of our buildings. However, we are trending in that direction, and I anticipate more positive cases to emerge. In addition, we have a large number of students being self-quarantined by parents due to family members with COVID-19.

Local health officials have indicated that we can expect the next 4 weeks to be “extremely rough” as related to community spread of the COVID-19 virus. Thus, we will pivot to remote teaching and learning from January 10 – January 17. At this time, it is expected that our students will return to school for in person instruction on Tuesday, January 18th.  We will continue to monitor positive COVID-19 cases over the next several weeks to see if the January 18th date must be extended.

Below are a few updates:
  • All staff will report to school buildings. Building principals will provide schedules and expectation of duties. 
  • Building principals will send remote learning schedules to staff, students and families by Wednesday, 12/22.
  • Mr. Williamson and Mr. Bryan will communicate any adjustments to semester exams.
  • Our District will provide meals to students for pick up during the remote learning period. You may pick up breakfast/lunch from any school, regardless of which building your child attends, between 11:30-1:00, or from a bus at our 4 remote locations -Anderson Park, Bexley Park, Quarry North Park, and Lyndhurst Community Center.
  • Athletics will continue to schedule competitions; however, fans may be limited. More information will be forthcoming from Mr. Ross and the Athletic Department.
  • If your student does not have their Chromebook at home, please contact your school to set up a time to pick it up.  All students need their Chromebooks for remote learning.
  • Please continue to contact your child’s principal over winter break to inform them of any positive COVID-19 cases. Documentation is required. 
  • We continue to track our positive cases on the district’s dashboard which is located on the district’s homepage under COVID-19 update.
Important Dates
Winter break for Students: December 22, 2021 - January 7, 2022

Winter break for Teachers/Staff: December 23 - January 6, 2022

Teacher/Staff Workday: Friday, January 7

First Day for Students (Remote Instruction): Monday, January 10

Breakfast/lunch available for pick up: January 7 - January 14, 2022 (January 17 district is closed)

Thank you for understanding the need to pivot to remote teaching and learning. I believe, given our District’s trending data as well as the information shared by local health officials, that this is the right decision to keep our students, our staff members, and our families as healthy and safe as possible.

Best wishes to you and yours for a wonderful winter break.
 
Dr. Linda N. Reid
Superintendent