Hello NT Families,

I am proud to say that school year 2021-22 has officially begun! We welcomed our incoming freshman and returning sophomore students back to school, despite some obstacles from mother nature! It was an exciting day to finally meet the class of 2025 in-person. Our first full day of school for all students went very well, as students were able to meet their teachers and greet classmates! We did make a small adjustment to the daily schedule, which can be found on our website and this newsletter. This change allows for social distancing and will provide more time for students to eat their lunch. We created a freshman/sophomore lunch period as well as a junior/senior lunch period and moved Advisory to the beginning of the day on Tuesdays. This week, students had the opportunity to meet their advisor and advisory classmates where they spent time getting to know one another, learned how to use their lockers and completed a college/career survey for our school counselor. Overall, it was a great start to the school year, and I look forward to creating more great days for our students and staff!

In partnership,

Bonnie Felske

Contact Information

NEW TECH ABSENCE REPORTING:

To report an absence* for an NTZB student, call (847) 731- 9813.

*Covid-related absences should be reported directly to Ms. McKenzie at (847) 731-9804.

ZION-BENTON TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT 126 CRITERIA FOR QUARANTINE:

Unvaccinated Students

• Unvaccinated students who are exposed to COVID-19 (within 3ft for more than 15 minutes) must quarantine for 10 calendar days.
• Unvaccinated students who test positive for COVID-19 will need to quarantine for 10 calendar days and be symptom free prior to returning to school.

Vaccinated Students

• Vaccinated students who are exposed to COVID-19 DO NOT need to quarantine unless symptomatic. If symptomatic, students will need to secure a negative COVID test to return to school.
• Vaccinated students who test positive for COVID-19 must quarantine for 10 calendar days and be symptom free prior to returning to school.

DISTRICT CRITERIA FOR REMOTE INSTRUCTION

Remote Learning for Quarantined Students

• All students who are quarantined due to COVID-19 exposure or a positive test will have access to remote instruction for the duration of the quarantine period.
• Remote instruction will consist of the student accessing all class materials via the school’s learning management system (Canvas at ZBTHS and ECHO at New Tech) and access to the live daily lessons by way of attending class via Zoom during assigned class times.

UPDATED MASK GUIDANCE FOR ZION-BENTON DISTRICT 126 SCHOOLS:

Throughout the pandemic we have been committed to ensuring the safety and wellness of our school community. Following the state mandate issued by the Governor of Illinois, ZBTHS D126 will require all persons entering the building to wear a mask effective immediately regardless of vaccination status.

Exceptions for staff: while eating, when alone in a room or in small groups of vaccinated people that can maintain more than 6ft of social distance.

District 126 worked diligently last year to implement multiple mitigation strategies to keep students, families, and staff healthy and well. These mitigation strategies worked well in preventing the spread of COVID-19, and the following will continued to be implemented during the 2021-2022 school year, including:

• Daily cleaning and disinfecting;
• Contact tracing in conjunction with quarantining;
• Promoting good hand hygiene;
• Increased airflow/ventilation in school buildings;
• Maintaining social distancing of at least 3 feet in classrooms to the extent possible.
• Staying home when sick
• Directional Traffic Flow (stay to the right, please)
• Exploring Onsite Covid Testing Options

BACK-TO-SCHOOL UPDATES / Actualizaciones de regreso a clases:

Official Message from District 126 (August 4, 2021)

Stay up-to-date on the latest school events!

• Weekly announcements from each campus
• Official school calendar (For a downloadable full year calendar, click here.)