Mariner Memo
March 13, 2020
This Week at Marine City Middle...
I never imagined that I would be writing a newsletter like this, but we now sit at the table of an unprecedented situation for our school, district, state, and country. Starting on Monday, March 16th and running to Sunday, April 5th, Marine City Middle School will join all K-12 schools across the state in closing our doors in an effort to mitigate the spread of this virus. While this has been a difficult decision, it is one that is based on the most up-to-date information and is necessary for us to work toward recovery and rebuilding.
The cancellation of school does coincide with our Spring Break, meaning that we are currently scheduled to be missing 10 days of school. In East China, we understand that not everyone has access to high speed internet and the same resources of others. We will not be going to an online format during this school cancellation, but we will have reading opportunities and other educational activities available to our learners. These will be coming out in the near future and will be posted to our site and/or emailed out.
We don't have to look too far back, as little as last year, to note an extended absence from our school curriculum. Last winter was a brutal one for our state and our area, with almost three weeks of school called off due to snowy and icy conditions. We made educational adjustments and our teachers did what they do best, instructing our students and preparing them with the excellence they always do. Just like last winter, we will make it through this and our students will learn.
I know that there will be a lot of questions over the next couple of days and weeks and we will do our very best to answer them for you. As everyone is making the necessary adjustments to our rapidly changing and fluid situation, some of the questions that will inevitably arise will be about events and activities that were scheduled during the next three weeks. The short answer is that all of these activities will be suspended for the time being. The long answer is that we will be looking at each of these items on an individual basis and be making the best determination possible about the potential for rescheduling. Every aspect of what we do here at Marine City Middle School will be altered by this situation. The things that kids most look forward to here at school, things like Drama, Band, Athletics, etc. have all been put on hold. Our traditions and activities will all be looked at in the upcoming weeks.
While your family is working through this crisis it may be helpful to have a resource to reference when you are talking to them. The link below is good one for talking about and keeping up with COVID-19.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/schools-childcare/talking-with-children.html
As more information develops we will keep you in the loop to the furthest extent possible through email communication and posts to the East China District website.
I will close with saying that in my 8 years in this area I have learned a lot about our community. We are a strong, tough, and resilient community. I am confident that we will use these traits to persevere through this terribly difficult time.
Stay healthy, safe, and strong Marine City.
-Mr. Ming
• We are so excited to announce how our first week went collecting for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Online we have raised $110 so far and we have raised $580.22 overall! Congratulations to Mrs. Ellis’, Mrs. Patterson’s, Mrs. Smith’s and Mrs. Tomasek’’s class for bringing the most donations during the first week!... and to Jeremy Parker for raising the most money last week. Stay tuned for updates from the second week.Keep bringing in those coins and dollars for next week!
Youth Advisory Council - Student Grant Writing Opportunity
The Youth Advisory Council (YAC) is a group of students representing most high schools in St. Clair County. They are empowered to create a positive role model for youth as philanthropists, assess local youth needs, review grant applications and advise the Community Foundation on youth grant awards.
They want to give the youth in our area an opportunity to give back by writing a grant to be evaluated and possibly funded. If you are interested in participating, read the informational flyer below and pick up a registration packet in the main office.
Congratulations to our Girls Basketball Teams on Great Seasons!
Congratulations to all of the players and the coaches on great seasons!