#KSD Ready & Resilient
Update from Kuna Superintendent Wendy Johnson
9.11.2020
- Gradual return to full time learning
October Calendars
Elementary K-2
Elementary 3-5
Middle School
High School
Surprise! If you are paying for school meals - read this
Did you get a Pandemic EBT letter? It's not a scam
Putting parents first to watch athletes compete
COVID Cases Update
Gradual return to full time learning
Nineteen years ago, terrorists attacked our country, and our nation came together to rebuild.
Today, our community has come together to fight another enemy--COVID-19. Our actions as a community have made it possible for us to begin the process of returning our children to school full time. I find it fitting that I am able to announce our plan to return to school on this very important day in our nation's history.
I shared with the Board of Trustees Tuesday that the improvement in the health of our community means that we can move cautiously forward with our plan to fully reopen schools. Please watch the video for more information. Here are the highlights:
- We'll start with our youngest learners-- K-2 will be attending full time starting Oct. 5
- Students in grades 3-5 would start full time Oct. 19.
- We'll begin looking at how to best return our secondary student to full time, but that won't be until after October.
The plan depends on:
the spread of the virus continuing to remain in the moderate or yellow category
continued use of physical distancing within cohorts, hand washing, use of face coverings, and staying home when sick
We expect there will be bumps into the road. Thank you parents for your patience and understanding as we transition from the hybrid to daily learning at school.
Thank you to our staff for being flexible and for all your hard work as we pivot from hybrid to full time with safety measures in place.
The calendars below show what we're planning for October.
Elementary K-2 October 2020
- Sept. 30 - No school students K-8. In-service day for teachers
- Oct. 12 - In school day. On previous calendars was an in-service day for teachers
- Fridays - 2 hour early release for teacher collaboration
- No Parent Teacher Conferences
Elementary Grades 3-5 October 2020
- Sept. 30 - No school students K-8. In-service day for teachers
- First two weeks: Blue/Gold Schedule
- Oct. 12 - In school day. On previous calendars was an in-service day for teachers
- Last two weeks: All day every day schedule
- Last two Fridays - 2 hour early release for teacher collaboration
- No Parent Teacher Conferences
Middle School October 2020
- Sept. 30 - No school students K-8. In-service day for teachers
- Oct. 12 - In school day. On previous calendars was an in-service day for teachers
- Full month: Blue/Gold Schedule
- No Student Led Conferences
High School October 2020
- Sept. 30 - Blue Day students attend school
- Oct. 9 - Gold Day students attend school
- Oct. 12 - In school day. On previous calendars was an in-service day for teachers
- Oct. 14 - Students in person for PSAT, SAT; Non-tested students E-Day
- Oct. 16 - Blue Day students attend school
- No Parent Teacher Conferences
Surprise! If you are paying for school meals - read this
We were notified by the state that we can extend our summer food program from Sept. 1 through hopefully December depending on funding.
This program allows us to provide free meals (breakfast/lunch combos) to children ages 1-18. This includes children receiving meals at school, too.
We plan to return payments for meals made after the program started on Sept. 1 and students will not be charged for meals during this time.
This program also allows for us to provide the pre-order meals for remote learning days at no charge.
Did you get a Pandemic EBT letter? It's not a scam
Families of children who last spring were eligible for free or reduced priced meals should have received a letter from the Idaho Department of Health & Welfare this month about a one-time benefit. This is not a scam.
Here's what is happening:
- This benefit is called Pandemic Electronic Benefit (P-EBT) and is a one-time payment of $302.10 per child.
- The criteria used to determine eligibility for P-EBT is based on whether a child was eligible and enrolled in the School Meal Program (free or reduced school lunch) through the Idaho school system on March 23, 2020, when schools were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- The intent of this one-time payment is to replace the value of free/reduced lunches children would have received during the time Idaho schools were closed.
Putting parents first to watch athletes compete
Central District Health’s change from red category to yellow means group sizes can increase from 10 to 50 allowing us to implement our plan to allow spectators within limits.
The limits are necessary to prevent the spread of the virus and avoid potential fines for not following health department guidance.
Our Board approved a plan that allows a limited number of spectators to attend competitions. The top priority for the spots are parents of the athletes -- this includes blended families.
Student athletes will be provided vouchers for their parents. Parents will need to check in and present their voucher when paying their admission at the game. Vouchers are only for moms and dads and are non transferable. We will work to provide more tickets for extenuating circumstances when possible. Please contact the district Athletic Director Tracy Donaldson at tdonaldson@kunaschools.org.
Spectators will be required to wear face coverings and sit in designated areas in our facilities.
Cheerleaders and pep band are not classified within the spectator limit of 50 so we will now be able to include cheerleaders and pep band as participants in competitions.
Other schools may approach this phase differently, and we will work to communicate with you what the school-specific guidelines are.
Please remember that with small crowds, voices will carry. Please make your voice a positive one. We are excited for our season to continue and for parents to be able to watch their student in person!
What to do when a student or staff member is ill
With the change in the health alert status in Ada County from red to yellow, we will use different protocols deciding how to respond to illness during this time of moderate community spread.
If your child or one of our staff members become ill, please consult this decision guide (shown above and downloadable below) to determine what steps to take. When in doubt, please err on the side of caution. Get tested. Stay home when sick. Stay home until you are symptom-free for 24 hours without medication.
When you or anyone in your household tests positives for COVID, your children -- even if they are not sick -- must stay home for at least 14 days or as directed by the local health department.
COVID-19 update
Included in this week's data is a positive case where the individual became sick while on the Labor Day weekend but the student was not contagious while at school and the student's illness did not impact anyone else at school.
As in last week's data, we aren't including individuals who are quarantining because someone in the family -- say a mom or dad -- became ill, requiring all close contacts in the household to stay home whether they are sick or not.
Our purpose in monitoring COVID-19 cases is to help us understand if our measures -- face coverings, hand washing, physical distancing of cohorts, etc. -- are working, so we don't have to quarantine an entire school and learning and student activities can continue.
Thank you all for your efforts. We had a great week!
Superintendent Wendy Johnson
Email: ksdcommunications@kunaschools.org
Website: www.kunaschools.org
Location: 711 East Porter Street, Kuna, ID, USA
Phone: 208-922-1000
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Kuna-Jt-School-District-No-3
Twitter: @Supt_Wendy_J