Superintendent's Corner 😀 🏫 😆
Avoca School District 37 - January 8, 2021
Welcome to 2021! In this New Year Issue...
- Returning to Hybrid Schedule on January 19 - important reminders
- Metrics for Making Decisions - Minor Revisions and New Emphasis
- Looking Ahead - Preferences for Onsite Learning (only a survey)
- New COVID testing site in Glenview
- Process for Learning Schedule Changes for 2021 - 2022 School Year
- Student Spotlights - 7th grade filmmakers
Hybrid Learning Returns on January 19 - Important Reminders
For onsite learners following the Hybrid Schedule, please remember:
>All students must wear a mask at all times
>All students on buses and at school should maintain appropriate social distance at all times
>Students must stay home if they:
- Display COVID like symptoms
- Have been exposed to a COVID positive person
- Have a household member who is symptomatic or COVID positive
- Have traveled out of state within the last 10 days (based on new IDPH guidance)
In all of the above cases when a student must stay home, please contact the school nurse as quickly as possible, including if you or anyone in your household has tested positive for COVID.
COVID-related Metrics for Making Decisions - Minor Revisions
While COVID rates increased to higher rates than previously projected in mid and late November, the rates of COVID in our schools did not increase. Our mitigation - masks, distance, the hybrid schedule, quarantining when symptomatic, quarantining after exposure to positive cases, quarantining after travel - these steps kept COVID out of the schools.
So what does this mean?
As long as our mitigation steps are in place, the external COVID numbers can be higher for a longer period of time before they have an effect on our operations. And our operations - mainly having enough staff to operate school - is most effected by people having to quarantine in order to keep us all safe.
With this in mind, I have made two meaningful changes to the metrics I use to guide decisions about what schedule to have in place - Hybrid (onsite) or Full Remote. First, a greater emphasis on internal operational metrics - largely around staffing - will continue. Second, the external metrics influencing decision making will be largely based on a sustained higher rate of cases and positivity rates, meaning I will look at how high these rates are over a 10-14 day period before moving a metrical category from grey (hybrid) to red (remote).
You will see these changes reflected in the dashboard I post on January 13.
Looking Ahead - A Brief Survey About Onsite Learning
Prior to that, here we are publishing a brief survey to assess preferences for types of onsite learning. As we did at the beginning of the year, we outlined that onsite learning could be in the form of our current hybrid model ("A" days and "B" days) or we could have a Modified Onsite Daily model where our students came every day. Whether we are able to do this will be a matter of health, safety, and especially how enrollment makes it possible to operate school safely.
Every family should take this brief survey, which will be sent out again separately, no later than Sunday, January 17. PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR THE PREFERENCE SURVEY.
New Testing COVID site in Glenview
The Process for Learning Schedule Changes for 2021-22
That being said, the Board of Education has asked me to draft a revised schedule for next year as a result of our most recently negotiated contract with the Avoca Education Association (AEA), the teachers' union. You can see the Board memo requesting that Administration draft a revised schedule for next year, by clicking here. As you can read, the Board is not seeking large-scale changes to the schedule for next year.
Any schedule that is drafted - before the Board approves it - must be reviewed by a committee of teachers, parents, and administrators. The PTC will select 6 parents, and the AEA will select 6 teachers. Through surveys, that committee will seek feedback from stakeholder groups, and will then issue a report to the Board of Education outlining the relative advantages and disadvantages of any schedule changes, prior to the Board's approval.
Please be on the lookout next month for more information and surveys on this topic.
Click on links below for student movie trailers as part of a project in Ms. Janssen's 7th grade Drama course.
Eladi Yoshioka - Winner for "Best Trailer"
Avery Anderson - Winner for "Best Cinematography"
Daniel Gelfgat - Winner for "Best Acting"
Connect with Us
Email: osburnk@avoca37.org
Website: www.avoca37.org
Location: 2921 Illinois Road, Wilmette, IL, USA
Phone: 847-728-4128
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/avoca.schools37
Twitter: @AvocaOsburn