Today is the first day of spring. Now that winter and flu season are behind us, I expect attendance to return to pre-COVID levels. Since the January surge, our average daily attendance has steadily increased, week by week. Thank you for sending your children to school when they are feeling well and thanks for keeping them home when they are not feeling well.

We only had six positive COVID cases this week among students and only one positive case among staff. We are getting healthy and back to normal. In my school visits this week I observed a majority of students still wearing a face mask. Most students told me they were being cautious to protect themselves, and others. Students were respectful of each other's choice and few problems specifically related to masking were reported. Thank you parents for reinforcing that message. Our students are awesome!

Spring marks the beginning of the event season. Leading to promotion and graduation. We are planning to hold all of the usual spring and year-ending events, one event at a time, considering the conditions at that point in time and the environment (indoor v. outdoor, number of people, etc...). Traditional high school graduation ceremonies are scheduled to be held at Zack Earp Stadium on the campus of Norte Vista High School on the following dates:

Alvord High School & Alternative Education Center - May 23, 2022

Norte Vista High School - May 24, 2022

La Sierra High School - May 25, 2022

Hillcrest High School - May 26, 2022

Middle school promotion ceremonies will also return to Zack Earp Stadium this year. The eighth grade Class of 2020 and the Class of 2021 promoted on their middle school campuses.

Spring Break begins next Monday, March 28. When students return to school on Monday, April 4, there will be 39 days left in the school year. Channeling students’ energy in positive ways through play, activities, and events are among the primary strategies schools have always used to reduce student restlessness throughout the school year and especially as we enter the home stretch when spring fever sets in. But with COVID restrictions it's been more of a challenge to conduct certain activities. It's not surprising that we have seen an increase in suspensions and other disciplinary actions. But now that COVID restrictions are being relaxed we will be able to increase engagement as we get school back to normal.

How can you help? Please talk to your children about decision-making and impulse control. Talk about social media, too. It has become highly influential on young people. Social media consumption among children and teenagers has become a risk beyond what most adults realize, according to experts studying the impact of social media on children and teenagers. The influence of social media is powerful, as witnessed by the number of elementary through high school students getting caught up in #challenges and other social media influences.

Our focus is on prevention. We are routinely reteaching behavior expectations and reminding students of the virtues of positive behavior. We are also reminding students of the consequences of negative behavior. We also recognize that many students have experienced trauma and other problems in their lives due to the pandemic and other family, societal, or personal issues that students are not equipped to handle effectively on their own. All of our schools have counseling services on site. There is support. We also have partnerships with a variety of agencies that provide services to students and their families.

If you believe your child might be experiencing depression or other mental health challenges, please contact your school's administration. We are here for you.

On behalf of your Board of Education, we believe every child deserves a high-quality educational experience in safe and supportive schools. Thank you for partnering with us. Together we can provide each and every one of our students the opportunity to succeed.

Stay healthy. Be well.

Sincerely,

Allan Mucerino

Our two after-school programs are HALF-Time (K-5) and PRIME-Time (6-8). They are available M-F from school dismissal until 6:00 PM. The programs provide FREE academic support, homework assistance and enrichment activities like art, crafts, music, sports and STEM (Science Technology, Engineering, and Math) along with a nutritious meal. Please register your Kindergarten through 8th grade students soon as space is limited. Sign up here in English and here in Spanish.

As of Friday, March 18. Cases were down for the six consecutive week.

Monday - Friday:

• 6 students (down from 16 the previous week)
• 1 staff members (the same as the previous week)

Contact Tracing:

• 63 students identified
• 7 students placed in full quarantine

Overall, as of March 18, including the first semester, we have had 389 staff members and 3,229 students report a positive test for COVID-19. Stay current with our case rate by regularly tracking our COVID-19 Data Dashboard and FAQ here. Cases recorded on the Dashboard are confirmed by Riverside County Public Health officials and remain on the Dashboard for 14 days.

This past week in Riverside County, there were 256 new cases (0.04% increase), equating to 4.5 cases per 100K (7-day average), 8 new deaths (0.1% increase), and a 2.2% test positivity (7-day rate), a 0.3% decrease from the previous week. Since many people are now testing at home with antigen rapid tests, the positivity rate is estimated to be much higher since all cases are not reported. There are currently 98 COVID-19 hospitalized patients, 14 more patients hospitalized from the prior day total (16.7% increase).

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's newly created Community Level COVID-19 rating system, the community level in Riverside County remains Low. The Community Levels are a new tool to help communities decide what prevention steps to take based on the latest data. Levels can be low, medium, or high and are determined by looking at hospital beds being used, hospital admissions, and the total number of new COVID-19 cases in an area.

This data is as of March 20, 2022, as reported on the State's tracking web site.