KCSD & Me: Letter to Families
Important year-end information; kindergarten roundup
May 15, 2020
Dear KCSD families,
Thank you for your continued patience, grace, and extra effort in working with teachers during this challenging time.
I want to share with you the district’s thoughts and plans as we move forward. My deepest desire is to have our schools be the best place for students to learn next fall and beyond.
In March, the COVID-19 pandemic caught our nation off guard. As schools closed, districts rallied to provide distance learning to their students. Our teachers had only a few days to create online lessons, learn digital platforms and connect with students in their homes. As the school year ends, we want to shift from reacting to this crisis to preparing our teachers for next year.
To accomplish this, the district will end this academic year for students on June 3 so we can provide professional development training for teachers on our new digital instruction formats. This training will be with experts with extensive experience in distance delivery and online education.
Next fall, I fully expect that schools in our region will be conducting face-to-face instruction under social distancing guidelines. While nothing can replace the power of a teacher’s face-to-face interaction with students in a traditional classroom, digital content may be a vital part of what students will need in the coming school year.
As the school year ends, please note:
- For families using a district Chromebook, you will need to return them to your school in working order on June 4 or 5. Schools will be contacting you with a schedule of drop-off times. Devices will be remotely deactivated and will not work after June 4. A charge of $250 will be applied to your PaySchools account if devices are not returned in working order.
- High school students taking dual credit college courses will continue to have access until their courses are complete. These students will receive instructions from their teachers on when and where they should return district Chromebooks.
- The Grab and Go Meal Program will continue through June 12.
- Day care offered by the district to first responders will end on June 12.
We appreciate all you are doing at home during this time. Please encourage your students to continue to engage with their teachers and complete their assignments through the end of the school year.
Sincerely,
Glen Szymoniak
Superintendent
Klamath County School District
Please continue check our website -- http://www.kcsd.k12.or.us/ -- and Facebook -- https://www.facebook.com/KlamathCountySchoolDistrict/ for updated information, fun photos, and positive stories about district staff and students.
#BeTheLight! ☀️✨💡🔦
You should leave your light on for 20 minutes and 20 seconds for Mazama, KU, Gilchrist and Chiloquin.
Lost River and Bonanza are leaving their lights on for one minute for every graduating senior -- 41 minutes for Lost River and 27 minutes for Bonanza.
Henley High School will light up its tennis courts from 7:15 p.m. to 10 p.m. -- one minute for each of the school's 164 seniors.
Henley, Lost River, and Bonanza are turning their lights on every school night (M-F). Mazama and KU are lighting up their stadiums on Fridays, and Chiloquin on Wednesdays. Gilchrist doesn't have stadium lights but encourages the community to turn their porch lights in support. #Classof2020 #ProudtobeKCSD
Help Desk for Chromebook internet issues
The school district has set up a Help Desk for families who are having issues with connecting their Chromebooks to the internet. If you have a connectivity issue, please contact the Help Desk at 541-851-8735 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Please note: The Help Desk is for Chromebook internet issues only. For issues with assignments and software, please contact your school.
KCSD Wi-Fi hotspots
The district has installed free Wi-Fi hot spots to allow county students to download and upload assignments and access online lessons. Anyone can connect to network at kcsd-covid19. Students with Chromebooks will be automatically connected to the school-based Wi-Fi. Students with their own devices can connect to kcsd-covid19 or log in to kcsd-byd with their school email and password.
Access is available from parking lots at the following locations:
- Henley Complex
- Lost River Junior/Senior High School
- Mazama High School
- Chiloquin Junior/Senior High School
- Brixner Junior High School
- Bonanza Schools
- Gilchrist Schools
- Merrill Elementary
- Malin Elementary
- Keno Elementary
- Chiloquin Elementary
- Stearns Elementary
- Shasta Elementary
- Ferguson Elementary
- Peterson Elementary
- Gearhart School in Bly (free Wi-Fi access is available through the Klamath County Library branch based at the school)
In addition to school building parking lots, several community businesses are allowing free access to their Wi-Fi. Click here for a google map of all community locations so far.
We want to remind parents that these school and community Wi-Fi access sites will not be supervised. The district prefers parents accompany students, and that students and parents stay in their vehicles while using the service.