SLCS District Update
May 13, 2021
Note from the Superintendent
Hello SLCS Families and Staff Members,
Members of the District leadership team participated in student focus groups held at SLHS , SLEHS, CMS and MMS over the past couple of weeks. Each school identified 10-20 students representing a cross-section of the student body. The conversations centered around a variety of topics including what makes their school a special place, what students envision school to be like next year, what supports students need for the remainder of the school year, and what support they anticipate needing for the upcoming school year.
We met for approximately an hour with each group and the conversation was phenomenal. The students were respectful, insightful, sensible, and thoughtful in their comments. We will incorporate much of their feedback into our planning for the upcoming school year. It is a long held belief of mine that anyone who is critical of today's youth, simply doesn't have the pleasure of being able to interact with them on a regular or meaningful basis. Our students are awesome!
Social media has definitely changed the way we communicate and share and receive information. It can be both a blessing and a curse. Please note that information shared on social media that doesn’t come directly from South Lyon Community Schools may not be accurate. Recently there have been posts which have misrepresented the District’s plans for the 2021-22 school year and it is important that this information be clarified.
It is the District’s intention to offer two pathways for the 2021-22 school year (100% virtual and 100% in-person). We anticipate maintaining many of the mitigation strategies that have been effective this year including our cleaning protocols and proper hygiene practices. We will continue to follow any required orders and strongly consider recommendations from health agencies such as the CDC, MDHHS, and OCHD. The expectation is to have as few restrictions in place as possible while maintaining a safe environment for students and staff. If conditions change for the worse, we have the infrastructure, processes, and procedures established from this year to fall back on should the circumstances call for it.
COVID related data is currently trending in a favorable direction. Cases are dropping in our area and across the state, more people are getting vaccinated, and we continue to learn how to manage life effectively in a pandemic. The fight is far from over, but we have used patience, perseverance, adaptability, collaboration, and cooperation to position ourselves for a positive end to this year and a strong start to next year.
In closing, if you didn’t attend the SLHS musical last weekend, you missed out. “Bravo!” to the SLHS cast and crew who put on a sensational show, Totally 80’s Party. What an enjoyable way to spend an evening!
SLCS Strong,
Steve Archibald
2021-2022 Pathway Reminder
*Please note if a pathway selection is not completed by by Friday, May 14, 2021 at midnight., the default selection will be for in-person learning.
If you would like to enroll your child in the In-Person Pathway for the 2021-2022 school year, please complete the In-Person Pathway form in Skyward using this link to log into Skyward.
If you would like to enroll your child in the Virtual Learning Pathway for the 2021-2022 school year, please complete the Virtual Learning Pathway form in Skyward using this link to log into Skyward.Secondary Families
Summer Programming Update
High School - Please look for registration forms to officially enroll in our credit recovery program soon! Seats will be limited and will be available on a first come, first served basis. We will create a waitlist for those students who register after all available seats have been filled. As a reminder, this program is for students who need credit recovery and are a current high school student in grades 9-12.
Middle School - Please look for registration forms to officially register for our jump-start experience soon! Seats will be limited and will be available on a first come, first served basis. We will create a waitlist for those students who register after all available seats have been filled. As a reminder, this program is for incoming 6-8th graders for the 2021-2022 school year.
Special Education
The Special Education Department is excited to have the Summer Experience return face to face this year. In light of the pandemic, we have made a couple changes to our Summer Experience. Students will be able to attend 5 days a week for a total of 3 weeks. This year, teachers will be focusing on literacy activities 3 days a week (Monday/Wednesday/Friday) and social emotional learning activities 2 days a week (Tuesday/Thursday). The registration links are below:
Elementary/Middle School Summer Experience Registration Form
High School and Adult Transition Summer Experience Registration Form
Food Service
Lunch will be offered, free, to all students who are attending in person class.
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday: Meals are set up as a “Grab and Go” with choices of hot or cold entrees. A free meal consists of entrée, fruit, vegetable and milk.
Wednesday’s Lunch is offered as a “Take Home” to all students every Tuesday. Students can stop by outside the cafeteria on Tuesday’s after school to pick up Wednesday lunch and 5 breakfasts.
Tuesday “Take Home” meals consist of:
(5) Breakfast, (5) Juice and (5) 8oz Milk
(1) Lunch, (1) Fruit, (1) Vegetable and (1) 8oz Milk
Ala Carte Milk: .50 cents (Milk is only free with a school lunch.)
Supply Chain Struggles: Menu is subject to change, if product is not available from the manufacturer. Menu items will be replaced with something similar or a different item.
Menu is located on the District Website under the Food Service Department.
Food distribution is available for all students not attending in person class, whether 100% virtual or quarantined, on Wednesday from 4:30-6:00 at South Lyon High School door 11.
P-EBT cards have been mailed out to families that qualify. Question & Answer Sheet, along with Help Desk phone number and email address are posted on the District Website under Food Service. Please direct questions to the MDHHS Help Desk
(833) 905-0028.
P-EBT cards are issued to families who are Free/Reduced through Direct Certification or have a current Free/Reduced application on file for SY 2020 - 2021. Families can fill-out a Free/Reduced form on-line via the District website or email a signed, hard copy to myers-trentc@slcs.us.
Transportation
Reminder that students will need to keep their face mask on during the entire ride to/from school.
Students are assigned a seat by the driver. When possible, they will be seated with a sibling. It is possible students may be seated with someone they do not know.
Drivers will try to space students out, however there are some routes where social distancing is not possible. It is important to use hand sanitizer and keep face mask on the entire ride to/from school.
Remember to not send your student on the bus/to school if they are showing symptoms of illness.
Note: In regards to bus drivers wearing face masks - there may be situations where it is not safe for the bus driver to wear a facial covering. If it hinders their driving in any way, they are allowed to pull it down.
Wellness - School Nurses
SLCS Shout-Out
This week’s SLCS Shout-out goes to Transportation Manager Cindy Helton. Cindy works tirelessly, long hours, and weekends for this department. She faces many obstacles including COVID-19 processes, driver and staff shortages, and still manages to put a plan in place each morning, mid-day, and afternoon to get the students to school as efficiently and timely as possible under the current circumstances.
She's pretty amazing!