Gilbert Park Elementary Newsletter
January 5, 2022
Principal's Message
Dear Families,
I hope the new year finds you in good health and good spirits following the festivities of winter break.
Everyone in our school community has been diligently following health and safety measures to keep COVID-19 from disrupting in-person learning.
It is important to remember our communities will be living with COVID-19 until there is widespread immunity. As COVID-19 continues to change with new variants, our knowledge of mitigation efforts grows over time.
We can all agree that we want our kids in school, learning in person every day; and we all want to protect students, school staff and the families as they return each day.
It’s important to know that most COVID-19 transmission happens outside of school, (e.g., carpools, sports, community gatherings, parties, sleepovers, etc.) and then is brought into school. So, the more we can keep safety measures in place in school and at home, the more we can reduce the spread of the virus and ensure more kids stay in school.
Success means that our students are in school consistently, which they need for their health and well-being as well as for their learning. And their families need it for economic stability and their health too.
We want to remind everyone that the best tools to protect ourselves and one another are vaccination for those eligible, wearing face coverings, physical distancing, staying home if you feel sick or you know you’ve been exposed to someone with COVID-19, ventilation and airflow, and hand hygiene
Think of COVID-19 protection measures like layering up with extra coats, gloves and hats for winter weather. The more you layer up, the more protected you are.
If your child shows COVID-19 symptoms, keep them home from school until they show a negative COVID-19 test result and symptoms improve. Primary COVID Symptoms to watch for include headache, sneezing, sore throat, cough, congestion, runny nose, fatigue, fever, or loss of taste and smell. Non-primary symptoms to watch for include are nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea. To find a COVID-19 testing site, visit https://govstatus.egov.com/or-oha-covid-19-testing.
Be sure to contact our office and keep us updated about symptoms and any known exposures.
Indoor mask-wearing, physical distancing, and frequent hand washing will continue to offer multiple layers of protection from COVID-19. We plan to continue all of these practices. Please remind students of the importance of these protocols.
Thank you for all you do to protect the health and well-being of students during these challenging times.
Sincerely,
Stacie Moncrief
Principal, Gilbert Park
Upcoming Dates
January 10th - Winter SUN Classes begin
January 17th - Martin Luther King Jr. Day, No School
January 21st - Site Council Meeting, 7:45-8:30 am - Virtual
January 25th - PTA Meeting 6:30-8:00 pm - Virtual
January 28th - Teacher Work Day, No School
Test To Stay Program & COVID Testing Consent
DDSD will participate in the Test to Stay program being implemented per OHA and ODE in collaboration with MESD (Multnomah Educational Service District). For students who are not vaccinated, we will be starting the Test to Stay Program next Monday, January 10th, which will reduce the time a student is out of school to quarantine. You can help expedite the process by signing the consent form for the BinaxNOW test, which we have been offering for symptomatic students and staff in our schools since spring.
We will be sending consent forms home in next week's Wednesday Folder or you can download it at the links below, then sign it and return it to the school. If you have already signed one you do not need to do it again.
The test to stay program is intended for unvaccinated, asymptomatic individuals in a school setting where universal masking is fully in place. In the Test to Stay program, students who are exposed to COVID-19 at school can continue to come to school and will receive onsite testing on specified days during the subsequent two weeks. Students who remain asymptomatic and have negative test results will not need to quarantine.
Fully vaccinated, asymptomatic students will also be able to continue to come to school even if exposed.
SBAC Opt-Out Notice
Students in grades 3-8 and 11 will begin taking the Oregon State Assessment - Smarter Balanced English language and math assessments in March. The State of Oregon passed a law allowing parents to opt their students out of taking these assessments. A letter describing this process, as well as the importance of these assessments, will be sent home with students in grades 3-8 and mailed home to students in grade 11.
Parents/guardians who wish to opt their students out of taking this assessment are asked to come to their school, discuss the decision with your student's principal, and pick up the required opt-out form from the school office. This form must be completed and turned into the school office before assessments begin.
Medications at School
By Oregon law, if medication must be given at school, you must:
- Provide written permission (forms available at school). Any change to the medication dose or schedule will require the parent to update the medication forms and provide a current prescription from the prescriber.
- Make sure all medication (prescription and over-the-counter) is in its original container and marked with the student's name. (Ask the pharmacist for an extra bottle for school when getting prescriptions)
- All medication must be delivered to school by the parent or responsible adult designated by the parent. Students may not keep medications with them unless they have written parent permission, written prescriber permission for prescription medications, and are cleared by the principal to do so.
- Pick up the medication when it is no longer needed at school. All medication not picked up at the end of the year will be destroyed.
Weather Related School Closure
David Douglas Schools may also delay school opening for one or two hours when weather conditions are uncertain. A delayed opening will be announced similar to school closures. Delayed opening means buses will run one or two hours later than their normal schedules.
Telephones and Electronic Devices
Electronic devices may be taken away if displayed during school hours. If it is the second offense, a parent or legal guardian will be asked to pick up the device from school. Personal electronic devices are considered a distraction to the learning process when displayed during school hours.
Electronic devices used inappropriately may be subject to search of the contents of that item. Also, students who bring electronic devices to school do so at their own risk: the school is not responsible for broken, lost, or stolen items.
Looking for Past Newsletters?
Did you miss any of our past newsletters? Maybe there was something you wanted to revisit?
You can find our previous issues here:
Gilbert Park Contact Information
Email: stacie_moncrief@ddsd40.org
Website: gp.ddouglas.k12.or.us
Location: 13132 Southeast Ramona Street, Portland, OR, USA
Phone: 503-256-6531