Staff Notes
June 24, 2020
Updates as Available
Start of Year- Knowns and Unknowns
For scheduling, we are preparing for all three possibilities- 1,) fully in Person, 2) Full Distance Learning and 3) A hybrid. Given the recent move to Phase 2, and the subsequent rise in Covid cases, it is hard to predict where the state might be when August comes. Additionally, if an outbreak occurs, whether within the NHS community or large enough to spark a county response in the area, then we may look at temporary closures and want to be prepared for it all.
Full distance learning we have experienced, but this go-round would include accountability in attendance and grading, and more support for our at risk students. Additionally, we are hoping for some additional tech and teaching delivery options for our staff, which can be discussed.
Hybrid Model would likely be two days a week in person, three days at home for our students, with one of those days being a prep and site cleaning focus for our staff. There has been talk about that day being Monday or Wednesday. Additionally, conversation is around whether students will come in cohorts 2 days in a row (group 1 Tues Wed for example, group 2 Thurs Fri) or every other day.
Back to school would be just that, with added precautions and protocols if a case or exposure were reported to exist at school. We do know that school will start August 13th, and that walk through registration will likely be August 5-7th, with scheduled appointments for students.
There are major logistics with all of these, and a need for ease of transition between them as well.
Help Us Learn More about Remote Learning
Principal Update
Professional Development Opportunities This Summer
MDUSD Asynchronous Summer Professional Learning Opportunities
Thank you to all of the teachers and staff presented and who joined in our Summer Professional Learning sessions, last week. To review the session offerings and/or to view recordings of the sessions asynchronously CLICK HERE. You may also find this document located on the MDUSD website, located on the MDSUD Elementary and Secondary Distance Learning Teachers Resources Pages throughout the summer.
Black Lives Matter- Student Voice
Here is Kristina Co:
Hello, my name is Kristina Co. I am the future Northgate ASB Secretary-Treasurer and Senior Class President. Today I am here to talk about Black Lives Matter. I want to start off and say that this movement should not be controversial. It does not undermine the fact that all lives matter, it is addressing the crushing reality that black lives are often treated by the police as if they are not important.
Across MDUSD, I have observed many students as avid supporters of BLM. I have seen them at the protests while marching alongside me. I have seen them spread awareness through social media. I have talked to them about having that uncomfortable conversation with their loved ones. This is all great; however, this is not the whole student body. When my dear friend, Jojo Riley, an advocate for this movement, posted on her social media, there was a good deal of people who decided to treat this matter, which is life or death, as an opportunity to joke around. I have seen multiple MDUSD students being disrespectful and insensitive towards their peers. This is not okay and the fact that they were willing to show this type of behavior on a public platform means that they definitely have exhibited it at school. I want to urge this board and its faculty to be actively anti-discrimination. Remember that your policies are not tolerant of these types of actions. Are all of you taking the necessary approach to tell your students that this behavior is not okay? When a student says something hurtful towards their peers, do you always make the effort to tell them that that is unacceptable?
I also ask that you please include unheard voices within your English and history departments. During my freshman and sophomore years, I only was required to read one book that was written by a black author. Luckily, during my junior year, I took AP Literature with Ms. Reid, who had a whole semester dedicated to African-American literature. This was where I learned about systemic racism. It wasn’t until the eleventh grade that I learned that the black community dealt with so much with very little resources. I should have been educated on this far sooner. Sadly, my classmates outside AP Literature did not get to learn about this and a good handful of those students were the ones making a fool of themselves on Instagram. This curriculum needs to be implemented earlier. I urge you to emphasize with your English teachers to have students read from voices that are not often heard. As for history, regular world history in particular is extremely Eurocentric. Ask your world history teachers to emphasize how colonialism has left the biggest scar on third world countries, show your students that these countries are not the way they are because of poor decisions by those people, but because of Europe’s once power hungriness. In US history, ask your teachers to focus on how policy has shaped communities of color. How American policing originated from slave patrols, how the War on Crime and War on Drugs disproportionately affected black and brown people, and led to present-day mass incarceration, which also comes for people of color.
These are the lessons I hope the district will teach. Education plays a vital role in ensuring that people understand our world today. Change starts with you. Thank you.
I am grateful that you took the time to read this and I hope all you stay healthy and safe.
Kindly,
Kristina Cổ
Master Schedule Update
I plan to send those out this week, with full disclosure that changes may still occur, and if we are on a hybrid model, a new master schedule will likely need to be built with at least half of the typical class sizes, and possibly half of the days of the week.
A Note from Lyndee- School Voice Mail
I wanted to send instructions on how to check your voice mails from home.
Call the school - 925-938-0900
When you hear the greeting, enter 9+your extension. It will then ask for your passcode.
I hope you're all doing well and staying safe and healthy. Hope to see you soon!
District Communications
Some important news and information recently released from MDUSD:
- Roadmap to Reopen
- Family Survey
- Presentation and Update to the Board (Attached Below)
The new bell schedule- if things were "normal" in Fall.
Webinar Series by the CDE- English Learners
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XPW9rtNFblq78hmZuBMTxp5jE2qB51eT/view
2020-21 Academic Calendar
Northgate High School
Email: cooperk@mdusd.org
Website: http://northgatehighschool.org
Location: 425 Castle Rock Road, Walnut Creek, CA, USA
Phone: 925-938-0900
Twitter: @northgatehs