Dear Burke High Families,

We are approaching the month of May! This is the time of year that we recognize the academic accomplishments of our students. This year has been challenging for everyone and for those students who were able to adjust to the changes while maintaining academic excellence are to be commended. We are communicating many of these academic recognition events within this weekly update. Congratulations to our students who have maintained high academic standards.

In-person events will be limited to 25% capacity as we follow guidelines for keeping us safe and healthy. Due to capacity limits, we will have a variation of in-person and virtual recognitions. We appreciate your flexibility and support.

We have transitioned to 5 day in-person learning. It is nice to see our students in the building learning together. Students and teachers are seeing faces they have not seen in quite some time and the reunions have been wonderful. We appreciate our students complying with our safety protocols of properly wearing masks throughout the day. We know that social distancing is a challenge and we are doing the best we can to maintain distance. Mask wearing, hand sanitizing and disinfecting high touch areas continues to be a focus for us.

Transition to Five Days of In-Person Learning:

High schools transitioned to in-person learning five days per week.

The Remote Learning Program will continue to be available for families who feel it is best at this time. If you would like to change how your student is learning, whether it is in person or through the Remote Learning Program, please contact your student’s school.

As we continue through the second semester, schools or classrooms may need to temporarily shift to remote learning based on contact tracing in our schools or community conditions. Our focus is a responsible transition to serving students five days per week in-person.

Learning Group Assignments:

If you would like to change a student’s current Learning Group Assignment or have any questions concerning a Learning Group Status of a student, please contact Chad.Price@ops.org.

College planning for our seniors is on-going and can be stressful. We are providing our senior students and families an opportunity to connect with our counselors weekly to get assistance with college planning. Senior students and families can join the Burke College Channel within TEAMS and connect with our counselors every Tuesday and Thursday from 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m.

We know we have health and safety protocols in school. What we do outside of our school doors will most likely determine whether we are learning together or remotely. Please do your part to limit the spread of Covid-19 in our communities.

Please check into our school website frequently for any updated information. We will also update this link with important information.

We are providing updated information to this link weekly to help keep our students and families informed of information related to remote learning and the return to in-person learning at Burke High School.

We are writing with important information about teaching and learning on Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Reflecting our commitment to the health and safety of our students, staff and their families, Burke High School will transition to Remote Learning on May 11 for the City of Omaha General Election.

Students who are registered to take Advanced Placement Exams on Tuesday, May 11 will report in-person to Burke High School. Buses will run accordingly for those individual students needing student transportation.

We are making this transition because of the anticipated increase in turnout for the election. Our school serves as a polling site.

The transition to Remote Learning is limited to our school and the district schools designated as polling sites. All other schools in our district will attend in-person, as scheduled, on May 11.

Since our students will be learning remotely on May 11, Nutrition Services will offer Meals2Go for pickup outside our school from 8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

Health and safety are paramount. We truly appreciate your ongoing support of Burke High School and Omaha Public Schools. If you have questions or concerns, please call our school office at 531-299-2580.

We are excited about the opportunity to have an in-person graduation at Baxter Arena on Wednesday, May 26 at 7:00 p.m. at the Baxter Arena. Baxter Arena is located at 2425 S 67th Street in Omaha. Our graduation rehearsal is scheduled for Tuesday, May 25th at 9:00 a.m.

**Each Burke graduate will be provided 4 tickets for their families and supporters**

**Graduation ceremonies will be live-streamed for those family members unable to attend** A link will be sent as we get closer to the event.

Important Dates for Seniors:

April 7-9: Cap and Gown Distribution during lunches. Remote students can pick up their Cap and Gown in the main office starting April 7, between 7:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. in the main office.

May 12: Odd day final exams for seniors

May 13: Even day final exams for seniors

With the return to 5 day in-person instruction, we will continue to enforce wearing masks at all times unless eating or drinking in the cafeteria. Hand sanitizing frequently, washing hands with soap and water, and social distancing as much as possible throughout the day will be important for all of us. We appreciate this cooperation to help us all stay healthy.

Seniors: This letter was sent home this week and we are also including it within this weekly memo to keep you all informed of important dates as we close out this school year. An attached letter is below:

We are excited about the opportunity to provide a prom experience this year. We are planning a junior-senior prom and have secured Lauritzen Gardens as our outdoor venue. We would like to thank our philanthropic support to allow our students to have this experience for free. Our junior-senior prom will be held on Saturday, May 8th from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

The guidelines for attending our and other Omaha Public School junior/senior proms are outlined below:

* Only in-person learning students are eligible to attend prom

* Students must be transitioned to 5 day in-person learning by the start of the 4th quarter, which is March 15th.

* Attending prom is limited to Burke junior and senior students. Guests of Burke junior and senior students must be an in-person Omaha Public Schools student. Students from other districts are not eligible to attend our Burke sponsored prom.

* Winter graduates of Burke High School will be able to attend

* There is no cost for juniors and seniors to attend. Pre-registration information will be shared soon.

* This will be an outdoor event and masks will be required

This year, OPS will host a Say Yes to the Prom Dress Donation Drive in partnership with Max I. Walker, Von Maur, Dillard’s and the Omaha Public Schools Foundation. Now through April 9, we are accepting new or gently-used prom dresses in a range of sizes. Donations will be accepted in the lobby of the Teacher Administration Center (3215 Cuming St.) between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. A donation receipt from OPSF will be provided. Members of our greater community are welcome to donate as well.

We care deeply about our students. Our district hopes to remove potential barriers that might prevent an eligible student from participating in prom. On Saturday, April 17, students can come to the TAC Boardroom to select a dress of their choice.

Pre-registration for the event will be required to ensure adherence to local health and safety guidelines. More details will be forthcoming.

Online Payment is a reliable and secure electronic payment processing solution for fees and fines transactions. The Infinite Campus Online Payment will be launched next week on April 15th. At that time, parents or guardians can set up a payment method and select fees to pay through their Campus Parent Portal account.

Parents or guardians must have a Campus Parent account to do this. If a parent or guardian needs to set up their account, they should contact their child's school.

We are asking parents/guardians to please call our attendance office 30 minutes in advance of checking a student out of school for various reasons. Please contact our attendance office at 531-299-2588 to allow us adequate time to contact your student and have them check out of school. Due to the school day ending at 3:05 p.m., we cannot guarantee communication between the office and the student after 2:45 p.m. We appreciate this cooperation.

We are sharing our Standard Response Protocols for school safety to help us all know the common language, common protocols, and common signage. We have practiced our shelter drill with our teachers so they know where to lead students in the event of a tornado warning and we have practiced fire drills. The other actions for safety are a lockout, lockdown, and an evacuation. The standard response protocols are consistent across the Omaha Public Schools, are simpler to train for, and easily understood. Signage is posted in classrooms, hallways, and high traffic areas.

School safety is everyone's responsibility and we will continue to review, reflect and practice our standard response protocols. We monitor and screen visitors entering/exiting our main entrance and badges are worn at all times for employees.

We are sharing our April and May monthly calendars that includes the A/Odd and B/Even day rotations for planning.

The Omaha Public Schools College & Career Academies and Pathways comes after an evaluation and refocus of current programming. It builds on what has been working well and where we can grow. It ensures students gain real-world career experience while maintaining the foundation of core classes and access to advanced academics, fine arts and electives. All high schools will remain comprehensive.

Proposed Academies and Pathways

The Omaha Public Schools College & Career Academies and Pathways align with high skill, high wage, in-demand future jobs. They give students the opportunity to explore a potential career field while gaining skills that will be beneficial in the next chapter of their story. In Omaha Public Schools, some high schools will offer academies, while others offer pathways. The experiences are what students make of them.

Proposed Freshman Academy

Our District recognizes the important transition from middle school to high school. As all OPS students enter their high school journey, they will participate in Freshman Academy. They will explore careers and focus on skills for success in high school and beyond.

Selecting an Academy or Pathway

During their freshman year, students will select an academy or a pathway at their school. Students in both academies and pathways take their core classes (English, math, social studies and science) along with career-focused classes and electives. Student choices are what determine the differences in high school experience. To understand the options, we have provided a definition below:

• Academies are a small learning community with a career focus. Groups of students with a similar career interest take classes together. Career-focused classes proceed from one to the next in a series.

• Pathways are a series of four or more classes focused on a group of related careers, or cluster. Students in a pathway take classes with a wide range of other students across career interests.

Advanced Academics

In both academies and pathways, students will have fun, engaging and hands-on learning opportunities. No matter which academy or pathway a student selects, they will have access to advanced academic courses through a variety of programs that include advanced placement, Cambridge, International Baccalaureate or Dual Enrollment. The specific offerings will be based on their high school.

Elective Courses

Our District believes it is important for students to have a well-rounded education. All students will continue to have access to a variety of electives that include the performing and fine arts, world languages, JROTC and other extra-curricular activities.

The Academies of Burke High School

● Freshman Academy
● Air and Space Academy
● Leadership Academy
● Communications Academy

What are Academies and Pathways? Check out these links for additional information.

https://district.ops.org/DEPARTMENTS/Curriculum-and-Instruction-Support/High-School-Programming

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yfD9maPPjo&feature=youtu.be

We have attached a downloadable PDF of our bell schedule when as we return to in-person learning and for our remote students. This will be an alternating Odd/Even day block schedule.

We are offering after-school virtual tutoring to students who are interested. This tutoring will be provided on Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday from 3:15 p.m. - 5:15 p.m. Students must sign up for an appointment with one of the tutors through Bookings. Information and links to Bookings are on our school website (within the daily bulletin) and included in this update. After booking an appointment, students will receive an email with a link to the Team for the tutoring. Subject areas include: English, math, science, technology support, ELL, French, and Spanish. Each slot is for 30 minutes. If you have addition questions, Laura Geiger can assist my emailing her at Laura.Geiger@ops.org

Click the DogHouse Bulletin for link to tutoring sign up:

https://burke.ops.org/

Teachers take attendance daily at the start of the day & in each secondary class. We ask families to help make sure students are on time, logged in & prepared. We ask families to call in to the attendance office when your student is unable to attend class, at school or remote.

All students should be logged into their device and first block class at 7:40 a.m. and preparing for their first block class. This time is the official start to the school day.

If your student will be absent, even for remote learning, please contact our school attendance secretaries before 7:40 a.m. each day. If you leave a voicemail or email, please include your student's name and the reason for the absence. We appreciate your partnership and support and look forward to learning together in person soon.

Email addresses for attendance:

Cindy.Shulewitz@ops.org

Melanie.Pistillo@ops.org

Burke High School Attendance Phone Numbers:

531-299-2588

Burke High School Fax Number for Medical Notes:

531-299-2619

Student schedules are available to view through our Infinite Campus Parent/Student portal. The parent portal provides families and students opportunities to check grades, missing assignments, attendance,, view student schedules and many other features. If families or students do not have access to the parent portal, we ask that you contact Nyla Bodfield via email at nyla.bodfield@ops.org for assistance. Ms. Bodfield can also be reached at 531-299-3928.

Burke has a Community Counselor available to provide both in-person and telehealth counseling services to support you and your families during this difficult time. Visit www.bestcare.org/CCP to complete paperwork or contact the counselor directly for more information. Need immediate assistance? There is also a covid-19 emotional support talk line with counselors available Mon-Fri 8am-4pm.

Shelly Taylor, LCSW, LIMHP

Burke High School 531-299-2586

Licensed Clinical Social Worker

Licensed Independent Mental Health Practitioner

We are attaching the latest district calendar for the 2020-2021 school year.

April 14: Virtual Academic Recognition Program

April 20: Pre-ACT for Sophomores; Regular school day for all students.

May 8: Junior/Senior Prom 7 - 10 p.m. (Lauritzen Gardens)

May 12-13: Senior Final Exams

May 14: Senior Last Day

May 18: Senior Honors Night 7 p.m. (In-person for seniors; Virtual for families)

May 25: Senior Graduation Practice at Baxter Arena 9:00 a.m.

May 26: Graduation at Baxter Arena 7:00 p.m.

May 26: Last Day of School; Quarter 4 Ends