Superintendent Weekly Update
from the desk of ..... Kathy Amos
February 19, 2021
Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!
It is hard to believe that almost a year ago we were entering into a statewide lockdown and stay-at-home order as we were learning about the Coronavirus. How do we flatten the curve and mitigate the spread of this virus?
Since that time, YCS jumped into action. We fed kids in our community for months, we implemented the NCDHHS Toolkit Guidelines so we could get our children back in school as much as possible, teachers trained, prepared, and taught seated students and remote students, and now we are working together to have our employees vaccinated.
After all these months of hard work I am pleased to say that currently we do not have any active COVID-19 cases out of 2,400 students and employees in YCS. We know this is not over yet and the virus is still very real. We can not let down our guard now.
However, your perseverance, consistency, and desire to make a difference in our community has helped us reach this milestone. I sincerely thank everyone in the District for their willingness to learn, to shift gears when needed, and for working together to protect our most precious thing in this world and that is our children.
NASA - Mars Perseverance Rover and Ingenuity Helicopter
Congratulations to the Mars Perseverance Team for a successful rover landing. It is amazing to think how far we have come since Wilbur and Orville Wright's inaugural airplane flight in Kitty Hawk in 1903.
https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/
https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/timeline/landing/watch-online/
Click the Pic for Some Quick Facts About NASA’s Perseverance Rover
The Mars Helicopter Ingenuity - Click the Pic!
NASA Returns to the Moon in 2024!
NASA Returns to the Moon in 2024!
“With the Artemis program, NASA will land the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024, using innovative technologies to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before. We will collaborate with our commercial and international partners and establish sustainable exploration by the end of the decade. Then, we will use what we learn on and around the Moon to take the next giant leap – sending astronauts to Mars.”
https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis/
New Communication Tool “Educator Edition”
Special Advisor to the Superintendent for Educator Engagement, Julie Pittman is excited to engage with teachers across @ncpublicschools. Check out #NCLighthouseLeaders and incredible #educatordiplomats, along with important resources and updates in the first publication of the "Educator Edition"! #educationculturetransformation
Don’t miss any new releases...subscribe to the listserv for “Educator Edition” today by visiting: https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/NCSBE/subscriber/topics and select "Educator Newsletter."FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE RALEIGH — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services in partnership with NC Department of Public Instruction today announced it will begin issuing additional benefits on Feb. 19, 2021 through the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) program. These benefits will be received over several days starting Friday for those who already have an EBT card for Food and Nutrition Services or P-EBT benefits. El Departamento de Salud y Servicios Humanos de Carolina del Norte, en asociación con el Departamento de Instrucción Pública de Carolina del Norte, anunció hoy que comenzará a emitir beneficios adicionales en febrero. 19, 2021 a través del programa Transferencia electrónica de beneficios debido a la pandemia (P-EBT por sus siglas en inglés). Estos beneficios se recibirán durante varios días a partir del viernes para aquellos que ya tienen una tarjeta EBT para Servicios de alimentos y nutrición o beneficios P-EBT. ###
Feb. 17, 2021Contact: news@dhhs.nc.gov
919-855-4840
The P-EBT program helps families purchase food for children whose access to free and reduced-price meals at school has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program provides a benefit on an EBT card that can be used to buy food at authorized food and grocery retailers, including most major grocery stores.
“Having enough healthy food every day is an essential part of children’s health and well-being,” said NCDHHS Deputy Secretary for Human Services Tara Myers. “The P-EBT program provides families essential help buying groceries for children who would normally have access to free and reduced lunch at school.”
Families do not need to apply for P-EBT. Eligibility criteria are based on requirements from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A school-aged child is eligible if their school participates in the National School Lunch Program and the student is eligible to receive free or reduced-price meals during the 2020-21 school year. Also, the student’s school must have been closed or has been operating with reduced attendance for at least five consecutive days during the 2020-2021 school year as a result of COVID-19. The student must also be learning in a fully remote (all virtual) and or in a hybrid (combination of virtual and in-person) learning mode during the month. An eligible student can receive one of two distinct benefit amounts depending on if they are identified as being in a remote learning mode or a hybrid learning mode.
P-EBT benefits received in February 2021 will be for the months of August to December 2020 for those students who are eligible. Those who do not have a P-EBT card and are eligible during these months should anticipate receiving their cards in February or March. The total amount of P-EBT benefits put on a card will not be received at one time; benefits will be spread out over several days to avoid overwhelming those stores that accept EBT. P-EBT benefits will be issued retroactively in a monthly issuance starting in March as long as the child remains eligible.
Eligible families already receiving FNS benefits can expect to receive the P-EBT benefit on their existing EBT card. Families who already have a P-EBT card from last school year and are eligible under the new criteria can expect to receive the benefit on their original P-EBT card. Eligible families who do not have an FNS or P-EBT card will be mailed a card.
If someone has lost or destroyed their original P-EBT card, they can order a new card at www.ebtedge.com, on the EBT Edge mobile app or by contacting the North Carolina EBT Call Center at 1-866-719-0141. P-EBT benefits are entirely federally funded. More information about the P-EBT program can be found at www.ncdhhs.gov/PEBT. For the latest information on COVID-19, visit nc.gov/covid19.
Individuals with questions about applying for free or reduced-price meals should contact their children’s school for more information.
El programa P-EBT ayuda a las familias a comprar alimentos para niños a quienes el acceso a comidas gratuitas y a precio reducido en la escuela se ha visto afectado por la pandemia de COVID-19. El programa ofrece un beneficio en una tarjeta EBT que se puede utilizar para comprar alimentos en tiendas minoristas de alimentos y comestibles autorizados, incluidas la mayoría de las principales tiendas de comestibles.
“Tener suficiente comida saludable todos los días es una parte esencial de la salud y el bienestar de los niños”, dijo la subsecretaria de Servicios Humanos de NCDHHS, Tara Myers. “El programa P-EBT brinda a las familias ayuda esencial para comprar alimentos para los niños que normalmente tendrían acceso a almuerzos gratis o reducidos en la escuela”.
Las familias no necesitan solicitar P-EBT. Los criterios de elegibilidad se basan en los requisitos del Departamento de Agricultura de EE. UU. Un niño en edad escolar es elegible si su escuela participa en el Programa Nacional de Almuerzos Escolares y el estudiante es elegible para recibir comidas gratuitas o de precio reducido durante el año escolar 2020-21. Además, la escuela del estudiante debe haber estado cerrada o haber estado funcionando con asistencia reducida durante al menos cinco días consecutivos durante el año escolar 2020-2021 debido al COVID-19. El estudiante también debe estar aprendiendo en un modo de aprendizaje completamente remoto (todo virtual) o híbrido (combinación de virtual y en persona) durante el mes. Un estudiante elegible puede recibir uno de dos montos de beneficios distintos dependiendo de si se identifica como estudiante de aprendizaje remoto o aprendizaje híbrido.
Los beneficios de P-EBT recibidos en febrero de 2021 serán para los meses de agosto a diciembre de 2020 para aquellos estudiantes que sean elegibles. Aquellos que no tienen una tarjeta P-EBT y son elegibles durante estos meses deben anticipar recibir sus tarjetas en febrero o marzo. La cantidad total de beneficios P-EBT en la tarjeta no se recibirá todo en una vez; los beneficios se distribuirán durante varios días para evitar abrumar a las tiendas que aceptan EBT. Los beneficios P-EBT se emitirán de forma retroactiva en una emisión mensual a partir de marzo, siempre que el niño siga siendo elegible.
Las familias elegibles que ya reciben beneficios FNS pueden esperar recibir el beneficio P-EBT en su tarjeta EBT actual. Las familias que ya tienen una tarjeta P-EBT del año escolar pasado y son elegibles bajo los nuevos criterios pueden esperar recibir el beneficio en su tarjeta P-EBT original. Las familias elegibles que no tengan una tarjeta FNS o P-EBT recibirán una tarjeta por correo.
Si alguien ha perdido o destruido su tarjeta P-EBT original, puede solicitar una nueva en el sitio: www.ebtedge.com, en la aplicación móvil EBT Edge o comunicándose con el Centro de llamadas de EBT de Carolina del Norte al 1- 866-719-0141. Los beneficios de P-EBT están financiados en su totalidad por el gobierno federal. Puede encontrar más información sobre el programa P-EBT en www.ncdhhs.gov/PEBT. Para obtener la información más reciente sobre COVID-19, visite: nc.gov/covid19.
Las personas que tengan preguntas sobre cómo solicitar comidas gratuitas o de precio reducido deben comunicarse con la escuela de sus hijos para obtener más información.
Additional tips to stay safe:
- Do not use charcoal grills or propane stoves indoors, even in a fireplace.
- Never use the stove or other gas appliances to heat your home.
- Do not idle your vehicle in the garage, even if the door is open. Fumes can build up quickly in the garage and living area of your home.
- Install a carbon monoxide detector on each level of your home.
- Keep rooms well ventilated.
If you experience symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning including dizziness, fatigue, nausea, headaches, confusion or fainting, get to fresh air immediately and seek medical care.
NC Moves 2050 Plan Adopted!
Thank you to all who participated during the planning process for NC Moves 2050, the N.C. Department of Transportation’s long-range transportation plan update. Your input over the past two years has helped us to ensure that North Carolinians have a voice in our transportation future and made this a plan that will serve all communities across the state. Through community events, stakeholder meetings, social media interactions, presentations and more, we reached over 3 million people and heard your input through more than 30,000 survey responses.
The plan provides a blueprint focused on creating a more responsive, diverse and inclusive transportation system to keep people and freight moving safely and efficiently throughout the state. It also includes an Implementation Plan that provides actionable steps to complete the top tier of recommended actions within the next 10 years.
We are excited to share the NC Moves 2050 Plan, adopted by the N.C. Board of Transportation on Feb. 4, 2021. NCDOT also launched an interactive webtool that presents the plan’s findings and outlines the steps North Carolina needs to take to be prepared for the next 30 years and beyond. You can download the NC Moves 2050 Plan and explore the interactive webtool at www.ncmoves.gov.
Again, we thank you for being part of this important process. Together, through the framework set by the NC Moves 2050 Plan, we can ensure our transportation system supports our economy, promotes climate mitigation and resilience, protects our natural resources and promotes livable communities.
Thank you,
NC Moves 2050 Project Team
Yancey County Schools
Email: rxrobinson@yanceync.net
Website: www.yanceync.net
Location: 100 School Circle, Burnsville, NC, USA
Phone: (828) 682-6101