Bandwidth upgrades

In order to support students and staff, both on and off-campus, we have upgraded both our Internet connection and our Wide Area Network (WAN) District-Wide. The size of our bandwidth, and our network was to be a constraining factor on the education of our students, and these upgrades help make sure that it isn’t.

Without these upgrades teachers and students might have maxed out our bandwidth, which would have resulted in connection issues and errors online. With the upgrades teachers and students can connect and learn in-person, virtually, or both, without issue.

High School event streaming

Both Rifle and Coal Ridge high schools will have video streaming available in both their main gyms and field houses by the start of 2021! Both schools will be able to provide live feeds that will be available for students, families, and fans online. In the COVID-19 world, we may have to limit access to these events in person. Should that be the case, anyone with an Internet connection and connected device can stream events from the comfort of their own homes or other location.

Damaged Student Devices

Garfield Re-2 students and families have been so responsible for their student devices, and we know that things happen.

If your child has an issue with their Chromebook (damaged, lost, or stolen) contact your school’s librarian/media specialist as soon as possible.

The media specialist can get it to the right person to fix a problem, try to recover the device, and discuss what is necessary to repair or replace the device.

On your 10/15 paycheck you may see a new field called UR25, this code now houses the blood draw credit if you are eligible to receive it. If you receive your credit through your HSA you will see the code HSA Blood Credit. Payroll recently completed a benefits audit on the blood draw credit to ensure all eligible employees are receiving their correct amount. Any missed months will reflect on your 10/15 paycheck. Starting on 11/15 all UR25/ HSA Blood Draw Credit’s will be for $40. (If your spouse is also an Re-2 employee the credit may be up to $80).

The reasoning for this audit was to ensure all employees have received their correct Blood Draw Credit amount and to be transparent on benefit costs for each employee. Employees now will see their medical costs then the credit, if eligible. Due to the pandemic, blood draws for the $40.00 HSA credit were not completed for this benefit year. We are honoring those who received the credit last year, this year. We hope to bring a third-party vendor to do blood draws in the Spring for the 2021-2022 benefit year.

For 2020-2021 eligibility requirements please review the benefits guide:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aVI548BjcacCXC2AseAOT7EDp12NxMbF/view?usp=drivesdk

If you have questions about eligibility please contact HR at hr@garfieldre2.net

If you have questions about UR25/ HSA Blood Credit on your paycheck please contact payroll at payroll@garfieldre2.net

At the last school board meeting, the Garfield Re-2 School Board approved a calendar modification that moves the end of the first semester in 2020-21 to AFTER winter break - January 14.

The move was requested specifically because the delayed start of the school year made the first semester significantly shorter than the other, and made it difficult for instructors at the secondary level to get all of the required learnings in the proper time frames.

This change should not impact the elementary schools much, and it may impact some students with their final exams.

Wendy comes to us with an education and healthcare background. She taught English, Speech and Drama for 14 years and most recently worked at Valley View Hospital orienting new employees and training staff. She is delighted to be a part of the HR team at Garfield Re-2!

Wendy’s HR Duties include:

New Hires (Job Postings, Recruitment, Onboarding), PreSchool Background Checks (Trails), Exit Interviews, New Employee Orientation, Credits, Interviews, and assisting with benefits enrollment.

I'm very enthusiastic and a go-getter. I enjoy the great outdoors and riding my ATV. I really enjoy reading and crocheting during my downtime in the evenings. I have served as a substitute teacher in the Garfield Re-2 School District as well so I bring a unique perspective to coordinating subs throughout the District!

Nan’s HR duties include:

Verifications of Employment “VOE’s”, Substitute Coordinator, LOC Room Coordinator, Invoices & Bills for HR

Here are the steps to take to make sure that you get your extra pay stipends in the right amount and when you expect it.

1) Request an extra pay form (there is a photo of one below) from your building Finance Secretary;

2) Complete the extra pay form with the appropriate information;

3) Have your supervisor and/or your school Principal sign it;

3) Return to Human Resources either via Intradistrict mail or by scanning and sending it to hr@garfieldre2.net.

These are all required in order for Human Resources to process your extra pay request. By following these four steps, it will ensure that you receive the pay you are expecting it, in the time frame you are expecting it in.

Thank you!

For the 20-21 school year, Garfield Re-2 chose to delay the beginning of school by two weeks to better prepare our facilities and instructional capacity. We did this to improve safety for our students and staff and to provide the highest quality education possible.

You may recall in a previous newsletter that Garfield Re-2 has determined we can meet our statutory obligation for contact hours with the current schedule, however, this leaves no additional time to accommodate for weather events or other issues that may disrupt in-person learning.

During severe weather events, evaluation for school closure begins the evening prior and continues at about 4:00 a.m. with conversations between Colorado Department of Transportation, Garfield County Road and Bridge, the Director of Transportation, the Director of Communication, the Superintendent and an evaluation of current and future weather information.

In the event of a school closure or to observe a delayed start, the following resources will be used to let families know about the closure: An autodialer message will be sent to families as soon as possible. The practice is to make the call using the autodialer system by about 5:30 a.m.

In all situations, schools will pivot to online instruction immediately to allow students to access lessons provided by and supported by their regular teachers and allow students to continue their learning despite an inability to access school facilities.

Other emergencies that threaten the safety, health or welfare of students or staff members that will result in distance learning will be communicated to families as quickly as possible using the same communication channels listed above including: autodialer/autoemail, newspapers and radio stations.