Shelburne Community School
Weekly Newsletter
March 29, 2021
Principal's Message
SCS Families,
Well, it was short-lived, but last week I had an opportunity to write an opening to our newsletter with virtually no mention of COVID-19. I mean there were some veiled references, but overall it was parent-teacher conferences, report cards, and the exciting promise of springtime outdoor learning. No such luck, today. But, like so much of the last year, what I have for you is a mix of storm clouds and silver linings. The darkness and the dawn all wrapped into one.
The great victory we will experience this week will occur on Wednesday. That is when our students in grades 7 and 8 will begin to come to school for a third day of in-person learning each week. We have been able to develop a schedule that includes all of our older students on Wednesdays, but that also sacrifices nothing when it comes to social distancing. These students will spread out across the middle-level wing and be able to maintain the 6ft social distancing currently called for by the State of Vermont. We will be able to keep students in the cohorts they have learned with throughout the school year. This is a schedule (3 days in-person and 2 days remote)that we can sustain for the rest of the school year if we must. While we are thrilled to improve the experience for our oldest students, we hope it is not the last move we have to make this year.
Currently, there is much conversation and speculation at the state-level about updating K-12 health and safety guidance before the upcoming April Break. As we begin to transition into this new schedule, we will simultaneously be planning to pivot once again, if the opportunity avails itself after the break. A change in guidance (post-April Break) would likely not just impact our 7th and 8th-grade students. If the changes were comprehensive enough, it could lead to increased in-person learning for all students, which is our great hope. Stay tuned, as we will continue to share these developments both through the district and school-based newsletters.
The darker side of this conversation is the reality that all of this hopeful planning comes in the wake of perhaps the most difficult week of the pandemic for K-12 schools around the state. Friday marked a new high-water mark for cases in VT. With much of our 60+ population having been vaccinated, these numbers are more and more concentrated in our youngest populations. You did not have to look far to see the impact. School closings were wide-spread. Athletic cancellations were plentiful. Many school districts reached new highs for positive cases and numbers of active tests.
While the national picture continues to improve, because our most vulnerable citizens are thankfully being protected, we cannot lose sight of our more localized goal. Our goal is to responsibly re-open schools and keep them open. While the overall guidance about social distancing may change and become more relaxed, the standards for contact tracing likely will not. That means that as our behavior in our personal lives and in school becomes less restrictive, the rules and expectations that cause us to shutdown grade levels and schools will not. One or two positive cases will still cause our students the same level of disruption and upheaval. So many have worked so hard and sacrificed so much to get us to a place of being close to fully-open. Folks have scratched, clawed, and advocated tirelessly for increases in in-person learning for all students. It would be absolutely devastating if we had a setback brought on by our own exuberance and desire to get back to normal. Parties, gatherings, sleepovers, and travel will be at the heart of the cases we face this spring. The only question is how big an impact will it have on our schools.
Our personal and collective decision-making around gathering, travel, and holding sick students out of school (and not state guidance) will likely be the most influential factor in how we end the 2020-2021 school year. I hope we can all keep that in mind as we try to provide our students the best and most consistent 12 weeks they have experienced this year.
Have a wonderful week!
Updates from Ms. Celmer
In an effort to reduce the length of our PreK-8 Community Newsletter, I have moved our PreK-4 information into the following Shelburne Community School Elementary Newsletter for March 2021. I invite you to click on this link monthly for new updates that are specific to our youngest learners. I hope you enjoy this new format and the content provided. We will also provide a hardcopy version per family on the first Friday of every month. Our April Newsletter will be available next week.
Families, please complete the following Google Form Survey this week (if you haven't done so already) to give us your feedback on your recent family conference. Your feedback will help us plan future conferences. Thank you!
SCS News
Attention 5th Grade Families - softball registration has been expanded. If you have a student athlete interested in playing softball at SCS this spring, please complete and submit this form by tomorrow, Tuesday March 30th.
Please address any questions to SCS Athletic Director, Leigh Petrucelli via email: lpetrucelli@cvsdvt.org.
Yearbook
The yearbook includes photos of all SCS students, Grades Pre-K through 8th, including VLA students. We are down to the final two weeks for ordering yearbooks. Make sure to order yours soon.CVSD News
Intra-District K-8 School Choice
Children entering grades K-8 who live in the towns of Charlotte, Hinesburg, Shelburne, St. George and Williston may exercise school choice. Our goal is to both allow options for families and also make balanced class sizes to provide a positive learning environment for all of our children. Processes for intra-district choice of school will be guided by the needs of students, space availability, and existing resources. Given this, we will work to meet as many families’ needs as possible. Guidelines and Application
Food Service
We are so happy to share that the USDA has announced it is allowing schools to continue to provide free breakfast and lunch meals to all children 18 years old and younger. CVSD will be offering in-school meals, pickup, and delivery. To read about our program, see our menu, and place your order, go to our district website at https://www.cvsdvt.org/ and scroll down to "Foodservice." Our amazing food service team is excited to continue to serve the children of our community meals that are safe, nutritious, and delicious!
Your child will have the opportunity to order breakfast and lunch each morning when they arrive at school.
Important Upcoming Dates
(A complete calendar can be found on the SCS website)
Mar 30th - SCS Softball Registration Deadline
Apr 12th - Yearbook Order Deadline
Apr 13th - SCS PTO Virtual Meeting (6:00pm)
Apr 19th-23rd - No School - Spring Break
Apr 23rd - May 1st - Heath Family Fundraiser
May 11th - SCS PTO Virtual Meeting (6:00pm)
Shelburne Community School
Scott Sivo - Lead Principal (5-8)
Email: ssivo@cvsdvt.org
Website: https://www.cvsdvt.org/shelburne
Location: Shelburne, VT, USA
Phone: 802-985-3331
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ShelburneCommunitySchool/
Twitter: @SCSLearns