Calamity Plan Information
Week of Nov. 2, 2020
Dear Parents and Guardians,
Throughout the past months, I have done my best to keep you informed about how COVID-19 is impacting our students, staff and operations in FHSD. Based on the district’s confirmed cases of COVID-19, our coordinated contact tracing efforts and the mitigation protocols guided by the Hamilton County Health Commissioner, the collective efforts of our students, families and staff have made a difference.
Unfortunately, since my October 23 update, the district has endured a spike in student and staff COVID-19 confirmed cases. Because of staff illness and quarantines the district has become stressed in its transportation department, at Sherwood and Nagel with the loss of grade-level teachers and team teachers, and at all school buildings because of limited substitute teacher availability. Ultimately, if staff are unable to work, education and services become jeopardized. As a school district, we are not alone in this.
As such, last night I received affirmation from the Board of Education to put the following District Calamity Plan in place:
Monday, November 2: NO Face-to-Face Instruction
Grades 7-12: Remote Learning (Directed by Teachers)
Grades 1-6: Teacher/Parent Conferences
Tuesday, November 3: NO School Pre-K through 12
Election Day (Non-Instructional Day)
Wednesday, November 4: NO School Pre-K through 12
Health and Wellness Calamity Day (Non-Instructional Day)
I proposed this plan for the following reasons:
- A significant number of staff will re-enter school on Thursday, November 5 from COVID-19 isolation and quarantine, which will remove our current substitute teacher coverage challenges.
- This extended break provides a five-day window of time to clean and sanitize all of the district’s facilities and to reduce the possibility of internal community spread caused by the recent pandemic spike.
- Many of the district’s buildings are used as polling sites. All indications are that voter participation will be high. We need time to properly clean and sanitize those spaces after the election process is complete.
I understand that this plan may place a scheduling burden on our families, but I believe a pause at this time will afford us an opportunity to protect the current face-to-face instructional model and avoid a full remote plan. Later this week, I will provide another update regarding our second semester plans. I presented a draft of that plan to the Board of Education on Monday evening, and we will spend the rest of the week adjusting it as necessary.
In the meantime, please continue to make every effort to limit COVID-19 exposure for your families. Stay home when possible, practice social distancing and if you must leave your home, please ensure that everyone is wearing a face mask. Hopefully, you will continue to support our collective effort to prioritize the health and safety of students and staff as we continue to support educational excellence while navigating the uncertainties presented by COVID-19.
I cannot impress upon you enough that the district’s success relies heavily on your support and our collective ability to protect ourselves and one another.
Respectfully,
Scot T. Prebles
Superintendent
