From the District:
As mentioned in last week’s update, PVSD administration spent the last few days consulting with our various stakeholder representatives on the decision to shift to full distance learning for two weeks upon our return in January. I want to clearly state that we will return on Tuesday, January 5, 2021 in distance learning only. This means that teachers will pivot their instruction to the model that was in place in the beginning of the school year.
We saw an increase in cases after the Thanksgiving break due to travel and gatherings. With the longer break coming up, the collective thought is that it is in our best interest to plan a buffer period that would mirror a quarantine period in order to reduce the amount of positive cases coming onto campuses and causing a longer closure.
As a school district, we are being proactive with this shift. We want to maintain local control of our decision, assist in the countywide effort to decrease COVID infections, and safeguard our staffing levels. I want to be clear that we have always planned for this possibility.
When the 130-person reopening committee worked on the Reopening Plan this past June, the possibility of pivoting to and from learning environments as conditions changed was built into the plan. The August 2020 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Between Pleasant Valley School District (PVSD) and Pleasant Valley Education Association (PVEA) for 2020-2021 Instructional Practices during the COVID-19 addressed this as well, as a second wave was always a planning consideration.
Based on the PVSD approved metrics for closing, it is PVSD’s intention to return to the Modified Traditional Program (MTP) on Tuesday, January 19, 2021. We will continue to communicate with our staff and community should the situation change.
Instructional Materials
Our teachers are hard at work preparing for the shift to distance learning. In many grade levels, additional instructional materials will be sent home with students this Thursday and
Friday. Each campus has made arrangements for the distribution of materials for students who are not on site. School sites will communicate specifics regarding instructional materials distribution. Please provide our staff grace as they work through this new shift.
Student Supervision and Child Care
Student supervision will continue in the current MTP A/B cohort model for both families and staff. As each site is responsible for its program, please contact the school principal for more information or any individual consideration needed.
Child Care will remain open with extended hours (10:30am-6:00 m for TK-5th grade). Space is available should families and staff desire to add the tuition-based service. Please see the Child Care website for more information.
COVID-19 Dashboard Coming in January
In an effort to expand transparency, PVSD will publish a dashboard in January to communicate active cases in PVSD. PVSD is comprised of around 7000 students and staff spread across 12 physical school sites and the District Office complex. From June 1 through the Thanksgiving break, there were six positive cases in PVSD. All cases were community transmission outside of PVSD. Since the Thanksgiving break, there have been 40 positive cases. One is a possible school transmission. Of those total cases, nine are current active cases. While one case is too many, our comprehensive protocols coupled with an amazing community who has been selfless and proactive, has allowed us to have this low rate.
I am grateful for your patience, comments, ideas, and support as we work through these circumstances together. Please continue to check our District Website and the Pleasant Valley School District Coronavirus Page for the latest information.
We wish our students, faculty, staff, and community a safe holiday season.
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