Monday, April 13, 2020

Friday Notes 3/5/21

SCHOOL INFO:



Principal Letter:

March 5, 2021


Dear members of the L&G community:


This week we welcomed back cohort B from February vacation, and not a whole lot has changed - protocol wise - for our students.  We are looking forward to seeing cohort A on Monday!  I'm happy for our staff, as I’m sure you’ve already heard - the governor has put school staff on the vaccination list beginning next week.  We’ll keep you updated on the status of the process for our teachers and staff.  On a related note, we did discover that we had a positive COVID-19 case with one of our staff members this week.  In consultation with the VDH and our school nurse we have concluded that, due to vacation and the facts of the case, no direct contact with anyone else in our community happened, and no contact tracing was required.  It is very important for us to continue our vigilance by following the Governor’s Emergency Order and the Agency of Education guidelines for school operation.  


Picture Day

The new, rescheduled dates for pictures are:

  • Cohort A & 6th graders Tuesday, March 30

  • Cohort B & Remote Academy Friday, April 2

Ordering forms were already sent home, and can be still used.  Additionally you may order online at www.geskusprint.com and our unique code is JAR59H6E.  We ask for all students to participate so that we’ll have pictures for the yearbook!


Progress Reports

Quarter 3 progress reports will be sent home early next week.


Parent Conferences

Teachers should be emailing  invitations to each family and guardians can select their time slot  via signup.com.  Conferences will be held on Wednesday, March 17 from 12-3pm and on Thursday, March 18 from 2-7pm.  Thursday will be an early release day for cohort B, with dismissal at 11:30am.  Busses will run at that time for dismissal.


Building Update

Most of our classrooms and common spaces have already passed the air flow requirements established by the school board.  We have 2 classrooms still not in use at this time, but during vacation our main gym and activity room have been reopened and we are using the activity room for half of our lunches.


Senior Recognition

This coming week we will celebrate our senior athletes as they play their last regular season home basketball games.  Please tune in to watch the games via our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCz1sJTbXyJp4HwZxo8qA4iw).  Send pics of your “viewing party” to Sue Haskins at shaskins@lelandandgray.org and we’ll share it out on social media honoring our seniors.


Student Recognition

Our January Elks (HS) Student of the Month was Lily Dutton and our MS Student of Month was Amaya Arnold.  


I hope everyone has a great weekend and stay healthy!!


Bob Thibault

Principal




Attendance Surveys:

The attendance surveys will now only be sent to students on Wednesdays.  Very important to ensure that this survey is sumitted when received. 

HEY Help:

HEY Help is available Wednesdays from 10:00-2:00

Mrs. Lindsley is available if students need help with Math:  HEY Help Math

Mrs. Guerrero is available  if student need help with Humanities: HEY Help Humanities Link



Community:


Veggie VanGo:




Veggie VanGo distrubution will take place at Leland & Gray on Wednesday, March 10th from 11:30am-1pm. 





Monday, April 6, 2020

Friday Notes (Monday) 4-6-20

SCHOOL INFO:



4/5/20 Sunday Alert:


April 5, 2020

Dear Members of the L&G Community, this is principal Bob Thibault.  I’m calling tonight to check in and provide updated information about what’s happening in our district and in our school.  Firstly, I sincerely hope that everyone is doing well and staying healthy. Many resources are available if your circumstances have changed.  Please reach out to our two school counselors if you need anything.

First, a couple of new things.  By now you should have received information about the continuing lunch and breakfast program.  You can find that information on the WCSU COVID-19 website and our Facebook page.  Both are linked from our website.  

Also new this week is the return of HEY Help with Ms. Lindsley.  She has already sent invites to every student and they can log into her ZOOM at the correct times - 11:30 - 1pm for middle school and 1-2:30pm for high school.  The links are in your child’s email invite. For questions, please contact Ms. Lindsley at mlindsley@lelandandgray.org.

A couple of updates about our calendar - this coming Friday marks the end of the third quarter.  We will attempt to give our normal grades for this quarter - with incompletes granted to those who need it - and we will be discussing the new grading system for quarter four.  April vacation week will still be the week of April 20th and no lunches or breakfasts will be provided during that time. Again, if you are concerned about food scarcity, please contact our counseling staff.

This week will start a new daily schedule for students and teachers.  On each Wednesday, teachers will spend their day planning, collaborating, and learning about distance learning.  They will not be available for direct instruction and will not be responding to student academic questions. Special educators will continue to work with students, and the counselors will continue to be available.  We urge you all to think about Wednesday as either a catch-up day or a day to get off screens and go outside!  

Also starting this week - tomorrow morning at 9am to be precise - is a parent opportunity to meet with me and ask questions.  The Zoom ID # and password will be in the email version of this alert (Meeting ID 283-472-334, Code 028972). Simply go to www.zoom.us/join and enter the ID and code when prompted.  These meetings will happen every Monday morning at 9am and I look forward to seeing or hearing you there.

[Middle School Students ONLY]: Beginning next Monday on April 13th, the exploratory Google Classrooms will cease to exist.  This includes world language, chorus, technology, art and personal development. Look for more information on those content areas offering optional enrichment work only, so we can reduce the load of Google classroom alerts and required work in the middle school.  Band, Physical Education and Health will still run as normal.  

And finally, as we think ahead to next school year, we need every 8th through 11th grader to be sure to register for classes.  Your child should have received a slideshow from Sarah Grasso with the course listing, the requirements, and the way to log into Powerschool and select courses.  Of course, you can always connect with Sarah directly to have her walk you through the options.

In conclusion, I want to let everyone know that the WCSU leadership team has adopted guiding principles - in priority order - to help us lead through these challenging times.  While I’m not going to read them here, they are at the bottom of the email version of this message. Part of this modification is that students shouldn’t be spending any more than 2-3 hours daily (except Wednesdays) on school work.

I want you all to know that the faculty and staff here at L&G are doing the absolute best that they can, and we all miss you terribly.  We know these times are hard, and we want you all to take care of yourselves first, and your academics second. Thank you and have a good night.

Your principal,

Bob Thibault


  1. Health and Safety.  Doing everything that we can to support the health, safety, and well-being of our students and their families is our top priority.  This includes but is not limited to providing nutritious foods, promoting opportunities for physical wellness, and providing social-emotional and mental health support for all of our students.

  1. Equity.  This crisis affects everyone but will disproportionately impact the most vulnerable students.  Equity should be at the forefront of all planning and implementation.

  1. Relationships.  Making connections and maintaining relationships are at the foundation of all implementation plans.  Set a schedule that includes faculty and staff connecting with students as frequently as possible.

  1. Remote Learning.  Remote learning does not exclusively mean online learning.  Schools should consider the variable abilities of families to access and utilize the internet and the impacts of increased screen time expectations.  Students should not be required to access devices for the traditional length of the school day. Leverage other opportunities for students to learn, such as exploring their outdoor environment (to an extent that is within public health parameters), engaging in self-driven projects and problem-solving, and (virtually) reaching out to their communities.


HEY Help:

Beginning Monday, 4/6, Mary Lindsley will be available for HEY Help via a Zoom meeting.  Join her if just to chat.

Middle School Students can join the Zoom meeting Monday - Thursday, 11:30 - 1:00 * The link has been emailed to students.
 
High School Students can join the Zoom meeting Monday - Thursday, 1:00-2:30 * The link has been emailed to students.

If you have trouble joining these Zoom meetings, please email Mary Lindsley at mlindsley@lelandandgray.org.


Free Internet:

The link below is to the Vermont Department of Public Service, which has links to companies like Comcast that are offering free internet for 2 months for low-income households. Comcast is also committed to serving people even if they cannot pay their bill. Mobile phone companies are helping out and hotspots will have free access etc.


People will still need devices that allow them to have access to the internet – not sure what is being done in that area.



Meal Service Plan: