Redmond School District announces details of Feb. 2 reopening plans

REDMOND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- The Redmond School District notified parents Friday of the details of plans to reopen schools and resume in-person classes for all grades the week of Feb. 2, though older students will be in class only two days a week.

Here's the full letter with details:

RSD families,

Since Gov. Kate Brown announced changes to the state’s COVID-19 metrics for reopening schools, district leaders have met with stakeholders and the Deschutes County Public Health Department to discuss how best to get students back on site for in-person instruction.

It’s important to us that students receive in-person instruction -- we know students learn better in person and we know how hard it’s been for them over these nine long months of distance learning. We also are increasingly seeing evidence that transmission rates in schools are quite low compared to other settings, in part due to the strict health and safety protocols that schools are expected to employ.

As a result, we are going to begin the process of bringing students back into the classrooms. All students will start attending classes in person on a hybrid basis the week of Feb. 2. School will look a lot different -- students will be expected to wear masks and practice social distancing and cohorting. We know that, just because the state has changed the requirements, the pandemic hasn’t ended -- simply put, we believe that the risk of the virus is outweighed by the risks our students face during extended time without access to in-person learning. Students can be in school with safeguards in place, and we are thrilled to welcome them back.

As we prepare for this transition, we would like each of our families to share with us your intent for your student(s) to receive either in-person/onsite instruction or full-time online instruction. See information below regarding access to the Family Survey.

Welcoming our students back safely to the classroom will require extra effort on the part of teachers, staff and students, as well as families. We will all have to continue to do our part to stop the virus from spreading. The Redmond School District continues to prioritize the benefits of a safe return to in-person learning to make success possible for every student.

Charan Cline, Ed.D.

Superintendent

Please note: information in this document is subject to change based on state rules or other considerations.

Do you need assistance with this communication in a language other than English? 

If you would like support in understanding the district’s plan to return to in-person learning in Spanish, please contact:

• Yoselin Viramontes (RHS/RVHS/Tumalo/Terrebonne): 541-977-6926
• Teresa Arceo (HH/Step Up/RPA): 541-977-6942
• Judy Pickens (MA Lynch/Sage/VP): 541-977-6951
• Martha Mazon (Tuck/McCall/OMS/EGMS): 541-604-0358

If you would like support in a language other than English, please contact:

Karen McBride: 541-923-8907

Family Survey

Parents have options, and we would like to hear from you. At the beginning of the year, parents chose one of two options for their student’s instruction this year:

1.         Full-Time Online Option (for parents who did not want their child to be part of

onsite instruction during the school year).

2.         On-Site Option (which includes Distance Learning if needed -- and informed by

state guidelines).  

Below you will find information on our plan to bring students back into the classrooms. Schools and teachers will follow up with more details in the weeks ahead. As we prepare to shift toward in-person/onsite instruction, we would like ALL families to indicate their choice again (if anything has changed) by completing a survey for each of their students.

• K-5: Please access the appropriate link below and complete the survey by Tuesday, Jan. 12:
  • Use this form for K-5 students currently in Comprehensive Distance Learning (CDL)
  • Use this form for K-5 students currently enrolled in the Full-Time Online option (FTO)
• 6th-12th: Early next week, you will receive a survey from one of your student’s teachers.

When is my student returning to school?

Week of...	Grades K-5	Grades 6-12
Jan. 18-22 MLK Day - no school Monday	Comprehensive Distance Learning continues	Comprehensive Distance Learning continues
Jan. 25-29 No school Friday for ELEMENTARY ONLY (report cards)	Comprehensive Distance Learning continues in modified schedule   Teachers will communicate information about schedule changes	Comprehensive Distance Learning
Feb. 2-5 No school Monday - Curriculum Day	Student orientation (hybrid schedule 1 week only), in-person on-site instruction begins.   Your school will assign you a cohort and attendance days.	Student orientation and hybrid in-person on-site instruction begins.   Your school will assign you a cohort and attendance days.
Feb. 8-12	All students will learn in-person at school for the full week.	All students will learn in a hybrid format, attending in-person on-site two days each week.

Are there other scheduling changes?

Elementary K-5: The regular elementary student day will be from 8:55 a.m. to 3 p.m. (9:10 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. for Hugh Hartman). On Wednesdays, elementary schools will have an early release, with a schedule of 8:55 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. (9:10-12:30 for Hugh Hartman), beginning Wed. Feb. 3. This will provide time for school staff to plan collaboratively, and participate in professional development.

Grades 6-12: For middle and high school students, there will be no school on Thursday, Jan. 14 and Friday, Jan. 15, as teachers and staff participate in health and safety training that allows us to bring students back on site.

In addition, parent-teacher conferences for middle and high school students, which were scheduled for Jan. 29, will be delayed. Look for rescheduling information from your student’s school.

What will in-person learning look like?

In a word, different! Just because we’re bringing students back to school does not mean that the virus is no longer a threat. As a result, we will be expecting students to wear masks, socially distance themselves and practice good hygiene (i.e. handwashing). In addition, exposure is reduced by limiting the number of cohorts (groups of students) that interact daily. This means that your student will interact with fewer people over the course of a day/week.

What will hybrid learning look like for students in grades 6-12?

In a hybrid model, students attend school on-site two days a week and learn from home three days a week. Half of the students attend school on-site Monday and Thursday and the other half attend school on-site on Tuesday and Friday. On days when students are learning from home, they can expect to access assignments, lessons, projects and extension activities through Canvas. On Wednesdays, all students learn asynchronously from home through Canvas. Your school will communicate more detailed information regarding your student’s schedule for on-site instruction in the coming weeks.

How will we address health and safety practices?

The health and safety of our students and educators is foremost in our planning. We ask parents to be diligent in monitoring your student for symptoms, and to keep your child home if he or she has any symptoms, including: headache, fever, sore throat, cough, stomachache, congestion or chills. These efforts will help keep our school communities safe.

All building-level staff members have been trained in health and safety protocols according to ODE’s guidance. Classroom setup ensures spacing between desks, and classroom routines will be adjusted to eliminate shared items that cannot be sanitized between uses. Your student will experience new routines for moving throughout their school which include maintaining stable cohorts of students. Common gathering times such as lunch, recess, and before and after school will also be adjusted. In order to limit exposure, and based on health and safety guidance, we will be eliminating adult visitors and volunteers. Please look for communication from your child’s school regarding how these changes may impact parents, such as dropoff and pickup procedures.

The district has partnered with local and state agencies to plan and implement on-site rapid COVID-19 testing. We are currently finalizing these protocols according to Oregon Health Authority guidelines. Testing will target symptomatic individuals and those returning from quarantine or isolation. As this process is finalized, parents will receive detailed information regarding this topic, including consent forms.

Students who repeatedly fail to comply with health and safety requirements, such as wearing a face covering and social distancing, will be referred to our online distance-learning option.

What do we do with the Chromebook or hotspot we checked out from school?

K-5: Students will return Chromebooks and WiFi hotspots to their teacher on Feb. 8 when they return to in-person learning. Please make sure the chargers are returned with the equipment.

6-12: Students will keep their Chromebooks and WiFi hotspots for continued access while at home during hybrid learning. On the days students are in the building, they will bring their fully charged Chromebook to school in the protective bag/sleeve, take it to every class during the day, and then bring it back home for the next day of at-home learning. All equipment will be collected at the end of the school year.

What’s the transportation situation?

Students who ride the bus to and/or from school must wear a face covering consistently for the duration of time on the bus (cloth, paper or disposable) which covers the nose and mouth. Acrylic shields alone are no longer an acceptable practice to prevent transmission. Students who forget their face covering will be provided a disposable mask by the driver.

Students who refuse to wear a face covering will not be transported via district buses.

Students are expected to practice social distancing at bus stops. On the bus, seating charts will be in use and students should sit in the same seat each day. In the morning, students will load onto the bus back to front, and unload front to back. Siblings and those who share a household will sit together. Students will social distance as possible, but 6-foot distancing on the bus will not always be possible. In the afternoon, students will load back to front -- students getting off at the last stop will get on first and students getting off at the first stop will get on the bus last.

How will breakfast and lunch look?

Pre-packaged, cold breakfasts and lunches will be provided at NO CHARGE to students returning to all school sites for in-person instruction for the remainder of the 2020-21 school year.

It may be some time before we’re able to return to feeding large groups in the cafeteria, hot meals, and multiple choices. In most cases, a breakfast for each student will have been delivered to the classroom prior to students’ arrival. Students or parents may opt out of breakfast participation by communicating with the classroom teacher.

Classroom teachers will record whether a student will participate in lunch at the same time attendance is recorded, and prepackaged, cold lunches will then be delivered at the appropriate time to each classroom. For special dietary needs, please contact nutrition@redmondschools.org.

For students not receiving in-person instruction, a combined pre-packaged breakfast & lunch will continue to be available at NO CHARGE to families for curbside pickup at each school site. Stay tuned for communications from individual schools with specific midday curbside pickup times. Parents/guardians may continue to pick up meals for students who may not be present.

Co-curriculars and sports

K-12 athletics still fall under the Sector Risk Level Guidance Chart. At this time we are prohibited from participating in any indoor recreation/athletic activities but can have a maximum of 50 people per site outside while following all social-distancing guidelines and mask requirements.

What about my student’s social-emotional needs?

Being away from a normal school routine has been hard for students of all ages. We know that this return to in-person learning will bring happy moments, more socializing, and increased academic engagement. We also expect that students may struggle with yet another adjustment and the loss of what school “used to be.” Our counselors, teachers and support staff are here to help students feel safe and cared for. When students feel connected and safe, genuine learning can occur. Please contact your child’s school counselor if you would like to discuss your child’s social-emotional wellbeing.