Dear Families,
We continue to appreciate your patience as we all work through the unprecedented situation posed by the COVID-19 Pandemic. Today, I am sharing with you the District’s learning models for the 2020-2021 school year, webinars to learn more about our online-only learning model, information about the decision date for which learning model will be used, and a Minnesota State High School League update.
Learning Models
This document explains how each of the learning models will work and what families can expect in each of them. We are trying to simplify this complicated situation to the best of our ability and understand that the document will have more than enough information for some families and not nearly enough for others. The situation continues to change, but one thing will not: we care very much about our students, their health, and their success.
Online-only option (Portage) Webinars
We have had quite a bit of interest in our online-only option called Portage. This model is for families uncomfortable sending their children back to the physical school environment. We will hold informational webinars (approximately 30 minutes) about how Portage will work on:
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Thursday, August 6 at 7:00 pm for parents of students in Kindergarten through 5th Grade
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Thursday, August 6 at 7:45 pm for parents of students in Grades 6-12
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Saturday, August 8 at 9:00 am for parents of students in Kindergarten through 5th Grade
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Saturday, August 8 at 9:45 am for parents of students in Grades 6-12
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Tuesday, August 11 at 5:00 pm for parents of students in Kindergarten through 5th Grade
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Tuesday, August 11 at 5:45 pm for parents of students in Grades 6-12
You can use the same link for all of the webinars: https://zoom.us/j/96053494968
The full Zoom invitation is listed at the bottom of this message.
Decision Date for Learning Models
We are working closely with Rice County Public Health to determine the timeline for making our decision about what learning model to use to begin the 2020-2021 school year. If we were to use the current infection rate data, Northfield Public Schools Pre-K and elementary students would use the in-person learning model and 6th-12th grade students would use the hybrid model. At this point, we plan to announce the learning model on August 17, 2020, based on the latest available infection rate data at that time. It is clear that our local collective effort to contain the spread of COVID-19 will determine whether or not students can attend school in-person.
Reminder: Family Meetings
As a reminder, we plan to hold a meeting with each family during the week of September 8-11. Our first day of formal instruction will be Monday, September 14, 2020. You will be contacted by your child’s school to register for these meetings.
Minnesota State High School League
Yesterday, the Minnesota State High School League announced their plans for fall 2020-21. Football and volleyball have been moved to the spring. Boys and girls soccer, girls tennis, girls swimming, and cross country will begin on August 17. More information will be sent to families from the high school activities office when it becomes available.
Finally…
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly. We will continue to communicate regularly with you to share up-to-date information. Thanks, once again, for your patience and support as we continue to prepare for the 2020-2021 school year.
Sincerely,
Matt
—
Matt Hillmann, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
Login information: Portage Option Webinars (see dates above)
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Meeting ID: 960 5349 4968
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