CSD Newsroom

Town Hall Overview - Superintendent Jeff Snell shared a high-level overview of what he planned to present at the Town Hall on September 29. A recording of the Town Hall and links to resources are below.

Equity Update - Assistant Superintendents Lisa Greseth and Dr. Charlene Williams gave an update on the last four years of our equity learning, conversations, and support occurring throughout our district. Key takeaways include:

• We are four years into our equity work and we're excited about the energy our community has around this important work;

• We recognize that conversations about equity can bring up a lot of emotions. We are trying to create space for our community to talk about equity and their experiences through community forums;

• We will continue to listen to student voice as a driver for how we can create more welcoming and inclusive experiences for each student;

• The process our Instructional Materials Committee uses to review and approve materials is set by policy and procedure to ensure specific criteria are met in building rich collections of resources.

This portion of the board meeting includes much, much more information. It starts at 1:17:44 mark in the recording.

Monthly Budget Report - Business Services Director Jasen McEathron gave the board a fiscal update highlighting our 4.7% drop in student enrollment which results in an approximate $3.9 million reduction in state funding. He also touched on our cumulative COVID-19 expenditures and an update on leases at the UL property.

If you would like to learn more, all meeting information is posted on our Board Docs site.

Thanks to everyone who could participate in the Town Hall about our transition plan for increased in-person learning opportunities for students. The presentation was recorded and is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRuxxnfwTOQ. Resources from the presentation also can be accessed, including:

• Presentation Slides

• Thoughtexchange prior to Town Hall - read community members' concerns and questions that we used to help plan the Town Hall.

• Thoughtexchange during - read participants' questions and concerns captured at the end of the Town Hall Meeting.

In summary, we need three consecutive weeks of moderate or low COVID-19 levels in Clark County before transitioning all of our elementary students from remote learning to hybrid learning. Once that is successfully completed, we will monitor the levels again and then start the transition for secondary learners. Details of the transition process with timelines, rationale, and FAQs can be found at http://www.camas.wednet.edu/covid-19/2020-fall-reopening/. Families that wish to remain in remote learning will be able to continue to do so. In the short term, your student will stay connected to their school. They may be assigned another teacher in certain situations to align with other remote learning students as staff work through the transition to hybrid learning.

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We know some families were waiting until after the Town Hall in order to inform their decision of whether or not to return to school in-person when we transition to hybrid learning. To help us get ready for the transition, we need to know your preferences about in-person and remote learning. If you have not done so already, please take a moment to complete the Student Preference Survey by 10/6/20. Our kindergarten families have already completed a similar survey and do not need to complete this one. We will be contacting individuals who cannot complete the survey to ensure we know each family’s plan.

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Keeping Our Students and Staff Safe Videos

We'd like to thank our staff members who put themselves out there in creating videos showing how we are working to keep our students and staff safe when we return to hybrid learning:

Tami Allison, Carol Bruce, Troy Cates, Venessa Esparza, Robert Taylor, and David Wilson.

Below is our first video and it features Dave Wilson at Liberty Middle School who gives us a brief overview of cleaning practices. More videos and other resources can be found on our COVID-19 Reopening Resources page, and more will be posted as we get closer to hybrid learning.

Each fall, more than 80,000 children start kindergarten in Washington, marking the beginning of their public school journey. In 2019, Governor Inslee emphasized the importance of this event by signing Substitute Senate Bill 5028 into law. This bill declared September to be the Month of the Kindergartner and encourages schools to celebrate kindergartners “as they begin their life in K-12 education.”

We want to thank our awesome kindergarten teachers who will be welcoming our kindergarten students in our first, grade-level transition to hybrid learning. You rock!

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Across the country and around the world, “Zoom bombing” is taking place and Camas is not immune. So how are we addressing this challenge? The following section will address our most commonly asked questions.

How do "Zoom bombing" incidents occur from a technical standpoint? More specifically, how does the offender gain access to online class meetings?

An offender typically obtains Zoom meeting access codes that were inappropriately shared by a student. The offender alters their Zoom profile so that the meeting host will think they are a legitimate attendee, and they are then admitted to the meeting under those false pretenses.

What safeguard measures have been implemented to decrease the likelihood of future "Zoom bombing" offenses? What is the long-term action plan to prevent offenses?)

Last spring, the district established the use of Zoom waiting rooms and implemented several other best practice recommendations to secure remote learning as much as possible. On October 5, we are implementing a two-step authentication process which will enable us to restrict meeting access to only CSD staff and students. Even if meeting credentials were inappropriately shared with an outsider, the student’s name in Skyward will be used, regardless of the name they entered in Zoom.

How has the administration responded to "Zoom bombing" behind the scenes?

District and building administration work directly with staff, students, and parents reporting incidents. We confirm that staff members are using best practices and examine the technical details of each event.

What consequence(s) will students associated with a "Zoom bombing" incident face?

Any abuse of technology is a serious offense as outlined in the student handbook and acceptable use policy. All consequences outlined in the handbook, including law enforcement involvement, are possible based on the nature of the offense.

Some of our school offices will have adjusted hours as staff shift responsibilities during our school closures and recent furloughs. Hours are:

• Odyssey MS, Discovery HS, and Hayes Freedom HS: 9:00 AM – 3:30 PM
• Camas HS: 8:00 AM – 3:30 PM
• Liberty MS: 7:30 AM – 3:00 PM
• Skyridge MS: 8 AM – 4:00 PM
• All elementary schools: 8:00 AM – 2:45 PM all week except Wednesdays; On Wednesdays, hours are 8:00 AM – 10:30 AM

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Join us for this free virtual parent workshop!

Congratulations! You got your kids organized and remote learning 2.0 is happening. But maybe you still feel stressed. You might be wondering ... Are they really getting their work done? Are they learning enough? How much should I push them? You didn’t plan to manage your child’s learning on top of everything else, but here you are, and you could use some practical tools for supporting your kids. Lael Petersen, MSW, a Portland-based life coach with more than 20 years of experience helping parents and families thrive, will talk about the mindset and coping skills needed to support your kids both academically and emotionally without losing your mind.

Join Zoom Meeting
https://camas-wednet-edu.zoom.us/j/86797991655

Meeting ID: 867 9799 1655
One tap mobile
+12532158782,,86797991655# US (Tacoma)

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Email: communications@camas.wednet.edu
Website: camas.wednet.edu
Location: 841 Northeast 22nd Avenue, Camas, WA, USA
Phone: 360-335-3000
Facebook: facebook.com/CamasSchools
Twitter: @CamasSchools