Claysburg-Kimmel High School

Dear Parents/Guardians, and Students,

Summer is quickly drawing to a close and it will soon be time to return to the classrooms. We know that this year will be different in many ways, but in one important way it will be the same: learning. This update will provide basic health and safety information as it relates to daily life at Claysburg-Kimmel High School.

Monday, August 17, 2020 3:31 PM

As you know, the health and safety of Pennsylvania’s school communities is top priority, and the guidance we release to support and maintain the health and safety of school communities is rooted in science, data, and research. As more data and research becomes available, the information that becomes guidance must evolve – something we’ve shared with you since we began releasing reopening guidance.

Last week, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) released an update to their guidance strongly recommending children age two and older should wear face coverings at all times to help mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Prior guidance we released in collaboration with the Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) stated students in schools could remove their face coverings as long as six feet of social distancing could be maintained. Given this recent change from the AAP, and consistent with the Secretary of Health’s Face Covering Order issued on July 1, 2020,

DOH is requiring students wear face coverings at all times while in school, even when six feet of social distancing can be achieved. There are limited exceptions.

Visit our Answers to FAQs on Face Coverings/Masks webpage for more information.

Thank you for your continued commitment to ensuring a safe learning environment for your students and staff.

Matthew Stem
Deputy Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education
PA Departement of Education

Students will report to school on August 26th OR August 27th according to the schedule below. During these days, students will receive their iPads, gather information related to accessing their classes on their iPads, and meet each of their teachers. All students who choose to return to school on site, and all students who chose the distance learning option must report according to the following schedule:

Wednesday August 26th

Full Day for all students whose last name begins with A-K

Thursday August 27th

Full Day for all students whose last name begins with L-Z

Friday August 28th

No School for All Students –Teacher Act 80 Day

GACTC STUDENTS: Important Note- students enrolled in GACTC will not attend the GACTC until the second week of school (the week of August 31). GACTC students should report to CKHS on the appropriate day as indicated above. They should expect to stay the entire school day, and during this time, they will receive additional GACTC related information.

There will be no school for students on Friday, August 28th. The day will be an Act 80 day for professional development.

In keeping with the Department of Education's guidelines, the Claysburg Kimmel School District will offer in person classes on a hybrid basis. The hybrid plan will be in place for the first marking period (Aug. 31 – Oct. 30)

·CKHS Students will attend school, in person, 4 days a week

A student's stay-at-home, or “off" day will be determined by their last name.

* A – Cla (stay home Mondays)

* Cle – G (stay home Tuesdays)

* H – Ma (stay home Wednesdays)

* Mc – Ri (stay home Thursdays)

* Ro – Z (stay home Fridays)

During stay-at-home "off" days students will be doing remote learning which may include paper and pencil learning activities and use of the Zoom app on their iPads to watch a live stream of the classroom.

If a household has students with different last names and are not in the same range above, for example A – Cla and one student has last name beginning with T, those households will have the option of coming in at either assigned grouping. Families with this situation are asked to contact the school office to indicate their preference

Parents are requested to take their child’s temperature before each school day in the morning

If your child presents COVID symptoms, he/she should remain at home and parents/guardians are advised to consult the child’s physician

Students who ride a bus to school will be dropped off behind the school building and will enter the school through the cafeteria hallway entrance as usual.

Parent drop off will be along Bedford Street and occur between 7:15 AM and 7:35 AM.

Parents are strongly discouraged from dropping students off prior to 7:15 AM. The doors to the high school entrances will not be unlocked before 7:15 AM.

When students arrive to school they are to report directly to their homeroom, after receiving their "grab and go" breakfast. (see section below)

Student dismissal from school will be staggered so that all students are not walking the halls and to the bus at the same time

Students who are picked up via private transportation will do so from the main office lobby.

On any given day, parents signing out and picking up their child will do so at the main entrance. Parents will wait outside until the student is called for dismissal

Grab and Go breakfast will be served daily, upon arrival to school

· A grab and go breakfast kiosk will be available on each floor

· Students will eat in classrooms between arrival time and 7:52 AM.

Students will continue to eat in three different lunch periods

· There will be no keypad, so students will be issued a school ID card with a barcode to scan for lunch

· Seating will be rearranged to reduce proximity between students

When possible, students and staff will walk on the right side of the hallway

Students and staff will be required to wear shields/masks at all times, including when in the hallway

A new electronic hall pass will be in use this year. Students will learn more about this system on the first day of school

Students will be permitted to go to the restroom when needed

Custodians will sanitize restrooms throughout school day and every evening

Students are encouraged to limit their requests to leave the classroom to visit other classrooms or other parts of the school, and may be denied based upon reason and number of students already out of the classrooms

A variety of district communication systems (School Messenger, social media, etc.) will be used to notify staff, families, and the public of any school closures and within-school-year changes to safety protocols

NOTE: Grades 7 – 12 will also use MS Teams to communicate with households

Staff will be educated on signs/symptoms of COVID-19

· Parents should check for symptoms before their child leaves from home. If the student is showing COVID symptoms, he/she should remain at home and the parent should consult the child’s physician.

· If a student or staff member were to test positive for COVID-19, the DoH will lead contact tracing and advise the district on the appropriate safety measures to put in place.

· Face coverings will follow the Dept. of Health requirements.

· Face coverings should be clearly labeled with student’s name

· There will be a wellness room and sick room in nurse’s office specifically for students displaying COVID symptoms

Please click on the image of the iPad above to read the CKSD Live Streaming Policy

For early dismissals, parents will enter the vestibule and use computer to have their student dismissed; the student will then be called down by the building secretary for dismissal

· There will be no field trips in the fall semester

· Consideration for field trips will be taken in the spring semester depending on current situation

· No inside school facilities usage (basketball, volleyball, softball, etc)

· No after-school activities/clubs

· No large group face-to-face assemblies

· No class parties or snacks brought in on birthdays

· School assemblies will be virtual

· No classroom/school volunteers or visitors

· No large-scale face-to-face community events

· IEP, GIEP, or parent meetings will be phone, virtual, or face to face depending on the situation

· Parent-Teacher Conferences may be held remotely via phone or video conference

· Picture Day will still occur but mitigation efforts will be in place

PTO meetings held virtually