SVHS Green and Gold

During the Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, August 25, 2020, discussion centered on the need for MCPS staff to be vigilant in our approach to recognizing and reporting possible child abuse and neglect of our students in this virtual environment. In addition, the need for our teachers and counselors to be available and accessible to our students (and their families) on this level is paramount. Below is background information and linked resource for all MCPS employees to have available for the start of the school year, as requested by several members of the BOE.

Background

- Montgomery County, including Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) has experienced a significant drop in referrals and reports submitted to Child Welfare Services regarding the suspected child abuse and neglect.

- During 2019-2020 school year (prior to COVID-19), MCPS averaged about 24 submitted reports per day. Since, virtual learning began, MCPS is averaging 2 or 3 per day.

- Nationally, 21% of the 4.3 million referrals made in 2018 (according to federal data) were from educators.

- The centers helping child abuse victims have seen 40,000 fewer kids amid the pandemic -- A nationwide survey of children's advocacy centers shows a staggering drop in child abuse reports since the start of the pandemic, fueling fears that the abuse is going undetected. Wash Post Article By Samantha Schmidt

- Without the ability to personally observe and discuss concerns with students, MCPS staff need to be vigilant and accessible virtually to students to provide support, counseling, and services.

- MCPS has partnered with Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services, Child Welfare Services, and the State’s Attorney’s Office to provide information and resources on The Family Justice Center, Victims Assistance and Sexual Assault Program, EveryMind, and more.

ACTION: This document provides important guidance on engaging with students and providing opportunities for support, as well as possible signs and symptoms of children experiencing potential abuse and neglect in the home. The document provides a direct link for MCPS staff to file an online report.

The following MCPS offices can also provide support:

• MCPS Student Welfare and Compliance works collaboratively with schools, central office and community agencies to ensure consistency and coherence with implementation of policies, regulations and guidelines, such as issues related to human relations; bullying, harassment (including Title IX sexual harassment) and intimidation; recognizing and reporting child abuse and neglect; and gender identity. You can call 240-740-3215 or email COS-StudentWelfare@mcpsmd.org. You can find more HERE.
• MCPS Office of Student and Family Support and Engagement (OSFSE) oversees MCPS services and programs needed to promote positive school cultures and advance the academic, physical, social and psychological well-being of every student. You can call the office at 240-740-5630 or contact Ruschelle Reuben (Ruschelle_Reuben@mcpsmd.org) or Everett Davis (Everett_M_Davis@mcpsmd.org). You can find more HERE.
• MCPS school psychologists can be contacted by calling your school, or by contacting Dr. Christina N. Conolly at 240-740-5640 or Christina_N_Connolly@mcpsmd.org. You can find more HERE.
• The Equity Initiatives Unit supports, coaches, consults and collaborates with schools and offices to design and implement efforts to address equity and cultural competency. They help school and office employees, in their day-to-day work, address structural barriers that enable our racial achievement gap to persist. You can call the office at 240-740-4070 or email Troy Boddy at Troy_Boddy@mcpsmd.org. You can find more HERE.

Additional Contacts and Resources:

• Contact the Montgomery County Hotline at 240-777-4357 or 301-738-2255 (EveryMind). A trained staff member or volunteer will provide supportive listening and information, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Students may text the EveryMind hotline telephone number every day, available between noon and midnight.
• Students may contact the Victim Assistance and Sexual Assault Program (VASAP) for support. VASAP provides information, referrals and advocacy, as well as crisis and ongoing counseling for victims of sexual assault.
• Safe Schools Maryland Tip Line is an anonymous reporting system used to report threats to the safety and/or well-being of students. Call 1-833-MD-B-SAFE or download the app.

We have heard from many teachers and families asking if the Zoom Chat feature can remain on to facilitate engagement in the classroom. In response to those requests, we have worked with Zoom to ensure that a chat solution is safe and secure. We can now enable this feature.

Here are the details:

1. Chat functionality will be turned off by default, but the teacher can turn it on for use in their classroom. You can access this feature through the settings.
2. Private chat between students will continue to be disabled.
3. Group chat and direct chat with the teacher will be enabled.
4. These chats will be recorded as part of normal classroom recording and deleted after 72 hours.
5. We are working on a training video. We will make it available soon.

As we did last spring, we will have a cadre of substitute teachers who have had training on using tools in the virtual learning platform. Educators will use the regular processes to request substitute coverage through the Substitute Employee Management System (SEMS).

Staff,

The SVHS Boosters Club is coordinating a custom engraved brick program. Bricks have 3 lines that you can customize in any way that you like! The bricks will be in sections under the roofing of the ticket booth near the top of the new stadium. Want to promote your department? Honor a teacher? Have a great Screaming Eagle saying? Orders are being taken through PayPal at www.engravedbricks.com/campaign/svhs and cost $50. The first order is going in soon! For questions, please write to eaglesboosters21@gmail.com

The safety and wellness of our students remains a top priority. Below are resources to support the physical, social and psychological well-being of our community. If you believe your child is in crisis, please contact the Montgomery County Crisis Center at 240-777-4000. Students can also reach out to their counselor and school psychologist to set up a confidential appointment.

Waymaking Video Series

• Suicide Awareness
• Managing Stress and Anxiety for Students
• Managing Stress and Anxiety during Social Distancing

Mindful Moments Video Series
Tips on Addressing Student Grief
Tips for Preventing Youth Suicide

Below is information regarding food/grocery access beyond the MCPS school meal sites:

Food Assistance Resource Map: The Montgomery County Food Council created an interactive map of food assistance providers and benefits application assistance sites in Montgomery County. It is searchable by location, food assistance type, accessibility and many other special features. This resource can give principals and families a quick view of local resources in their area. The information indicates where, when and how to access the resources. **We would caution parents and staff supporting parents to pay particular attention to how one qualifies to access food as some sites state requirements.

Weekend Bag Program: MCPS, Manna Food Center, and Women Who Care Ministries are distributing weekend backpacks with groceries to the families of MCPS students each Friday. The location of distribution sites and times are listed at the bottom of the webpage.

MENTAL HEALTH RESOURECES https://www.sheppardpratt.org/news-views/story/sheppard-pratt-hosts-virtual-lunch-learn-series-for-mental-health-awareness-month/

VIRTUAL CRISIS WALK_IN CLINIC

https://www.sheppardpratt.org/care-finder/virtual-crisis-walk-in-clinic/

https://dominionhospital.com/covid-19/access-to-care/behavioral-health.dot

MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT WEBSITES

1. https://www.caringmatters.org/resourcesforschools

2. https://learn.mindwise.org/social-distance

3. https://www.therapistaid.com/

4. https://www.mindfulschools.org/

5. https://www.educatingmindfully.org/

6. https://www.stressedteens.com/

7. http://mindfullifeproject.org/

8. https://centerforadolescentstudies.com/

GRIEF RESOURCE

https://www.caringmatters.org/

Are you proud to be a part of the SV community? We want to let everyone know how much we love being a part of the Screaming Eagle family. We have a challenge for you. Let's go viral!!!

• Tweet, Snap, IB, FB, etc., a pic of you repping "The Valley" by wearing your Seneca gear.
• And don't forget to use #svproud. Go Eagles!

Email: marc_j_cohen@mcpsmd.org
Website: www.senecavalleyhighschool.com
Location: 19401 Crystal Rock Drive, Germantown, MD, USA
Phone: 301-353-8000
Twitter: @SenecaValleyHS