2024-25 WISD Staff Memo

This memo notifies all WISD staff of upcoming winter breaks so everyone can enjoy time off to relax and spend time with their families, as well as notify staff of instances when schools/programs are cancelled due to weather conditions or a building problem. Here's a short overview.

In advance of the winter season, we will test our district-wide School Messenger phone, email and text notification system next week on Tuesday, December 3 at 6:00 pm.

See info further below in the memo to learn more about the notification process and how to sign up (if needed).

All WISD student programs, including High Point, Red Oak, Progress Park, CIY/Jail, all Young Adult Outcenters, DHH classrooms, and local based classrooms will have class through Friday, December 20, 2024.

• These programs will be closed after the end of the school day on Friday, December 20, 2024, through Sunday, January 5, 2025, for winter break.
• WISD student programs will re-open for regular hours starting Monday, January 6, 2025.

The Teaching and Learning Center (TLC) will be open until 4:30 p.m. on Friday, December 20, 2024.

• The TLC will be closed on Monday, December 23, 2024, through Wednesday, January 1, 2025, for winter break.
• The TLC will re-open for regular hours starting Thursday, January 2, 2025.

The TLC will be closed to the public during winter break, but can still be available to staff who need to be in the office. If you need to come into the office during this time, you must contact your supervisor and request an alarm code from the Facilities department by Friday, December 13. There will be no custodial or technology support available during the break, so you must remove your own perishable trash. Therefore, we encourage staff to only come to the TLC during this time if absolutely necessary.

The scheduled building closures also mean WISD will have a limited mail schedule during the winter break. During the coming weeks leading up to and during winter break, we ask that staff please be mindful of the following changes to the mail and package delivery schedule:

• All mail, including inter-school mail, will not be delivered while buildings are closed from December 21, 2024, through January 5, 2025, including at the TLC.
• If you order any packages prior to winter break, including from Amazon, please confirm that they will not be delivered during the break. Staff will not be on-site to accept deliveries or bring packages inside, so anything shipped to our facilities during winter break will be left outside, including at the TLC.

Due to the District’s ability to shift to fully remote teaching and working, all WISD staff are expected to be prepared each day to work remotely should the district suddenly need to shift to virtual instruction and work, including taking technology devices and/or materials as needed. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact your supervisor.

On a day in which inclement weather, technology outages or power outages affect the District’s ability to conduct instruction and work, staff should work with their Supervisor to discuss the feasibility of working remotely. If you are unable to work remotely, then you should follow the instructions outlined in your bargaining agreement or employee manual.

On days when some or all of the district is closed, we will provide more specific instructions about staff reporting in four (4) ways:

1. The School Messenger system
2. Email from administration/supervisors
3. Posting on the WISD website, and
4. Social media (@WashISD on Facebook and Twitter and @WashtenawISD on Instagram).

Staff should always follow instructions in their staff email or from their supervisor/administration, NOT media reports.

All WISD employees are signed up for School Messenger automatically.

• Employees who joined the district after 2021 are enrolled based on the “Emergency Contact” forms completed with HR upon hiring.
• Employees who joined the district before 2021 were enrolled when the district updated emergency contact information that year.

All WISD contractors or interns who wish to sign up for School Messenger notifications can create an account by following these instructions. They will need to renew their account each year.

In some cases, the TLC building may be closed, such as for a power outage. In that case, staff who are assigned to the TLC may be asked to not report to work. The expectation is that if staff have an offsite meeting/assignment/visit/etc., then they will still attend that appointment. This would include attending an offsite workshop/conference, working with a student at a building that does have power, visiting the home of a child, etc.

• Teacher Consultants, Early On staff, early childhood specialists, early childhood home visitors, and other ancillary or preschool staff who have assignments in local districts will be expected to report to open locations/districts.
• If the local district you serve is closed, but the TLC is open, staff are expected to work remotely.
• WISD technical staff working with multiple local districts should report to any district or WISD facility if open as soon as road conditions allow following the district’s discretion.
• Staff with time sensitive assignments may be asked to report to work at another location or from home to ensure those assignments are completed.