We're Transitioning to Hybrid

Dear TTUSD Parents & Community Members,

I am excited to share that we will be reopening our schools, in hybrid, on Monday, February 1, 2021. The decision was made at tonight’s board meeting, and we wanted you to know right away so you can plan accordingly.

We will welcome our Cohort A students to campus on Monday, February 1, and our Cohort B students to campus on Thursday, February 4, 2021. We realize that parents have different comfort levels regarding having their child on campus for in-person instruction, and we continue to offer our year-long distance learning option. Last week our principals sent out a cohort change request form for any parent who wants to change their child’s cohort, from hybrid to year-long distance learning or vice versa. The cohort change request forms must be completed by tomorrow, Thursday, January 21, 2021.

We know you have questions; we are working on a new set of FAQs for our families we’ll share with you soon. Please know that we do read all of the parent emails we receive; however, due to the high volume, we haven’t been able to respond to all of them. We take your feedback seriously and as well as the public comments submitted at board meetings, and try our best to address these questions.

Here are a few questions we can answer for you right now.

Why are we reopening on February 1?

• The number of active cases within our TTUSD community is low. As of this morning, we have six cases.

• We have enough staff to offer high-quality instruction in person.

• We know that in-person instruction is hugely beneficial for our students - for their emotional well-being and academic progress, and we can do it safely. Our schools offer a safe environment (physically and emotionally) for our students and staff, and our extensive safety mitigation measures in place keep risks at a minimum.

• We have availability for timely testing and results for symptomatic staff and students.

• We've expanded our capacity for contact tracing.

What about high school sports?

• TTUSD can participate in sports approved by the California Department of Public Health Youth Sports Guidelines (CDPH). Click here to view the state’s tiered system for sports. TTUSD has to follow the guidelines from CDPH, regardless of what NIAA says. We are getting legal guidance because of our unique situation as a California school district that competes in another state. No decisions have been made yet for the 2020-2021 high school sports competition seasons except for skiing, snowboarding, and Nordic skiing, which CDPH defines as low-contact and low-risk sports.

What about free meals for our kids?

• We will continue to provide FREE meals for our students, whether or not they are in hybrid or year-long distance learning. For the latest updates, visit www.ttusd.org/food.

What happens if we have COVID cases at one of our schools?

• We will take it case by case. If there is a safety risk at any time, we will temporarily close a classroom, grade level, or school site and move to distance learning. We do not intend to close district-wide unless something unforeseen happens.

• We will follow our detailed notification protocols, and our nurses will conduct extensive contact tracing.

• If some of our school bus drivers become ill at the same time, there could be times when an entire bus route would be canceled on a given day.

How can I find out the number of active cases of COVID within our TTUSD community?

• We have a TTUSD dashboard for COVID-19 cases within TTUSD (students and staff). The dashboard is updated daily, Monday through Friday, by our nurses.
  
  

How can I find out updates about the timing of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout in Placer or Nevada county?

• We have a vaccine webpage, under COVID-19 Updates & Resources, with vaccine information. COVID-19 vaccine FAQs will be posted by the end of the week.

We are excited to welcome our students back to school and can’t wait to connect with them in person.

Take care and please stay safe and follow our safety guidelines even when you’re not on campus so we can keep our school community safe. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Carmen Ghysels

Superintendent Chief Learning Officer