PRESIDENT – Michele Larkin

VICE PRESIDENT RECRUITING– Patty Candelaria

VICE PRESIDENT MEMBERSHIP– Trang Le

VICE PRESIDENT SCHOOL EVENTS – Christina Merryman

Website: https://www.arsptsa.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/AnnRichardsPTSA
Twitter: @PTSA_ARS_STARS

Star Families,

I hope this communication finds you safe and well. AISD has sent a survey inquiring about whether you will keep your student continuing with 100% remote learning once buildings are open. As a parent I would want to know the most up to date information in order to make the most informed decision for my child. I wish I could give you clear and solid answers. Unfortunately, TEA continues to issue new and changing guidance which impacts our requirements and operations. That being said, I'm writing today to share our draft plan - which has not yet been approved - but I think it will give you an idea of what we are planning and hopefully help your family make the decision to continue remotely or return to the building. The survey was sent via email and is due Monday, August 3rd.

With both our remote learning plan and any on-campus plan, safety will be our leading priority because without it, no other goals matter. However, this year we will ensure that students stay on track for college success and as a campus we will be digging more deeply into how to do this through a lens of equity.

As stated in my last letter, our remote learning expectations beginning August 18th are:

• Classes will be mostly synchronous which means there will be a specified time that students need to log on and be ready to learn with their teachers and peers.
• We will have a daily schedule which will have work times built in so students are not on screens for 8 hours a day.
• Students will log on with cameras on and ready to actively participate with peers.
• On Friday's classes will be asynchronous which means that students can work in the order and pace that is right for them. Work will have to ​be completed for each of those classes that day to be given credit for attendance.
• There will be weekly grades in every class.
• We will balance screen time with meaningful teacher interaction and self-paced learning opportunities.

After September 8th (or the reopening date) our instruction will remain online. Students will have the option to come to school to do the online work in a supervised room. Here is what we expect it to look like:

• Students and staff will be screened prior to entering the building​
• There will be no before or after school care available
• Students ​who are running a fever or do not pass the screening questions will be taken to the holding room until parents can pick them up.
• All students and staff will be required to wear masks at all times​
• Any students or staff who exhibit signs of Covid19 or have family members that are Covid19 positive will be required to quarantine for 14 days. Any staff or students in contact for longer than 15 minutes with a presumed positive student or staff will be required to quarantine for 14 days. The areas in which the student or staff came into contact will be quarantined for 3 days, cleaned on the 4th day and in operation on the 5th day.
• At this time AISD states that they will be following 6ft. social distancing guidelines. This means we will have limited capacity on busses and in classrooms, but until we know exact numbers of students choosing the remote or in-person option we are unsure how this will impact scheduling.
• Students will not​ move throughout the building to attend classes but will remain in their advisory class all day. They will eat breakfast and lunch in the classroom.
• All instruction will be delivered online and students will interact with their assigned teachers online. Advisory teachers will be available to help monitor and facilitate academic and social needs. Once it becomes safe to do so, we will explore options to resume more interaction in the building.
• We will have built in times for social and emotional activities, movement and outside activities. We are also working on a formal peer mentorship that will be ongoing and will be available for students online and students in the building.
• We will have a staggered dismissal with all students needing to ride the bus or be picked up by 4:45pm. Students will need to remain outside the building after this time. All staff will need to leave the building by 5pm for the custodial staff to have enough time to clean and sterilize the entire building.

I understand the picture of schooling painted above is unsettling to say the least. My intent is not to influence your families decision to attend in person but to be truthful about the reality of what we face and the changes needed to keep everyone as safe as possible. It is also to give you all of the information that we have to date. Again this situation has been very fluid and what we know to be true today may change tomorrow.

Here is the good news, our teachers are the best in their profession and they have been working all summer on creating new curriculum, clarifying the most important standards and moving their material to an online format. They will be ready August 18th to welcome back your daughter, engage and educate them and help them establish community with their peers. We are a resilient community and will get through this difficult period of time together. In the Spring our lives will change, hopefully with a vaccine that will mitigate our risks but also with a state of the art new building that has large open spaces, outdoor work/play areas and a place to create brand new memories.

We hope this communication finds you safe and well. The information in this letter is to help you and your family plan for the transition to Ann Richards. We want to thank you for entrusting us to educate your daughters during these uncertain times. Please know that our top priority for the fall is the safety and wellness of our students and staff.

For the first three weeks of school we will be 100 percent online. For now, we are slated for face to face instruction beginning September 8th. This date may change depending on the percentage of community spread of Covid and the orders of Travis County.

Here's what to expect from ARS while we are distance learning:

• Classes will be mostly synchronous which means there will be a specified time that students need to log on and be ready to learn with their teachers and peers.

• We will have a daily schedule which will have work times built in so students are not on screens for 8 hours a day.

• Students will attend class with cameras on and ready to actively participate with peers.

• On Fridays, classes will be asynchronous which means that students can work in the order and pace that is right for them. Work will have to completed for each of those classes that day to be given credit for attendance.

• There will be weekly grades in every class. (We will of course balance screen time with meaningful teacher interaction and self-paced learning opportunities.)

We will have more detailed information and the schedule that we will be using soon. Here are a few other items to help us transition back to school.

Supplies

The list below is a universal supply list that is the same for every grade. This contains the basic essentials that every student will need. The brand and the color of items are your choice. Also if a particular style works best for your student feel free to get what works for them.

• 6 composition notebooks or 6 subject notebook

• 2 Folders

• Pack of pencils and pens

• Small pencil sharpener

• Colored pencils

• Highlighters

• Headphones/earbuds

• Ruler

Uniforms

We will not require uniforms while we are learning remotely. When we transition back to school we will allow students a 3 week window with an informal uniform. This will allow everyone to get the help they need procuring all the uniform items. We will have a uniform closet that will help families get uniform pants or shirts.

The ARS informal uniform will have 3 choices:

• ARS full uniform
• ARS T-Shirt or (plain blue, black or white shirt) and jeans with tennis shoes
• ARS T-Shirt or (plain blue, black or white shirt) and athletic shorts and tennis shoes

Please see link below for uniform ordering information.

6th Grade Orientation

Mark your calendar for Aug. 13 at 6pm for our Star Orientation for parents and students. See the invitation below for instructions on how to attend via Zoom. In this orientation, you will learn about Ann Richards, our PTSA, online learning, meet our incredible 6th Grade Team, and spend some time with your daughter's advisory class and advisory teacher. We will also review uniforms, the supply list, and distance learning expectations. In order to participate, you must register in advance for this meeting by using the following link:

https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJYocOuoqz8iGNbqRVNZtzV7dMuEgNOTco7J

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email, as well as reminders leading up to the meeting.

We look forward to connecting with you soon and if you need any assistance, you can find our contact information below.

• If you have technology from your previous AISD school, you may continue to use it for this year.
• If you have a device at home, you may use it!
• If the device you received isn’t in working condition (has a cracked screen, won't turn on, is slow, etc.) please contact the student tech support helpline at 512-414-4357.
• If you are new to the district OR need a device, you will be able to request one from the school district soon.

• Make sure your contact information is updated in the AISD Parent Cloud. This will ensure quicker delivery and communication from the district.

Ann Richards was part of the 2017 AISD bond and is in the process of building our new school. We will finally have a home that will complement our style of learning: collaborative spaces, outdoor spaces, more MakerSpace areas for our projects, and lots of beautiful features that were hand picked by our students. We are still scheduled to move in December 2020.

We are currently contracting with a company that provides an easy way for students to be organized. This program is an online agenda that is automatically updated with tasks that need to be completed along with timelines for projects and upcoming tests. In addition, this program will inform parents weekly via email of how their student is progressing, what was done during the week and what remains. More to come soon on this new tool, but check out the video below for a quick introduction.

AISD and the Superintendent scheduled a series of Facebook live events to help keep our learning communities in the know with real-time developments regarding reopening on the AISD Facebook page. Videos will be livestreamed in both English and Spanish. The segments are recorded and always available on our Facebook page and closed captioning is provided.

Follow these instructions to receive notifications.