Sherwood Schools: District Updates

We are so excited to begin welcoming back our Kindergarten and 1st grade Hybrid students starting next week! A huge thank you to our elementary teachers, staff, and administrators, as well as support staff throughout the district, for their hard work in making this transition possible. With our school buildings now reopening, please take note of the following important reminders/changes:

• School playgrounds at all elementary schools will be closed to the public 7:30am-5:30pm on all school days -- these are the hours in which school is in session, as well as the hours of operations for our Champions after school program. Public use of playgrounds during these times is prohibited in order to maintain cohort separation. Playgrounds are open to the public after 5:30pm on weekdays, or during the weekends - please maintain social distancing and wear masks when using District facilities during public open hours.

• Dogs are not permitted on District grounds on school days from 7:30am-3:30pm, or on athletic fields at any time,as per District policy. Owners are responsible for containment of dogs (via leash or in vehicle) and removal of waste at all other times. All other animals are prohibited from District property without prior District approval.

• Our buildings remain closed to non-essential visitors and volunteers. Please review the information sent by your school’s office regarding pick-up/drop-off procedures for families and students.

• Masks must be worn at all times by students, parents, guardians, etc. when on campus.

• If your student is ill, please keep your student home and contact your school office. Students with the following primary COVID symptoms will be sent home from school immediately:

• Fever of 100.4° or higher

• Chills

• Cough

• Shortness of breath/difficulty breathing

• New loss of taste or smell

We know school will look and feel very different for our students (and families!) this spring, and your flexibility and collaboration is essential to ensure that we have a safe and successful reopening of our buildings. Thank you for your partnership and support of our schools!

With athletics competitions now underway, there has been significant interest in our district’s approach to allowing spectators to attend sporting events. These events do have maximum capacity limitations connected to county COVID risk categories, and as those capacity limitations include student athletes, coaches, and officials, the number of participants involved in a competition impacts the remaining capacity for spectators to attend. Sherwood High School, in collaboration with other local school districts in our league, has determined that available spectator spots will be opened for parents of senior students only, on a limited basis. The high school will communicate with student athletes and their families to provide additional details and instructions on this topic -- please watch for that communication, which will be sent today.

This afternoon, Governor Kate Brown announced the prioritization of in-person learning for all Oregon Schools, stating that she will be issuing an executive order to return students to the classroom. Within this announcement, schools are to provide "access to in-person instruction for K-5 students on or before the week of March 29, 2021 and students grades 6-12 on or before the week of April 19, 2021."

With the opening of our elementary schools for grades K-1 next week, and grades 2-5 starting March 15, our district is in alignment with the first of these two deadlines. Next Wednesday, March 10, our Board of Directors will review reopening timeline recommendations for our middle and high school levels that would allow us to meet the second deadline as well. Please stay tuned for communication from the District next week with more details about the reopening plans for our middle and high school levels following the March 10 Board Meeting.

As departments across the District prepare to accommodate on-campus learners in the weeks ahead, please note the following changes for meal availability thorough our Nutrition Services department:

• Starting Monday, March 15, meal hubs will open once daily for service, 10:30-11:30am. Meal hubs will continue to operate at all six of our campuses for students in CDL during these hours.

• Meal hubs will be closed during Spring Break (March 22-26)

• Weekend meal service will be discontinued following Spring Break.

If your family is in need of additional food resources at any time, please contact our SHARE Center. The SHARE Center is open 8am-3pm daily on schools days (advance appointments for Food Pantry are encouraged); The SHARE Center will also open during Spring Break on the following schedule:

• Tuesday, March 23 - 8am-3pm

• Wednesday, March 24 - 8am-2pm

• Thursday, March 25 - 8am-2pm

• Closed Monday March 22 and Friday March 26

The SHARE Center also connects students with our Back Pack Program, which provides weekend food supplies for families. For more information, please contact 503-825-5085.

Additional free food resources are available at the following locations:

The State of Oregon is currently reviewing funding to provide SNAP benefits to families for their eligible children through the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year. In order for funding to be distributed effectively and efficiently, it is important that families with eligible children submit an application for free and reduced meal benefits, even while we are currently offering meals at no cost to all students. To certify your student’s eligibility for SNAP benefits, please complete the Free and Reduced Meals Application, found at our website here.

As a reminder, all families planning to use school bus transportation must register their students with the Transportation Department in advance. If you are planning to have your student ride the bus to/from school, please complete a Transportation Registration form, found here. For more information about safety protocols implemented by our Transportation Department please click here for English, or here for Spanish.

Website: http://www.sherwood.k12.or.us/
Location: 21920 SW Sherwood Blvd, Sherwood, OR, USA
Phone: 503-825-5000
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sherwoodschooldistrict88J/
Twitter: @SherwoodSD