Dear St. Vrain Valley Families,
Thank you for your continued partnership and support during this challenging and complex time for our schools and community. As our students have engaged in learning remotely over the past three weeks, we have continued to closely partner with our state and county health agencies on a plan that will allow for a safer and operationally sustainable plan to return to some form of in-person learning. We have also worked closely with our community, including meeting with our Teachers Advisory Council, Parent Coronavirus Update and Advisory Committee, SVVSD Leadership and Health Services Team, Teacher’s Association Leadership, public health officials, and our Board of Education.
In each of these meetings we discussed the current public health data and the Colorado COVID Dial Framework’s recommendation for providing some form of in-person learning at each level of the dial. Additionally, Boulder County Public Health (BCPH) and the Governor’s School Task Force have shared numerous studies that have demonstrated that schools are not a primary source of transmission, as they have many controls and safety protocols in place making them safer environments than most public spaces. Accordingly, based on the guidance from our county and state health agencies and the Governor’s Office, in addition to extensive feedback we have received from our teachers and parents, we plan to begin the second semester on January 6 with the following in-person learning schedule:
- Preschool students will attend school in-person with the schedule they selected at registration. Click here for more information.
- Elementary school students will attend school in-person four days per week for all students (Monday – Thursday), beginning Wednesday, January 6. Fridays will be scheduled as a fully asynchronous learning day. Click here for more information, including schedules. Childcare will continue to be available through our Community Schools program. Please click here for more information about Community Schools.
- Middle school students will begin the semester remotely and learn fully online from Wednesday, January 6, through Friday, January 8. Beginning Monday, January 11, middle school students will return to our hybrid learning schedule, and continue to follow the schedule utilized in the fall with two days of in-person learning, two days of online learning, and asynchronous learning on Fridays with teacher office hours and small group and individualized student support. Students will stay in the same group they were assigned to during the first semester. Click here for more information, including schedules.
- High school students will begin the semester remotely and learn fully online from Wednesday, January 6 through Friday, January 15. Beginning Tuesday, January 19, high school students will return to our hybrid learning schedule, and continue to follow the schedule utilized in the fall with two days of in-person learning, two days of online learning, and asynchronous learning on Fridays with teacher office hours and small group and individualized student support. Students will stay in the same group they were assigned to during the first semester. Click here for more information, including schedules.
- Students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) may attend school in-person four days per week (Monday – Thursday) with Fridays continuing to be scheduled as an asynchronous learning day. Click here for more information.
We will continue to offer bus transportation on in-person learning days for students who qualify. Riders will continue to adhere to all safety protocols including required mask wearing and seating charts. Additionally, we are working with our county health agency partners on any potential changes to our protocols now that more elementary students will be utilizing transportation services on in-person learning days. We will communicate any potential changes to your student’s transportation services by the end of December.
Fully Remote Learning Options for Second Semester
Families who are not comfortable returning to in-person learning will continue to have the following options for online instruction:
- Fully Synchronous Online Learning: Families who began the school year with the hybrid model at their home school can opt to keep their students home and attend school in a fully synchronous online environment. It is important to note that in this model, the instruction is designed around the in-person or hybrid learning environment. Families selecting this option should plan to commit to the synchronous model through Spring Break to ensure consistency and continuity in our learning environments. Students should choose the model in which they will participate, and attend consistently. If you choose to utilize this learning option for your student, please contact your school principal by Monday, January 4.
- LaunchED Virtual Academy: Taught by St. Vrain Valley teachers, LaunchED utilizes the Florida Virtual Schools curriculum, a fully online learning program designed to support students learning in a virtual environment. Click here to learn more.
Quarantine Guidelines and Protocols
St. Vrain Valley Schools continues to follow all safety guidelines and quarantining protocols developed by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), our county health agencies, and the Governor’s School Task Force. In December 2020, CDPHE revised the quarantining protocols and requirements to align to recent modeling and best practices regarding COVID-19 in school environments. To this end, when schools are in operation based on the recommendations of Colorado’s COVID-19 Dial Framework, BCPH and CDPHE support St. Vrain Valley Schools use of a targeted approach whenever appropriate for student or staff exposure to a confirmed or probable case. If CDPHE changes their quarantining protocols to require standard quarantining under any level of the state’s COVID-19 Dial Framework, the district may be required to return to online learning. Click here to learn more about our quarantining protocols and processes.
Social Emotional Supports
The health, safety, and well-being of our students, families, teachers, and staff is our highest priority. Our students’ social and emotional wellness is critical to their overall personal and academic success. Toward this end, we offer various resources for students to access in the event that they may need additional personalized support. There are counselors and interventionists in every school in St. Vrain who provide academic guidance, social-emotional support, and career and post-secondary readiness guidance. If you have questions, please reach out to your school directly. Additionally, as we approach the holiday break and school is not in session, if you need immediate assistance, you may access support via this link at 211 Colorado and/or the state’s crisis hotline at 1-800-273-8255.
Coronavirus Testing
In addition to our robust safety measures that include required mask wearing, social distancing, partial cohorting, high-quality air ventilation, increased cleaning protocols, hand sanitizer stations, and symptom check stations, free and low-cost COVID-19 testing is widely available throughout Boulder and Weld Counties, including at our St. Vrain Valley Schools’ Innovation Center. Any adult or student who has been required to quarantine is strongly encouraged to be tested 7-14 days after their initial exposure. You can register for testing at our Innovation Center site at https://covidcheckcolorado.org.
Over the winter break, we will continue to monitor levels of coronavirus in our community and share any changes to our current plan if the public health guidance recommendations change before January 6. Additionally, schools will continue to share information and resources that will support students through winter break and beyond, including mental health and counseling support information, as well as coronavirus testing information, and other resources.
Again, thank you for your continued support as we work through these challenges together. If you have any questions about this change, please feel free to contact me directly or to reach out to your school building principal.
Sincerely,
Don Haddad, Ed.D.
Superintendent
St. Vrain Valley Schools
@SVVSDSupt