Rachel described the process for the planning of the fall reopening. Relying on various guidance from DESE as it was published, health and safety requirements, lessons learned from the Spring and best practices emerging at VPCS and the field. Working groups included teachers and other staff with everyone contributing to the final plan. With SPS decision to open remotely, the team shifted from proposing a hybrid start to a remote start feeling it is important to be aligned with the district. The board then discussed the plan and asked questions.

Aaron Mendelson asked if we would be bound to future SPS decisions about remaining remote and Rachel explained we would not be bound but will take their decisions into consideration when making our own. Many families with students across city schools appreciate when we are aligned with district calendar. That said, we will survey and listen to our own families and teachers. First trimester ends in early November and we will be soliciting input from families to determine what is best for our community. We will also be using the governors color system to help us determine risk for our community.

Dale Janes asked about the differences between staffing for the hybrid model versus the remote model. Rachel explained the challenges with approving staff accommodation requests in the hybrid model given the need for higher staff to student ratios in order to comply with distancing requirements. Teachers have already started Professional Development and some are in the building. All PD can be done remotely and accommodations have been granted for remote participation in PD. Decisions have not yet been made about ongoing accommodations as the team is working on a decision tree and exploring possible ways to make the accommodations as requested. Child care remains an issue for several teachers.

Rachel explained the Social Emotional Learning program and how it relates to the tiered interventions. Lisa Doherty asked about the differences in doing this remote versus in person. Rachel explained how the working group has been going through the in person systems and figuring out how to bring them into the remote environment. Lisa asked about engagement of students and Rachel shared how expectations will be set and maintained very differently than in the Spring. She explained that with improvements to attendance protocols, technology tools, structure of the day, increased synchronous instruction and all the best practices of the Spring being shared and set as common we expect engagement to dramatically improve. Students who do not engage and participate as expected in remote learning in the first trimester will be prioritized for in person learning moving forward.

Terry Maxey asked about technology safeguards and how we were ensuring student privacy and safety. Rachel shared more about the digital platform  including the learning management system and other tools. She talked about the chromebooks that are issued and how the IT team is managing them. InSource is our technology contractor and has been providing great support and work on this front. 

Rachel talked about the team feeling urgent about getting our high needs students including special ed and English learners back into school. We will be monitoring them carefully and engaging with families to understand their wishes with the goal of returning them to in person instruction as soon as possible. 

Dale, on behalf of the board, commended the team and all of the individuals who contributed to the reopening plan. He asked Rachel to share this with the team and let them know how much the board appreciates their hard work, strategic planning and tactical operating over these past months.