April 5, 2020 - 12:30pm: Update from Lynn Cota, Superintendent
Dear FNESU Students, Families, Staff and Community Members,
My hope is that this message finds all members of our FNESU community safe and well. Our teachers and staff have been working hard in a variety of ways to support our students, families, and community throughout the last several weeks. Home learning isn’t something any of us have ever imagined we’d have to learn how to provide and support. But, here we are rolling out our Continuity of Learning plan for the remainder of the school year. I know some of this is confusing, so here is another attempt to describe the shift you can expect to see soon. During the time from March 18 – April 10, our teachers have been charged with providing students with materials to reinforce the learning that occurred prior to March 17. Beginning on April 13, our teachers are preparing to shift to a continuation of learning model and will be providing learning opportunities and resources that relate to new learning and instruction. Special education services will resume on April 13. Our teachers and administrators are doing their very best to provide the resources and support children and families’ needs during both this maintenance of previous learning period and the upcoming continuation of learning period. For information on open wifi in each of our towns and for information on free home internet, please visit this link.
Quarter 3 Report Cards
All quarter 3 report cards will be sent home in the coming days. These report cards will only reflect learning that occurred prior to the March 17 school closure.
April Vacation
Education Secretary French provided school superintendents guidance a few days ago regarding school calendars. There will be no school services offered from April 20-24, the scheduled April vacation week. The exception will be food delivery. We will continue to provide food for children during the vacation period.
Meal Delivery Schedule Change
In anticipation of the projected peak of the spread of the virus occurring in the coming weeks, we have made proactive shifts to our meal delivery schedule. It will allow us to be able to more flexibly use our human resources in the event we experience staffing shortages. We know how important these meals are to our children, and we want to ensure these meals will continue.
Week of April 6-10 – Food deliveries will be made on Monday, Tuesday, and Friday. (Tuesday’s delivery will include food for Tuesday lunch – Friday breakfast. Friday’s delivery will include food for Friday lunch – Tuesday breakfast)
Delivery Times
Monday, April 6 – Busses will begin the routes at 10:00
Tuesday, April 7 - Busses will begin the routes at 11:30
(Sheldon and Bakersfield routes will begin at 11:00)
Friday, April 10 – Busses will begin the routes at 11:30
(Sheldon and Bakersfield routes will begin at 11:00)
Week of April 13-17 and beyond – Food deliveries will be made on Tuesday and Friday each week. (Tuesday’s delivery will include food for Tuesday lunch – Friday breakfast. Friday’s delivery will include food for Friday lunch - Tuesday breakfast)
Delivery Times
Tuesdays and Fridays- Busses will begin the routes at 11:30
(Sheldon and Bakersfield routes will begin at 11:00)
Meal Pick-ups Available
(At Berkshire Elementary, Enosburg High School, Montgomery Elementary, and Richford Elementary)
· Monday, April 6 – 7:00-1:00
· Beginning Tuesday, April 7- Pick-ups available on Tuesdays and Fridays from 7:00-11:30
Given this shift, the amount of food we will be delivering will increase substantially, so please leave a larger cooler or other container, such as a box or tote, at the end of your driveway beginning Tuesday, April 7.
Stay Home Order to be Extended
The Governor warned that the Stay Home order will soon be extended beyond April 15. Our best hope for preventing the ongoing spread of this virus is for Vermonters to follow the order, unless they are an Essential Worker who must go out to work. For others, please only go out for essential purposes like; groceries, pharmacy, medical care, etc.
Cloth Face Masks Advised
On Friday the Vermont Health Commissioner, Dr. Mark Levine, advised Vermonters to wear cloth face masks in public. Here are a few patterns for making masks at home. None of these patterns have been recommended by health care officials, these are simply patterns and “how-tos” I found online. For those without a sewing machine, one of the designs requires nothing more than a bandana and two rubber bands.
No sew – Bandana Mask
DIY pattern – Sew a Face Mask
Pattern Requires no Elastic - Mask with ties
Closure of FNESU School Playgrounds and Outside Courts
Given the most recent guidance that this COVID-19 virus can live for up to 3 days on certain surfaces, all FNESU playgrounds and outside courts are now closed to the public. Please reinforce with your children the importance of staying home to prevent the spread of this virus. Although our children miss their friends, congregating, even outside, is not advised. Please help them to find other ways to connect with friends during this time.
Parents, we recognize this is a really stressful time for many of you. There are really challenging circumstances that many families and children are facing. Please know that we are available to support you. Reach out to your child’s teacher or school counselor if you need support. We will do our best to help you connect with appropriate resources in the community. Thank you for everything you have done and will continue to do to support the educational, social, and emotional needs of your children at home during this time.
We will continue to put updated information and resources on our www.fnesu.org website, our FNESU Facebook page, and we’ll use School Messenger for important updates. If you are experiencing financial distress, homelessness, hunger, job loss, health care related issues and other hardships that arise please reach out to Vermont 2-1-1 by dialing 211, or visit www.unitedwaynwvt.org/vermont-211.
FNESU Resources listed on our website:
Home Learning Resources
Parent/Home Support Resources
Community Resources Available to Families
I couldn’t be more proud of how people in our community have found ways to support one another during this time. As hard as it feels now, I’m confident that we, as a community, can support one another during the challenging days ahead. None of us are alone in this; please reach out if you have a need for support.
Sincerely,
Lynn Cota
Superintendent
Dear FNESU Students, Families, Staff and Community Members,
My hope is that this message finds all members of our FNESU community safe and well. Our teachers and staff have been working hard in a variety of ways to support our students, families, and community throughout the last several weeks. Home learning isn’t something any of us have ever imagined we’d have to learn how to provide and support. But, here we are rolling out our Continuity of Learning plan for the remainder of the school year. I know some of this is confusing, so here is another attempt to describe the shift you can expect to see soon. During the time from March 18 – April 10, our teachers have been charged with providing students with materials to reinforce the learning that occurred prior to March 17. Beginning on April 13, our teachers are preparing to shift to a continuation of learning model and will be providing learning opportunities and resources that relate to new learning and instruction. Special education services will resume on April 13. Our teachers and administrators are doing their very best to provide the resources and support children and families’ needs during both this maintenance of previous learning period and the upcoming continuation of learning period. For information on open wifi in each of our towns and for information on free home internet, please visit this link.
Quarter 3 Report Cards
All quarter 3 report cards will be sent home in the coming days. These report cards will only reflect learning that occurred prior to the March 17 school closure.
April Vacation
Education Secretary French provided school superintendents guidance a few days ago regarding school calendars. There will be no school services offered from April 20-24, the scheduled April vacation week. The exception will be food delivery. We will continue to provide food for children during the vacation period.
Meal Delivery Schedule Change
In anticipation of the projected peak of the spread of the virus occurring in the coming weeks, we have made proactive shifts to our meal delivery schedule. It will allow us to be able to more flexibly use our human resources in the event we experience staffing shortages. We know how important these meals are to our children, and we want to ensure these meals will continue.
Week of April 6-10 – Food deliveries will be made on Monday, Tuesday, and Friday. (Tuesday’s delivery will include food for Tuesday lunch – Friday breakfast. Friday’s delivery will include food for Friday lunch – Tuesday breakfast)
Delivery Times
Monday, April 6 – Busses will begin the routes at 10:00
Tuesday, April 7 - Busses will begin the routes at 11:30
(Sheldon and Bakersfield routes will begin at 11:00)
Friday, April 10 – Busses will begin the routes at 11:30
(Sheldon and Bakersfield routes will begin at 11:00)
Week of April 13-17 and beyond – Food deliveries will be made on Tuesday and Friday each week. (Tuesday’s delivery will include food for Tuesday lunch – Friday breakfast. Friday’s delivery will include food for Friday lunch - Tuesday breakfast)
Delivery Times
Tuesdays and Fridays- Busses will begin the routes at 11:30
(Sheldon and Bakersfield routes will begin at 11:00)
Meal Pick-ups Available
(At Berkshire Elementary, Enosburg High School, Montgomery Elementary, and Richford Elementary)
· Monday, April 6 – 7:00-1:00
· Beginning Tuesday, April 7- Pick-ups available on Tuesdays and Fridays from 7:00-11:30
Given this shift, the amount of food we will be delivering will increase substantially, so please leave a larger cooler or other container, such as a box or tote, at the end of your driveway beginning Tuesday, April 7.
Stay Home Order to be Extended
The Governor warned that the Stay Home order will soon be extended beyond April 15. Our best hope for preventing the ongoing spread of this virus is for Vermonters to follow the order, unless they are an Essential Worker who must go out to work. For others, please only go out for essential purposes like; groceries, pharmacy, medical care, etc.
Cloth Face Masks Advised
On Friday the Vermont Health Commissioner, Dr. Mark Levine, advised Vermonters to wear cloth face masks in public. Here are a few patterns for making masks at home. None of these patterns have been recommended by health care officials, these are simply patterns and “how-tos” I found online. For those without a sewing machine, one of the designs requires nothing more than a bandana and two rubber bands.
No sew – Bandana Mask
DIY pattern – Sew a Face Mask
Pattern Requires no Elastic - Mask with ties
Closure of FNESU School Playgrounds and Outside Courts
Given the most recent guidance that this COVID-19 virus can live for up to 3 days on certain surfaces, all FNESU playgrounds and outside courts are now closed to the public. Please reinforce with your children the importance of staying home to prevent the spread of this virus. Although our children miss their friends, congregating, even outside, is not advised. Please help them to find other ways to connect with friends during this time.
Parents, we recognize this is a really stressful time for many of you. There are really challenging circumstances that many families and children are facing. Please know that we are available to support you. Reach out to your child’s teacher or school counselor if you need support. We will do our best to help you connect with appropriate resources in the community. Thank you for everything you have done and will continue to do to support the educational, social, and emotional needs of your children at home during this time.
We will continue to put updated information and resources on our www.fnesu.org website, our FNESU Facebook page, and we’ll use School Messenger for important updates. If you are experiencing financial distress, homelessness, hunger, job loss, health care related issues and other hardships that arise please reach out to Vermont 2-1-1 by dialing 211, or visit www.unitedwaynwvt.org/vermont-211.
FNESU Resources listed on our website:
Home Learning Resources
Parent/Home Support Resources
Community Resources Available to Families
I couldn’t be more proud of how people in our community have found ways to support one another during this time. As hard as it feels now, I’m confident that we, as a community, can support one another during the challenging days ahead. None of us are alone in this; please reach out if you have a need for support.
Sincerely,
Lynn Cota
Superintendent
Congratulations to the 2019 FNESU Educators of the Year!
Kris Hoyt
FNESU Middle/High Educator of the Year Richford Jr-Sr High |
Lisa Robtoy
FNESU Elementary Educator of the Year Enosburg Elementary |
FNESU Educators of the Year with Superintendent, Lynn Cota
|
Christine Cullen
FNESU Educator of the Year FNESU |
Linda Marcy
FNESU Para Educator of the Year Richford Elementary |