Milbrae Superintendent Message Regarding Shelter In Place

Press release from the Millbrae School District:

March 23, 2020

Dear Millbrae Families,

As you know, there has been a “shelter in place” order for the San Francisco bay area. This order directs San Mateo County residents to stay inside their homes and away from others as much as possible until April 7, 2020 as public health officials aim to curb the spread of Coronavirus. See Press Release HERE. As a result the order, our District Office has altered our hours to be open Monday-Friday 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. for essential services. Read the Order of San Mateo County Health Here.

Our schools will continue to be closed; we had anticipated to reopen on Monday April 13th after spring recess, however we know that school closure will be extended past this date. We continue to work alongside the San Mateo County Office of Education and Health Department to monitor the COVID-19 situation and will provide updates to families when learned.

Here are updates for the week of March 23, 2020:

MILLBRAE SCHOOL DISTRICT’s Distance Learning Platforms + Tools for FOR PARENTS
PDF Document HERE

Principals and teachers continue to support remote/distance learning at home. Teachers are checking in with students by Google Classroom, email or phone. The PDF Document linked above includes information about the learning platforms and tools available for parents as instruction at home continues for the next few weeks. The 9 Tips for implementing remote/distance learning in your home contained within the document, can be used to guide the structure of your student’s day. Remember to encourage exercise within the day! There are many free online resources available that teachers are incorporating in their grade level assignments.

The Educational Services Team continues to develop resources for home learning and assist teachers in implementing remote/distance learning opportunities. Thank you in advance for your support and understanding as we are navigating this model of remote/distance learning. We plan to standardize: Attendance, Check-In, Office Hours, Communication and Workload & Expectations.

Testing

The state will not require schools to administer the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP_3-8th Grades ELA and Math) this year. Visit the Governor’s website for more detailed information from the State of California.

The Initial ELPAC assessment will not be suspended. However, no testing is expected while schools are shut down. Once schools return, the expectation will be that students identified as requiring the Initial ELPAC will be tested. Senate Bill 117 extended the timeline to conduct the Initial ELPAC by 45 days (75 days total). The expectation is that LEAs will continue to assess new students whose primary language is not English when they return this year or next school year.

We will suspend our GATE Assessment for Grade 3 students until further notice.

Student Services

The Student Service Department has been hard at work and heard your feedback in terms of the need for resources. We have collaboratively put together a website that will be updated periodically throughout the period of remote learning.

Counseling

Our counselors have been hard at work preparing individualized plans for each student that they work with individually. The team has also set up virtual or phone appointments with each of these students/families. If you feel your family may need to access the school counselor office hours are as follows:

Ms. Leslie Chen (Lomita Park and Green Hills) Monday through Friday 11:00 am - 1 pm (appointments made via email lchen@millbraesd.org)

Ms. Meredith Denton (Meadows and Spring Valley) Tuesday/Wednesday 1:00 - 3:00 appointments can be made Monday and Thursday between 8:00 and 3:00 (appointments made via email mdenton@millbraesd.org)

Ms. Carla Sangco (Taylor Middle School) Monday through Friday 10:00 am - 12:00 pm (appointments made via email csangco@millbraesd.org)

Special Education

Our Special Education Department continues to be working to support our students as we begin our adventure in remote learning. Each student received individualized work to align with IEP goals from not only their case manager, but also any related service provider that is currently on your child's IEP. The case managers and service providers are also checking in with each student weekly along with collaborating with the general education teacher.

Each family received communication regarding the District's support for students with IEPs and we will continue to monitor each student's individualized progress and access.

English Prior Written Notice

Spanish Prior Written Notice

Procedural Safeguards

Aviso de Garantias Procesales

Please do not hesitate to contact the Student Services office by contacting me directly tkeith@millbraesd.org or Ms. Linda Kroll, the administrative assistant for the Student Services Department, lkroll@millbraesd.org.

Food Services

While our campuses are closed, the Millbrae Elementary School District Child Nutrition Services is providing an opportunity for families to drive through and pick up meals for the children in their families. Meals will be provided at no cost to all children through age 18. Children must be present in order for meals to be provided. Meals will be served between 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, March 18th to April 3rd. Initial sites are Lomita Park, Taylor and Meadows. With the exception of Meadows School, please stay in your car and meals will be distributed, based on the number of children in the car. If you cannot drive to the site, you can walk by and pick-up. Meals will be offered on a “first come, first served” basis and the number of meals will be adjusted based on the number of children needing food. See informational Flyer HERE (English, Spanish, Chinese)

Maintenance and Facilities

Also while our campuses are closed, our Maintenance & Operations Department will continue campus and district cleaning and sanitizing of (daily areas used) of surface, walls and interior spaces.

Resources for Parents and Families

• Common Sense Education has published vetted resources for parents to find educational video games and apps and ways to assess if an online tool is useful for learning.
• Zero to Three published guidance on how to talk to kids about the COVID-19.
• Colorín Colorado developed Multilingual Resources forSchools to use in communicating with families of English learners.
• NPR developed a comic strip to support information sharing with kids about COVID-19.
• BrainPop has made a short video explaining COVID-19 in friendly accessible language and engaging content.
• PBS Kids published guidance on how to talk to kids about the coronavirus.
• Newsela also published resources to help students understand coronavirus.

We will continue to update our MSD's COVID-19 FAQ webpage as new information is learned and/or updated. Feel free to contact your site principals or teachers directly should you have any specific questions regarding your child’s remote/distance learning plan.

Once again, thank you for your continued support.

Regards,

Vahn Phayprasert
Superintendent

This press release was produced by the Millbrae School District. The views expressed here are the author's own.