Novato Unified School District Return To School Plan

Press release from the Novato Unified School District:

June 30, 2020

Dear NUSD parents, students, faculty and staff,

I am very pleased to let you know of our plans for resuming daily instruction and education on all NUSD campuses this fall. We plan to welcome students back to the safety of our schools, where instruction will be largely in-person, with a consistent online element in place managed by the in-person teacher to ensure learning continues in the event of a cohort 14-day quarantine. This will ensure continual use of technology tools, while preserving as much as possible the most important elements of the in-person experience. We know that art, music and PE are important to our community and we are working on how to make these available to our students while following the guidelines from Marin Public Health.

In addition, our plans for the 2020-2021 school year also include a year-long, fully remote K-12 online opportunity. Any student will be able to enroll in the online educational experience from home with a commitment for the entire 2020-2021 school year.

As we have said repeatedly, the safety and well-being of all NUSD students, faculty and staff is our highest priority. We have followed a methodical and deliberate approach in developing our plans for the new academic year and are relying on the best health and safety guidance available. We will also continue to adapt our plans to new developments as they arise.

On June 16, 2020, we shared the recommendations of the 150-member Re-Entry Task Force, comprising a wide range of teacher, parent, student, staff and community voices, and chaired by me, Amie Carter, Assistant Superintendent of Education Services. The committee recommendations incorporated the feedback of over 2,500 individuals who participated in the Thoughtexchange feedback tool. Their recommendations were based on Marin Public Health guidelines of cohorts of 12 at the time. However, as county health guidelines increase their definitions of stable cohorts to include class sizes closer to 25, we are increasingly confident that we will able to resume daily educational opportunities for all students in grades TK-12.

We invite you to review the updated Return to School Guide here. In the next day or so, you will receive a communication with a form asking for a firm commitment on whether you will be enrolling your student in our fully remote online opportunity or sending your student to attend NUSD’s in-person classrooms. The form will be due by Friday, July 10, 2020.

We’ve also launched a new Thoughtexchange to understand your questions and concerns with our Return to School plan. Here is a link to access that exchange: https://my.thoughtexchange.com/877137591

Please note, the recommended schedule that we are working on with our labor groups currently includes a shortened school day. A shortened school day is needed to ensure our teachers have the time to update digital learning environments which will be essential to ensure a continuous learning experience for all our students throughout the disruptions of the pandemic. Here is the link to the Adaptable Schedule Models – Bell Schedules. Please know that we are also meeting with local childcare providers to ensure parents have safe and manageable solutions for extended care.

It is painful to impose these disruptions on the normal rhythms of NUSD, but we are balancing the need to keep our employees safe while ensuring a rich academic opportunity is in place for students. We are deeply grateful to all of you for your cooperation, and especially to the many people across our community who are working around the clock on our COVID-19 response.

We will continue to share as much new information as possible, as soon as we can as we continue to adapt to the evolving guidelines of our County Health Department.

Please take care of yourselves and of each other, as we strive to take care of you all.

Amie Carter

Assistant Superintendent,

Education Services

This press release was produced by the Novato Unified School District. The views expressed here are the author’s own.