Scotts Valley Unified School District Update From The Superintendent For March 12

Press release from the Scotts Valley Unified School District:

March 12, 2021

Dear Scotts Valley Community,

"Strangely enough, we are at the one-year mark of when we began to shut things down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and subsequently went into distance instruction. That feels so very long ago. We have learned so much this past year, and we have sacrificed a lot as well. While our county is continuing to vaccinate the community, we still have to take precautions in order to continue the positive progression that we have recently experienced.

We were very excited and pleased last week that our Scotts Valley elementary schools began to bring back our youngest students (TK and Kinder). This week, first graders returned to the classroom, next week second and third graders will come back, and then fourth and fifth graders the following week. We will have all of our elementary grades back into full hybrid instruction by the end of March! School site teams will be reviewing the hybrid schedule and making potential adjustments as we experience the pros and cons of this new instructional format.

Since it was announced this week that Santa Cruz County has officially moved into the Red tier, our secondary schools, the middle school and the high school, are preparing to transition to hybrid schedules. At both sites, the principals have sent out a communication to parents regarding returning the middle school and the high school to full hybrid schedules by the end of this month. Both schools will host Town Hall information events; SVMS on Wednesday, March 17th, 5:00 - 6:00 pm, and SVHS the following night, Thursday, March 18th, 6:00 - 7:00 pm.

The high school had already invited back ninth graders for afternoon support in February and will be inviting seniors back to campus the week of March 22nd, with the remaining grade levels returning the week of March 29th for hybrid instruction. The middle school will follow a similar pattern with the sixth-graders transitioning to an in-person hybrid schedule the week of the 22nd with seventh and eighth graders joining the week of March 29th.

Our Spring Break is the first full week in April and it is our sincere hope and desire that families and staff will adhere to the travel advisory and safety precautions in order for us to remain in the red tier and hopefully move into the orange tier, where we can open up even a bit more. Here is the most updated travel advisory information:

TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS:

NON-ESSENTIAL TRAVEL:

* Except in connection with essential travel, Californians should avoid non-essential travel to any part of California more than 120 miles from one’s place of residence, or to other states or countries. Non-essential travel includes travel that is considered tourism or recreational in nature.

QUARANTINE POST-TRAVEL FOR STUDENTS AND STAFF:

* CDPH Travel Advisory recommends those who travel outside of California, should self-quarantine for 10 days, upon return.

* School staff and/or students who travel outside of the state or country shall self-quarantine for 10 days upon return. Testing is recommended, yet not required to return in person.

Spring Break is going to be quite the test for our state and our county. Assuming things continue to remain open and open up even more, the high school has begun discussions and preliminary plans for senior activities and celebrations this spring. I sincerely hope for the sake of our students, and especially our seniors, that our case rates remain low.

If we are successful and can continue this case rate improvement, things open up a bit more in the Orange tier.

I am being asked when we can fully reopen for five days a week with students attending full-time in person, and our current understanding is that cannot be considered until we are in the Yellow tier, but by then I imagine the rules will change. While other counties report they are opening up five days a week, it is still in a hybrid type schedule. We continue to review and assess our schedules considering public health guidance, staffing ability, safety necessities, and new learning. Please allow us to start with what we have agreed upon with our teachers, and we will reassess as parameters change and we continue to explore our options.

As you know, this Friday there will be no school for students as we have a full day of staff professional development, and the two topics for focus will be our ongoing work as a district and forward progress with our Cultural Responsiveness Committee work, as well as teacher preparation for transition to hybrid schedules and instruction.

I would also like to put in a plug and promote the Scotts Valley Chamber Awards event gala to be hosted virtually this year this Saturday night (3/13). The theme is Stayin’ Alive and I hope you join me in honoring our man of the year, Michael Hanson, our Educator of the Year, Erik Wyner, and Youth of the Year, Anika Mistry. As part of the entertainment this year, the Chamber asked if businesses and organizations could submit a video in line with the Stayin’ Alive theme. Members of the Scotts Valley district leadership team have submitted videos as part of that night's entertainment. We hope you purchase a ticket and join in the celebration this Saturday evening.

Site highlights:

Brook Knoll’s Invention Convention (5th grade):

5th Grade finalized their Invention Convention projects and spent Friday, March 5th giving presentations for classmates, parents, and parent judges. They came up with fun and unique ideas such as:

• No stink garbage cans
• Temperature controlled yogurt containers
• Bunk bed book holder
• No-slip mask grip
• Clear voice pocket mask
• On the go hairbrush
• The portable charger
• The kindness box

The students did a great job!

Vine Hill:

Here are a couple of photos from Day 1 with First Grade students back on campus:

Have a nice weekend,"

Tanya Krause

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