Update From Scotts Valley Unified School District Superintendent - April 24

Press release from the Scotts Valley Unified School District:

April 24, 2020

Happy Friday Scotts Valley Community,

Another week of online learning and shelter in place.

Hey, here’s the good news, we haven’t had any significant changes or surprises this week, yay!

Teachers continue to provide online learning for students and as we (Assistant Superintendent Michelle Stewart and I) learn, and as we check in with teachers on a weekly basis, we are hearing a number of creative options and opportunities teachers are providing. We have heard so many wonderful, positive stories, and we have also heard stories of families struggling to motivate their children to participate in school. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to your child’s teacher, counselor, or site administrator for support and ideas.

The District continues to work and adjust to new requirements and parameters. Like many others, we hold a lot of Zoom meetings throughout each and every day. Assistant Superintendent Michelle Stewart and I have begun to read to the younger grades on Fun Fridays with a dress-up theme and we have truly enjoyed seeing the little ones on the screen!

Very soon, each site administrator will be sending out communication at each respective site based on their grading policies during school closure due to COVID-19. We have taken a lot of input from a variety of stakeholders at each grade level and believe we have come up with a fair and reasonable system.

Now that we have some of the more immediate transitional needs in place, sites are beginning to focus on ways to celebrate students in new and creative ways given our social distancing parameters.

I truly understand how challenging this is for everyone on so many different personal and professional levels. It appears, however, that we are going to be in this mode for an extended period of time. I have been asked what our plan is for the start of the school year. Unfortunately, we don’t know yet because we don’t have enough information, nor do we know the state and federal resources that our district will be receiving. So until we have more clarity, we are currently focusing on ending the year well, and planning end of the year celebrations in the manner we will be allowed.

We realize that as the weather improves and online learning instruction continues, it may become increasingly more challenging to keep students indoors learning. Educators across the nation and the world acknowledge that students are not going to be in the same place academically at the beginning of the next school year, so it is important to not expect too much, but also not to expect too little. That balance differs for every individual student so please continue to do your best, reach out for help, and continue to set structures and schedules for your children while also allowing for some fun and creativity.

We acknowledge there are varied challenges for families throughout our county. Attached is our letter from County Superintendents with a lot of resources for families. Superintendents' Letter 04/24/2020

Thank you for all you are doing to support your child/children in their learning while trying to manage life.

We are all in this together, and I genuinely hope you are doing well.

Kind regards,

Tanya Krause, Superintendent

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