Dear Grand Meadow Families,
Today, Governor Tim Walz and Education Commissioner Mary Cathryn Ricker announced that all Minnesota Public Schools will close to students starting on Wednesday, March 18, 2020 with the plan to resume instruction on Monday, March 30, 2020.
Grand Meadow Public School will be open on Monday, March 16th and Tuesday, March 17th. As always, if you choose to not have your child(ren) attend school on those days based on the recent update on the COVID-19 virus, please contact the offices so the school knows your child(ren) will not be attending.
During the school closure for students, Grand Meadow Public School will be joining school districts and charter schools across the state to create plans to equitably distribute distance learning to our students should we need to close schools statewide for a longer period of time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Minnesota Department of Education is defining distance learning to mean that a student receives daily interaction with their licensed teacher(s) and appropriate educational materials. Starting March 30, 2020, per the instruction from the Minnesota Department of Education, student learning will continue for the rest of the school year.
- From March 18th through 27th there will not be any classes, no E-Learning or other schoolwork assigned to students.
The Grand Meadow Educators will be giving thoughtful planning to our distance learning plan, offering careful consideration for students in a variety of areas, including students receiving special education services, multilingual learners, students experiencing homelessness, and students who rely on meals served at school.
Once the distance learning plan is finalized, we will be communicating the plan via E-News, the school’s Facebook page, and via the school’s webpage.
- There will not be any activity or athletic practices starting on Monday, March 16th through Friday, March 27th. This includes before and after school weightlifting. Also, all Community Education programs are cancelled starting on Monday, March 16th through Sunday, March 29th.
- The school will not be open to the public or students during the closure period, including weekends
If you work in one of the following areas, please notify Cathy Paul, Community Education Supervisor if you will be needing childcare. We will work with you to set up reasonable times to provide childcare for children ages 3 through age 12. It is essential that you communicate to her by Tuesday, March 17th, so we can get personnel lined up to provide childcare. E-mail: cpaul@gm.k12.mn.us or by phone at 507.754.5318 ext.7707
Healthcare staff as described below:
- Health care providers and systems, including hospitals and clinics
- Post-acute and long-term care facilities, including nursing and assisted living facilities
- Other health systems and organizations, such as:
- Home Care workers
- Personal Care Assistants
- Ambulance/emergency
- Direct Care and Treatment
- Other emergency staff, including:
- First responders
- Firefighters
- Personnel providing correctional services
- Essential Court personnel
- Minnesota State Veterans Homes staff
- State and local public health agency employees
- MNsure Navigators
- County financial/eligibility workers
- County case managers
- Or any county staff in emergency management or health and human services
As always, our first priority is the safety and well-being of our students. We also want to ensure every child has access to the education they need and deserve.
Some of the items we will be working on this week is to get students to take home gym clothes, athletic equipment, textbooks, technology, as well as, check out extra books from the library. Also, set up an opportunity to pick up medications, end of the third quarter expectations and alternative learning resources for students.
This situation has been and will continue to be a fluid situation. I am asking for your patience and understanding as we navigate through this closure and distance learning planning period.
We will continue to keep you informed as we navigate COVID-19.
Sincerely,
Paul W. Besel
Superintendent/PK-4 Principal
Grand Meadow Public School
