Dear RSU #34 Community,
THANK YOU so much for your tremendous hard work to keep our students, staff, and schools safe and open throughout the fall!
Our schools resume session Monday, January 4th. Please note that many of our email and voicemail inboxes are NOT monitored during the school holiday.
To report a COVID-positive case, or close contact with someone who is COVID-positive, please use our district COVID reporting hotline which IS monitored daily during the school vacation. You can call 827-7171 extension zero, or use the webform on the COVID-19 page at www.rsu34.org
Please remember that it’s important to let us know of positive cases, even during the school vacation, so we can be sure anyone in our school community who’s been in close contact can take appropriate steps.
If you need general guidance, please call the state of Maine’s help line at 211, or email that helpline: info@211maine.org
Thank you, and please have a very happy and safe holiday!
Congratulations to the OTES musicians for a wonderful concert!
Old Town Elementary Winter Band Concert 2020: https://video.link/w/UhkBb (14 minutes)
Old Town Elementary Sing Along 2020: https://video.link/w/9KlBb (8 minutes)
Our LMS musicians worked hard to put on a heck of a Virtual Holiday Concert - here's the link! https://video.link/w/cnI9b
TO: All Parents
SUBJECT: WINTER WEATHER AND SCHOOL
Regional School Unit No. 34 maintains a policy of keeping school in session under all conditions; except when weather and road conditions are hazardous and therefore jeopardizing student safety. In general, when bus schedules are disrupted due to road conditions, schools will not be in session. Regardless of our decision to open or not open schools, we respect the right of parents to make the decision not to send your child(ren) to school when you feel their safety is at risk due to travel conditions. In these cases, the absence will be excused when we receive a note from you stating you chose to keep your child at home for safety reasons. NO-SCHOOL announcements will be made using our Emergency Call system and posted on our website www.rsu34.org. We will also notify area television stations that accept early morning school closing notifications.
Under most circumstances children are kept in school for the full day once they have reported to school. Early dismissal of students would occur only when weather conditions would appear to be too hazardous to remain the full day, loss of power for an extended period or when travel conditions are predicted to significantly worsen prior to normal dismissal times. In this case, students would be dismissed early. Parents who are not at home during the day should make early dismissal plans for their child(ren) and make the school aware of these emergency plans. Advance planning for a neighbor, friend or family member to care for your child(ren) if they are dismissed early is critical. We may also delay the start of school if travel conditions so warrant. This too might require advance planning on your part if your child(ren) are not boarding the bus at their usual time and/or the school is not open to accept students until a later time.
I STRONGLY URGE all parents to make plans in advance before the winter season.
Feel free to call my office (827-7171) or any of the school offices if you have questions or if we can assist you with making plans for your child(ren). The safety and wellbeing of your child(ren) is most important to us.
David A. Walker
Superintendent of Schools
Elementary school parents/caregivers, we seek your input! RSU #34 has some dedicated grant funds at the elementary school level, focused on engaging families in education. Please let us know your thoughts here! https://forms.gle/moeyjGv4JbpHDYQ77
Our River Runners youth at OTHS and LMS are excited to share their November newsletter. Get it here! https://5il.co/nojh
Dear RSU #34 Community,
Our team has followed up today regarding a report from an individual associated with Old Town High School that they tested positive for COVID-19. The individual was last in-person at OTHS several weeks ago; there is no risk of transmission to our students and staff. The individual / family will remain in isolation/quarantine until cleared by the CDC. We appreciate the prompt notification so we could assess the situation and ensure that we’d done all needed for the safety of our school community.
We hope everyone had a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving! We look forward to welcoming our students back on Monday morning.
As always, please be sure to do the home screening each and every day before you send your child to school, and please continue to act out of an abundance of caution. In the screening process please be especially sure to remember the out-of-state travel considerations, as well as thinking through all of your child's close contacts for the past 14 days.
At www.rsu34.org (click COVID-19) you can easily access our COVID reporting hotline, the screening questions to ask at home, and links to the precautions recommended by the Centers for Disease Control.
Together we will keep our children and community safe as we navigate the pandemic. We thank you for your vigilance and your support!
A shared message from Northern Light Health
It's Up to All of Us to Stop the Spread of COVID-19
Across Maine, we are seeing a sharp rise in the number of COVID-19 cases. No longer limited to spread at large events, we’re now seeing the virus spread rapidly through smaller gatherings in the home.
As we get ready for the holiday season, we all must take steps to keep our friends, family, and ourselves safe. Often, people contract COVID-19 from someone who doesn’t have symptoms, either because they haven’t developed them yet or because they will never have them. Just because someone does not appear sick does not mean that they cannot spread the virus to others who may develop a more serious illness.
When making plans this holiday season, make sure you’re not accidentally inviting COVID-19 to join you. Think carefully about how and with whom you celebrate. Try to keep indoor celebrations limited to people in your household or already in your social bubble. And make sure you know who is in the bubble of the people you invite.
It can be hard to change traditions, but this could be a year to try something new. Rather than a big dinner indoors, consider an outdoor, physically distanced activity to connect with others. A walk, a hike, or even some time around the fire pit telling stories is a great way to connect more safely and get in some physical activity.
If you celebrate with friends and family from outside of your household, take steps to limit your risk of infection like wearing masks, keeping physical distance, and practicing good, frequent hand washing. Do not have people over if you or anyone in your household has symptoms of COVID-19 or a known exposure, and ask guests that they stay home if they are sick.
We're proud of our River Runners youth mentoring cohort! Here's their October Newsletter: https://5il.co/mslf
RSU #34 Calendar & Storm/Snow Days (re-post from mid-October)
Please remember that RSU #34 revised its school calendar at the end of the summer; the calendar can be accessed at the link below. That calendar lays out the school holidays, such as Veteran’s Day on Wednesday, November 11th.
The last scheduled day of the school year is Monday, June 14th. We continue to guide families to anticipate a typical number of storm/snow days; with several storm/snow days school would end Friday, June 18th.
We will continue to announce storm/snow days through the RSU #34 app and through our website. We know that major storm/snow events often come paired with power outages, internet outages, and other challenges that make a full day of remote learning difficult.
When there’s a storm/snow day, we encourage our students to help shovel out a neighbor, build a snowman, play a game, and do other wonderful things.
If during the year we begin to accumulate an unusually large number of storm/snow days, we may consider shifting to some remote learning days for moderate storm/snow events.
Link to calendar: https://core-docs.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/871751/2020-21_Student_Calendar_Revised.pdf
A reminder: This year, much of our instruction can be viewed by families online. If you have a question about content, discussions, or activities that you see online, please contact that teacher to inquire about the purpose and context of the lesson. You can also explore RSU #34's curriculum at our public curriculum portal: https://rsu34-public.rubiconatlas.org/Atlas/Public/View/Default
In order to protect student privacy, please do not take photos, screenshots, or videos of your child’s class.
FOOD BOX DISTRIBUTION AT OLD TOWN HIGH SCHOOL
Area families will have the opportunity to pick up 30# boxes containing fresh produce, dairy products, fluid milk and meat products on Friday, October 30th, beginning at 9:30 AM at the OTHS student parking lot.
More details about this program may be found here: https://americanfarmpublications.com/food-box-program-links-farmers-families/
Oct.. 29th, 2020, 7:53 PM
Dear RSU #34 Community,
We write this notification out of an abundance of caution. We DO NOT currently have a confirmed case of COVID-19 in RSU #34.
However, we ARE learning more and awaiting test results regarding a situation where we have seen a pattern of illness with COVID-like symptoms, as well as information that raises our concern that one of our families MAY be dealing with a positive case of COVID-19.
All of the families of children and staff directly involved with that possible exposure through the class or bus have been directly notified through our email notification system. If we were to learn of a confirmed positive case of COVID-19, we would again contact those close contacts and take additional steps.
As always, please be sure to do the home screening each and every day before you send your child to school, and please continue to act out of an abundance of caution. At www.rsu34.org (click COVID-19) you can easily access our COVID reporting hotline, the screening questions to ask at home, and links to the precautions recommended by the Centers for Disease Control.
Together we will keep our children and community safe as we navigate the pandemic. We thank you for your vigilance and your support.
Sincerely,
RSU #34 Administrative Team
David Walker, Superintendent
Good afternoon RSU #34 community,
As we see cases of COVID-19 increase around Maine, please remember the importance of home symptom screening before school each and every day! The Maine Department of Education has adjusted home screening criteria for students and staff based on the latest medical guidance, shown in this image. The screening flowchart can also be found here: https://www.maine.gov/doe/sites/maine.gov.doe/files/inline-files/Pre-Screening%20Tool_11.pdf
Students may also continue to use the Northern Light screening tool (https://covid.northernlighthealth.org/covidsportscheck).
When students cannot attend in-person due to symptoms, please help them participate remotely for the day!
Please remember to promptly contact RSU #34 with information about a confirmed case of COVID-19, so we can take appropriate action to keep the spread slow and protect our community. You can report a confirmed case by calling 827-7171, or go to www.rsu34.org and click “Covid-19”.
Thank you for helping us to keep our schools and community safe! Please wash your hands, wear your mask, and practice social distancing.
The RSU #34 Board returned to an "in-person" format for it's October meeting. We did a trial run using new technology to record the meeting. Here is the video of the meeting: https://5il.co/mdac
We will continue to work to improve both video and audio quality.
It is our hope/plan that future meetings, if held "in-person," will be streamed as well as recorded.
Good afternoon RSU #34 Community,
There are several important topics below, which can also be viewed at this link: tinyurl.com/y3lrot5r
Please review this message for new information about screening, attendance, planning for remote-only, quarantine states, holidays, school calendar, and storm/snow days.
Screening for Symptoms
The Maine Department of Education has adjusted home screening criteria for students and staff based on the latest medical guidance. The new screening flowchart can be found here: https://www.maine.gov/doe/sites/maine.gov.doe/files/inline-files/Pre-Screening%20Tool_11.pdf
Students may also continue to use the Northern Light screening tool (link).
When students cannot attend in-person due to symptoms, please help them participate remotely for the day!
If students develop symptoms of illness at school, school staff will use similar guidance (link and link) to guide decision-making. Please remember to contact RSU #34 with information about a confirmed case of COVID-19, so we can take appropriate action to keep the spread slow and protect our community. You can report a confirmed case by calling 827-7171, or go to www.rsu34.org and click “Covid-19”.
Attendance and Going “Full Remote”
Regular attendance by students is as important as ever, whether the student is attending remotely or in-person on any given day! Attending school is closely tied to success. RSU #34 schools will not be doing typical “perfect attendance” awards this year, because we know everyone needs to prioritize an abundance of caution with symptoms common to COVID-19. However, our schools are devising ways to celebrate student engagement and recognize kids’ hard work to fully participate remotely and in-person.
We urge families to keep making backup plans for safe and effective remote learning. Our community has done a phenomenal job of following safe practices; this is to be celebrated! We know from looking around the state that outbreaks can occur in the blink of an eye, forcing families, schools, or even whole counties to change gears rapidly.
Should a classroom, school, or the whole district need to go “full remote” for a period of time, please anticipate that the first few days will include some disruption to the normal schedule as we help distribute learning materials to students from their schools and get them connected remotely. As quickly as possible we’ll resume a predictable school-day schedule with our full curriculum. Please be proactive by: gathering simple learning resources at home, planning for a safe and focused learning space, planning for child care, trying to address internet access and device access, and making sure contact information is up-to-date with the schools.
Travel and Holidays
October, November, and December are a special holiday season! As families make holiday plans, we encourage thinking ahead to keep the spread of COVID-19 slow, protecting your loved ones and our community. Here are some holiday planning tips from the Chief Health Improvement Officer of MaineHealth: https://t.co/UAMKUCJbXL?amp=1
Please also remember to include in your planning the necessary quarantine or testing measures when returning from other states. Maine’s requirements and state exemption list can be found here: https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/infectious-disease/epi/airborne/coronavirus/travel.shtml
RSU #34 Calendar & Storm/Snow Days
Please remember that RSU #34 revised its school calendar at the end of the summer; the calendar can be accessed at the link below. That calendar lays out the school holidays, such as Veteran’s Day on Wednesday, November 11th.
The last scheduled day of the school year is Monday, June 14th. We continue to guide families to anticipate a typical number of storm/snow days; with several storm/snow days school would end Friday, June 18th. We will continue to announce storm/snow days through the RSU #34 app and through our website.
We know that major storm/snow events often come paired with power outages, internet outages, and other challenges that make a full day of remote learning difficult. When there’s a storm/snow day, we encourage our students to help shovel out a neighbor, build a snowman, play a game, and do other wonderful things.
If during the year we begin to accumulate an unusually large number of storm/snow days, we may consider shifting to some remote learning days for moderate storm/snow events.
Link to calendar: https://core-docs.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/871751/2020-21_Student_Calendar_Revised.pdf
Thank you for your hard work for our community’s children!
Remote Learning at the Old Town Orono YMCA
Dear Parents/Guardians:
Please take a moment to complete a very important form in order to provide information needed by the Maine Department of Education to determine RSU#34‘s eligibility status for State Economically Disadvantaged funds available under the Essential Programs & Services Funding Act. Data in this form is not for school lunch purposes, only to determine our school district economic disadvantaged status and our eligibility for additional State and Federal funds.
The form is available in the documents section of the website under PARENT/GUARDIAN-ECONOMIC STATUS FORM. If you have any questions, please call Barbara Grindle at 827-7171 ext. 3. The due date to return this form is October 15, 2020. Thank you for your cooperation. You can sign the form electronically and email it to esf@rsu34.org or return the printed form to your child's school.
Sincerely,
David A. Walker, Superintendent