by ConVal School Board Member Alan Edelkind
Safety. Safety first for our students, educators, parents/guardians, and the community at large.
This is the overarching theme of the ConVal reopening plan. Our ConVal administration has worked diligently to provide a plan that is both safe and flexible to ensure the best education environment achievable in these difficult times.
Committee teams, comprised of over 120 individuals representing all required disciplines plus outside stakeholders ConVal administration, have developed a comprehensive plan that best reflects the requirements of our ConVal Community. Using a combination of in-school, remote and distance learning environments the ConVal district will have the flexibility to adjust the learning model as COVID-19 situations develop.
The Reopening Implementation Team related four instructional modes to the CDC’s four levels of community transmission and mitigation. These levels are designated as Blue, Green, Yellow, and Red.
The decision to move from one level to another level will be analyzed in real time by the district’s COVID-19 monitoring team which is made up of local health professionals and district staff. Data from on-site monitoring, local and state information will all factor into the decision process. We are currently planning on our opening in the Green level.
The School Board has also been extremely active in having input to the plan, approving of the plan and being active participants in the steering committee overseeing the development of the plan.
Since our plan has been published, ConVal administration has been contacted by other districts — both in-state and out-of-state — to seek permission to use areas of our plan to assist them in developing their own plans. This is a testament to the completeness and direction we have established.
As with any plan, it is only as good as the time it was written, with the information available at the time it was written. With the overarching goal being safety, we expect the plan to be a living entity. The plan is only as good as the leadership is to execute it and to adjust as the situation requires. The ConVal community is uniquely privileged to have both the plan and leadership to navigate us through these uncharted waters.
Flexibility is also a key component to this plan. Everything will not be as it was. The success of our school year depends on all being as flexible as possible in their needs and requirements. We are all in this together. We are ConVal.
Please go to the ConVal website (convalsd.net) to see the entire detailed plan. For a high-level informational overview, please see the Executive Overview section of the plan.