Dear District 86 Community, 

As I announced earlier today, District 86, in unity with the DuPage Regional Office of Education (ROE) and the other schools in the county, have made the decision to close our schools due to the circumstances surrounding the spread and potential impact of COVID-19. Hinsdale Central, Hinsdale South and the Transition Center will be closed from Monday, March 16 through Sunday, April 5. The district’s administration building will remain open during this time. 

Below is information about the e-learning plan we will be implementing starting next week, as well as details about several other important issues (e.g., events and activities, food service, outside rentals, etc.). We will continue to provide updates (via email, websites and social media) during the closure to help keep our students, staff, families and community abreast of what is happening with instruction and operations in our district, and informed about any new developments related to COVID-19. You can also use the following links to access additional information regarding the virus.

I want to thank everyone who has offered their advice, guidance and assistance during the past few days, especially those who work in the health care industry. This is an amazing community filled with extraordinary individuals who truly care about our schools and the students we serve. I cannot thank you enough for your help and partnership during this challenging and unprecedented time in our world.  

Sincerely, 

Tammy Prentiss

Superintendent 

E-learning

Central and South will be engaged in e-learning March 16-20 and March 23-27 (our spring break is March 30-April 3). March 16 and 23 will be emergency days for our students so that our teachers can engage in remote planning from home. During these days, our teachers will develop their lesson plans for the week. Our students will then work on those lessons Tuesday through Friday. 

Dave Lapetino, who is the district’s instructional innovation coordinator, has created a comprehensive plan for keeping our students engaged in learning during the closure. He is working on a more detailed communication about this plan that we will share with our students, staff and families tomorrow (March 14). We thank Dave for all of his hard work, and commend him on the outstanding job he has done to ensure that we continue to meet the academic needs of our students during this challenging time.  

Special Education

The district’s student services department is working on an update that will include the steps we will be taking to provide a continuum of services and instruction for our students with special needs. This update will help reinforce the conversations we have had with parents/guardians throughout the school year about how remote learning will work for this student population. We anticipate the update will be sent to our special education families early next week. 

Events and Activities

All District 86 events and activities (athletics, clubs, organizations, etc.) that are scheduled to take place between March 13 and April 6 are canceled. Several people have inquired about the status of events such as prom and graduation. We will continue to discuss our plans for all events that are scheduled to take place after April 6. One of the factors driving our decisions will be the position local, state and federal health organizations and government agencies are taking on mass gatherings at that time. 

Food Service

We are working with Quest, which is our food service provider, to finalize a plan for providing meals to our students who qualify for free and reduced lunch. We will share the details of that plan directly with the families of those students as soon as possible. 

Outside Rentals

Similar to our events and activities, all rentals of our facilities by outside organizations will be prohibited between March 13 and April 6. Any events or activities that have already been scheduled by these groups are canceled. This includes the administration of the SAT at Central that was scheduled for March 14. 

Testing

Several people have inquired about the administration of the SAT and PSAT that is scheduled to take place April 14 and 15. Below is what the Illinois State Board of Education has posted on its website about these tests. We will provide you with any updates we receive from the state about this issue. 

ISBE is aware of the potential disruption to the spring testing window and is in communication with the U.S. Department of Education on this issue. Additional information on this question will be provided in the coming days.

Human Resources

Our human resources department will be sending our staff separate emails featuring information and updates related to their job duties.

Social Distancing

We strongly urge all of our students, staff and families to continue engaging in the practice of social distancing that is being recommended by local, state, national and international health organizations. This includes avoiding any mass gatherings or taking part in large events. You can access information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about the steps that can be taken to prevent the spread of the virus in communities by visiting https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/index.html. We ask our parents/guardians to please help reinforce these critical steps and guidelines. 

Travel

We strongly urge all of our students, staff and families to continue adhering to the travel notices that have been issued by national and international health organizations and government agencies. In addition, we have created a form we are hoping that our families will consider using to share details about future travel plans. While completion of this form is completely voluntary, having this information will help inform our ongoing planning, preparation and response to the possible spread of the virus. You can access this form by visiting http://bit.ly/3cQ9LeK. 

Preventative Measures

We strongly urge all of our students, staff and families to continue engaging in the preventative measures being recommended by local, state, national and international health organizations. These include: