IMPORTANT DATES
June 22 - July 30:
RESOURCES
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Dear Staff,
First of all, Happy Juneteenth! This is an incredibly important day in history and one that we would like to see made a federally recognized holiday as well as reflected in the school calendar and to become more fully present in the school district curriculum.
I was fortunate this morning to learn more about Juneteenth in a meeting facilitated by our district's Racial Equity Design Team. We explored some of the resources you'll find in this newsletter and discussed our reflections on what we've learned and all that we still have to learn. Especially if you are unfamiliar with this holiday, I encourage you to check out the resources and share them with your children.
Second, I know you are eager for updates on any plans in development for reopening school in the fall. We've been working diligently for the past several weeks to move this work forward. Part of this has been presenting different scenarios with focus groups of students, staff and families, and incorporating their feedback.
Our number one priority is the health and safety of our students and staff. We are also committed to a strong equity approach to ensure that our decision is equitable for our students.
Next week this work will continue, and on Monday the Department of Instruction will be releasing their final guidance for school districts. With that in hand, we expect to be close to a final decision.
This is, as you can imagine, a highly complex situation and the fact is that any scenario involving some component of virtual learning is going to be challenging for families and staff. We are committed to doing everything we can to create a plan that has the most potential for successfully keeping our students and staff healthy, safe, connected and on track academically.
Thank you for your continued partnership,
Jane
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ICYMI + UPCOMING OPPS + RESOURCES + MORE
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7th grade Spring Harbor scholar
Raena G. has been
selected as one of ten Project Soapbox video contest winners from cross the country! The videos will be shown at the virtual
Soapbox Nation
Mainstage event on June 23 (
RSVP here
). They will also interview the speakers live - in front of an audience of peers, community members, and civic leaders.
Congratulations, Raena!
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Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, the day that Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, with word that the Civil War had ended and all formerly enslaved people were now free.
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This year, due to the pandemic, the organization opted to
take its celebration online
with a week of virtual activities, including performing arts classes for youth, a college admissions workshop and a tribute to black music.
Here's what's coming up tonight and through the weekend:
Friday features music and a talk by singer-songwriter Adrian Dunn at 6:30 pm, virtual line dance lessons led by DJ Ace (7 pm), and a Black music tribute by DJ M White (8 pm).
On Saturday, there will be a performance featuring youth in grades 6-12, the culmination of youth performing arts workshops held by MMSD's Office of Equity, Partnerships and Engagement in collaboration with the Black Excellence Think Tank and Kujichagulia Madison Center for Self Determination
Also on Saturday: panel discussions at 1 and 2 pm centering on health issues and COVID-19, a history of African American foodways and cooking demo online (11 am) and a virtual family dinner at 6 pm (Registration is full, but you may still participate by downloading the ingredient list from
the website
).
In the news:
Learning resources:
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SUMMER FOOD PROGRAM SITES ADDED
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Our school and community sites will begin meal distribution on Monday. Here is the flyer in
English
and
Spanish
. Note that three additional community meal sites have been added to the current list: Boys & Girls Club - Allied, Boys & Girls Club - Taft and Midvale Baptist. Note that in addition to these sites, there are three pop-up pantries at
La Follette
,
East YMCA
and
Leopold
.
Facebook events have been created for all sites and can be accessed from our
Facebook event page
.
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MMSD PLAYGROUNDS, ATHLETIC FIELDS
AND COURTS REMAIN CLOSED
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Dane County is in Phase 2 of the
Forward Dane plan
, and while Madison parks and some Dane County parks are now open, our school facilities and grounds remain closed, except for licensed daycare. This includes MMSD playgrounds, athletic fields and courts at this time. We'll keep you posted on any updates.
From Dane County Parks:
From Madison Parks:
All Madison Parks are open with some adjustments and closures in place until further notice. Please read the following updates on what's open and what's closed due to COVID-19 on the
Parks Division's website
.
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SENNETT SHINES: SCHOOL YEAR WRAP-UP
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We've witnessed so much creativity across the entire district when it comes to giving our students, staff and families the 2019-2020 send off they deserve.
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HAWTHORNE DISTRIBUTES CLEANING SUPPLIES, DIAPERS + MORE TO FAMILIES
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In collaboration with
MSCR
, Hawthorne Elementary has been distributing cleaning supplies, diapers and more to their families, and they plan to hold one more drive next week.
Yesterday they served 40 families, who each received
a package that included laundry soap, dish soap, cleaning spray, trash bags, deodorant, tooth paste, a tooth brush, paper towels, diapers and wipes, and more.
Below:
Ericka Brown, Community Schools Resource Coordinator @ Hawthorne and some of the supplies that have been collected as part of the drive.
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