Hello Belmont-Redwood Shores Community,
 
On Tuesday, the Governor shared a roadmap for the State’s gradual reopening, which mentioned the possibility of the 2020-21 school year starting early.  The calendars of California’s 977 school districts typically aren’t determined at the state level. Currently, we do not have plans to move our first day of school, scheduled for August 19. We will let you know if we hear more on this or start to consider a change to our 2020-21 school year calendar.    
 
This update will cover:
  • Grading/Report Cards
  • Budget Cuts
  • State Testing
  • Social Emotional Resources
 
 
Grading/Report Cards
Last night, the Board approved a revision to its policy ( BP 5121 Grades ) that allows for the temporary modification of our grading framework.  After consulting with the Board, I am making the following modifications to our grading frameworks for the 2020 spring term:
 
Ralston will use an A/B/C/Insufficient Evidence framework for the spring semester. Insufficient Evidence (IE) indicates only that the teacher has insufficient evidence of a student’s academic mastery.  IE is not a failing grade, and students receiving an IE will be promoted to the next grade level.  Additionally, Ralston will have a “hold harmless” policy for students effective March 16, 2020, which means that grades can go up from that time, but not down.  

Grades 6-8 at Nesbit and Sandpiper will also use the A/B/C/Insufficient Evidence framework. These schools are on the trimester system, and the third trimester began the same week as the school closure, so there were no grades to preserve or hold harmless. If this grading system creates an unhealthy amount of stress for your student, please contact your student’s teacher. 

To reiterate last week’s message, grades will not be used for middle school class placements, and spring 2020 grades will have no negative consequences for students at our middle schools or local public high schools.   

Elementary (TK-5) teachers will narrow the scope of their spring term report card grades to two parts of the report card:  (1) Learning Behaviors and (2) a narrative description in the comments section to communicate to families how the students performed during the grading period.  Should a teacher have insufficient evidence to assess a specific learning behavior, the report card will allow for the teacher to mark Not Applicable (NA).    
 
 
Budget Cuts
At last night’s meeting, Chief Business Official Craig Goldman gave this presentation to the BRSSD Board.  Assuming that the State eliminates the 2.3% education funding increase that was originally scheduled for next school year, we need to reduce current school year expenditures by $1.5 million (M) and 2020-21 expenditures by another $2M to ensure the District’s fiscal solvency over the next three school years. With a $50M annual budget, this is roughly a 7% combined reduction in expenditures.  Next week, our administrative team will make a first round of reductions that do not affect our people or program offerings.  After that, we expect to consult the Board, staff, and parents/guardians in making further necessary reductions to meet the combined $3.5M target.  
 
 
State Testing 
All California standardized testing has been waived for Spring 2020.  This means no Smarter Balanced Assessment (also known as CAASPP) for our 3rd - 8th graders, no California Alternate Assessment for our 3rd - 8th graders with learning differences, no English Language Proficiency tests for our English learners, and no Physical Fitness Test for our 5th and 7th grade students.  
 
 
Social Emotional Resources
In addition to the counseling resources mentioned in previous updates (outlined on our At-Home Learning page), our partner One Life Counseling has developed new wellness offerings listed here .  We encourage you to take a look.  
 
 
Thank you for your patience and support. We understand that the shelter in place rules and distance learning arrangements have put significant strain on both families and staff.  We’re grateful for your partnership, and your feedback is always welcome.  

 
Sincerely,
 
Michael Milliken


Suvarna Bhopale | Amy Koo | Samuel Leinbach | Jim Howard | Rahila Passi
Board of Trustees