Dear FHUSD Families and Friends,
In the June 8th Falcon Focus, new Superintendent Kelly Glass described the actions the district had begun in planning for schools reopening in August. She also mentioned the creation of a School Reopening Task Force. I would like to update everyone with the work of the School Reopening Task Force so far. This group is composed of about 30 members with representatives from district administrative staff (including newly hired principals Jeff Markle and Kris Alexander), support staff, teachers from all three schools, parents, and other community members. The purpose of the group is to provide ongoing feedback on recommendations and proposals for the School Reopening Plan to be presented to the FHUSD Governing Board by the Superintendent.
On June 11th, the group met via Google Meet to talk about the implications for opening school in August in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The team reviewed the current steps FHUSD is taking for health and cleaning protocols that follow the CDC guidelines. District custodial staff is in the process of conducting a district-wide deep cleaning followed by sanitizing and disinfecting facilities and purchasing personal protective equipment. The committee reviewed the results of the recent community survey related to health and safety, comfort in returning to school and transportation. They also provided recommendations to have sub-committee discussions focusing on logistics, instructional models, and social/emotional learning. It was also suggested that we do another survey closer to the start of school and possibly have the options for instructional models available for families to choose from when starting school.
The group met for the second time on June 18th also via Google Meet. This meeting focused on logistics of operations and virus "risk mitigation" strategies using a policy template provided by the AZ School Risk Retention TRUST, the provider of the district insurance and legal services. Areas of consideration for students and staff returning to school included daily health screenings, enhanced social distancing in classrooms, student drop off/pick up procedures, bus transportation, use of playgrounds, lunch rooms and cloth face coverings.
The School Reopening Task Force will continue to meet weekly into July reviewing proposals for the instructional models and how to meet the social/emotional needs of students and staff for the start of school. The goal is for the district School Reopening Plan to be presented to the Governing Board in mid-July.
I hope everyone is having a safe and healthy summer.
Robert Allen, Ed.D.
Superintendent
