CCS Families In the Know
During the month of November, we would like to express our THANKS to ALL of our stakeholders who have supported us during these unprecedented times. This is uncharted territory for all of us but one thing remains constant and that is your dedication and commitment to our students, staff, and families.
Our Technology Department has been amazing during our shift to remote learning. They have answered many calls, emails, and even in-person requests for assistance when devices, the internet, and programs do not perform as expected. The Tech Staff is always extremely patient and kind when offering help. You truly provide exceptional service with a smile. We appreciate your dedication, knowledge, and commitment to our staff, students, and families. Thank you for always being there whenever a challenge arises.
If you would like to recognize an individual or team that you are #thankful for please send the details to publicrelations@cravenk12.org
Career and College Promise:
Earning College Credit in High School
Written by: Toni Blount, District Coordinator of College Advising and Scholarship 
  
   The community college campuses across North Carolina offer a unique experience to high school students entitled Career and College Promise (CCP). Students can earn college course credits, certificates or diplomas from the community college while attending high school. On January 1, 2012, the State Board of Education and the State Board of Community Colleges established the Career and College Promise (CCP) program. Since then, Craven County Schools and Craven Community College have been instrumental in providing these opportunities to hundreds of students. The program is tuition-free except for some fees that may be associated with a lab or electronic textbook.
    Through a partnership with the University of North Carolina System and many independent colleges and universities, high school students can transfer their community college credits to a university. The benefits of transferring credits include allowing time for a double major or minor, internship, study abroad, advanced standing with credits, and of course, cost savings. As an example of cost savings, the cost of full-time tuition at Craven Community College is approximately $1,300 per semester and the tuition at East Carolina University is approximately $7,200. When you include fees, housing, meals, and miscellaneous expenses, the cost of attendance at East Carolina University exceeds $22,000 per year. Private college costs in North Carolina range from approximately $25,000 to $80,000 per year.
CCP students are responsible for obtaining textbooks for their classes. Due to the rising cost of college textbooks, Craven Community College, Craven County Schools and private businesses have worked together to build a textbook library on the campuses of Havelock, New Bern and West Craven High Schools. With the generous support of International Paper, Walmart of New Bern and Havelock, and a scholarship donor, students can check out a college textbook to be used for the semester. This saves hundreds of dollars as well as removes the barriers for students who would like to participate, but do not have the financial resources to pay for college textbooks.
    The first step in determining CCP eligibility and interest is scheduling a meeting with the high school counselor. The CCP liaison from Craven Community College will also be instrumental in assisting the student with the options of selecting one of the following pathways:
1.  College Transfer Pathways (CTP) require the completion of at least 30 semester hours of transfer courses
2.  Career and Technical Education Pathways (CTE):
a.  a curriculum Career and Technical Education Pathway leading to a certificate or diploma aligned with a high school career cluster.
b.  a Workforce Continuing Education Pathway (WCEP) leading to a State or industry recognized credential aligned with a high school career cluster.
    It is important to consider a student’s four-year high school plan, as well as their career goals when selecting these options. Students who are interested in pursuing the visual and performing arts, JROTC, health and physical education, foreign language and Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs are encouraged to explore all course options while in high school. Students can schedule a robust high school schedule while exploring many course offerings, including Advanced Placement courses offered through The College Board, which also provide potential college credit with a qualifying score on the AP exam.
    Zomar Peter, Dean of Enrollment Management at Craven Community College, adds “The value of CCP pathways is to enable students who continue into post-secondary education after high school to complete degrees, diplomas, or certificates in less time than high school students without college credit. Selecting a CCP pathway is important and should be based on a student’s educational and career goals.” Dr. Tosha Diggs, Assistant Superintendent for Academic Services, shared, “Our school counselors are critical in helping students and parents learn about all of the available options. Even though advising may look a little different, it actually gives students and parents some more convenient options through virtual appointments to communicate with their counselor. We don’t want students to unknowingly rule out options for their future.”
    Interested students should attend CCP informational sessions offered virtually, which will be scheduled through each high school counseling office in the upcoming months. General information on CCP is located at:
Keeping the “Ride a Bike for a Vet” Tradition Alive at Havelock Elementary
By: Kathy Barber, Principal

For the last three years Havelock Elementary School has hosted a wonderful event to honor our veterans for Veterans Day. The Ride a Bike for a Vet Parade is always one of the favorite events at the school.  This year the staff and students were sad to not be able to host this memorable celebration due to COVID 19 guidelines. The staff and students were disappointed, but they decided to keep the tradition alive by dressing up in their favorite Red, White and Blue and making cards for Veterans during the week. Then on Wednesday November 11th the staff and students kept the tradition alive by decorating their bikes at home and riding them while proudly honoring our United States Veterans! The school plans to have its annual Ride a Bike for a Vet Parade next year and can’t wait to share its success. If you would like to donate a bike to a child for Christmas this year, please contact the school counselor at 252-444-5106.
At its November meeting, the Education Department of the New Bern Woman’s Club selected Lauren Weyand, Director of Craven County Schools School Nutrition Department as the Citizen of the Year 2020. Each year this honor is given to an individual who has had an extremely positive impact on our community. Mrs. Lauren Weyand is currently in her third year as School Nutrition Director and supervised the 1,039,000 meals that were served in our county to our school children from March 16 through June 12. She and her team surpassed all other districts in their desire to meet the needs of the students. Parents and children have expressed their appreciation for being remembered during such stressful times. The Education Department also placed two books in the New Bern Craven County Library in her honor. SEVEN HABITS of HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE by Steven Covey influenced her career choices, and IN THE CASTLE of MY SKIN by George Lemming influenced her feeling that we need...”to see each other deeply and to be deeply seen.”
Cassandra Hunsucker, Head Librarian, received a gift of $200 from the Education Department as well as praise for their efforts to serve the public during the pandemic
Pictured Left to right:
Craven County Schools Chief of Systems and Operations Stacy Lee, Citizen of the Year and Director of School Nutrition Lauren Weyand, Head Librarian Cassandra Hunsucker, and Education Department Chair Bren Harris.
Extraordinarily Exceptional Educators 
 
The Exceptional Children Division at NCDPI has created a new way for districts to recognize outstanding educators, related service personnel and special education support staff providing services to students with disabilities during this unprecedented time. 
 
We would like to congratulate our first of three Extraordinarily Exceptional Educators for CCS. Cathy Bodle has been recognized for Vanceboro Farm Life Elementary for going above and beyond to assist her students and their families with virtual learning and the navigation of virtual platforms for instruction. Thank you Mrs. Bodle!
School Lunch Menu
Click here to access the daily breakfast and lunch menu for the month of November. To change the school simply click on the dropdown menat the top. You can also access the menu for the 3 day packaging if you would like to pick up meals or have your child bring them home if they are participating in face-to-face instruction.
High School Final Exams (Dec. 14-18) 

High School Final Exams will be administered during the week of December 14-18. Final exams count 25% of the student’s overall semester grade for the class, so it is very important that students prepare and show up to test. Each high school is sharing the details of the exam schedule with their respective students and parents, so please ensure that you are aware of this information. Questions about the exam schedule should be directed to the student’s school.
COVID 19 Communication Protocol and Dashboard
As part of our communication process related to positive COVID-19 cases, Craven County Schools will be updating a district dashboard to display the number of NEW positive cases three times a week. This information will be posted on the district website every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 5:00 pm. In an effort to protect the confidentiality of our staff and students we will not release the name of the school.The dashboard is located at:
www.cravenk12.org
A Message From Nurse Heflin, District Lead Nurse
 
Information for Employees or Students Who are Suspected, Presumed, or Confirmed as Positive Cases of COVID-19 or 
Exposed to Positive Cases of COVID-19

⬜ Go home and remain at home, except to get health care.

⬜ Call your healthcare provider (HCP) for next steps.

⬜ If you have at least one symptom of COVID-19, you must not come to school,
or you must go home as soon as you recognize you have a symptom.

     If you have a positive result from a RAPID or PCR COVID-19 test or do not test,
     you must remain at home for 10 days since the onset of first symptoms, must be
free of *fever for 72 hours (without the use of fever-reducing medicine) AND 
     symptoms must be improved for 72 hours, including coughing and shortness
     of breath before you can return to work or school.

     If your RAPID COVID-19 antigen test result is negative, you must stay home until
     your PCR (confirmatory) test results are known. If the PCR test is negative and
     you are free of *fever for 24 hours (without the use of fever-reducing
medicine) AND 
     symptoms have been improved for 24 hours, including coughing and shortness
     of breath, you can return to work or school. If the testing facility does not conduct a 
     PCR test, you must remain at home for 10 days since the onset of first symptoms, 
     must be free of *fever for 72 hours (without the use of fever-reducing medicine)
AND 
     symptoms must be improved for 72 hours, including coughing and shortness
     of breath before you can return to work or school. 

     If you receive written documentation* of a confirmed diagnosis other than     
     COVID-19 (for example: stomach virus, ear infection, sinus infection), you must    
     remain at home until you are free of *fever for 24 hours (without the use of 
     fever-reducing medicine) and symptoms must be improved for 24 hours before you
     can return to work or school. *Written documentation does not have to specify what
     the actual diagnosis is.

    *Craven County Schools defines fever as a temperature of 100 degrees    
     Fahrenheit or higher, measured by any method.
    
⬜ If you are diagnosed with COVID-19, but have no symptoms, you must remain
at home for 10 days since the day you were tested (not the day you received
results).You may return on Day 11 after your test, provided you do not develop
symptoms. 

⬜ If an adult or child has been determined to have been in close contact with      
     someone diagnosed with COVID-19, such as a child living in the home with a
     COVID-19 positive family member or a parent living with a COVID-19 positive
child, the exposed person must remain at home for 14 days since the last date
of exposure, unless they test positive. In this case, exclusion criteria above
would apply. Otherwise, they must complete the full 14 days of quarantine,
even if they test negative

⬜ All household members (affiliated with the school system) of a person found to
be symptomatic must be sent home to quarantine for 14 days from the last
close contact with the symptomatic person, unless the symptomatic person is
cleared as noted above. Then all may return to work and school.
    
⬜ If you test positive for COVID-19, you will need written documentation of the
test results. 

⬜ The RN at your school may require a telehealth visit (via Zoom) a day or two
before you return to work or school. 

⬜ If you have any questions about COVID-19, please contact your health care
      provider, the local health department or the school nurse at your child’s
school.
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