Superintendent Update January 14, 2021

Issues with Google Meet

There have been connectivity issues with using Google Meet in our district, region and in some other areas of the country.  We are hoping that Google resolves this issue quickly and our teachers have done a great job working around it but it has been an issue that we wanted to let you know about. 

BCSD Town Hall Summary 

You can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zk7xLJxZzfw&feature=youtu.be

Here are the slides: Town Hall Slides - January 13, 2021

Here is the quick summary:

Vaccinations:  Our staff is starting to get vaccinated as part of the 1b group but it will be slow going and could take until April for everyone to get vaccinated.

Contact Tracing: Dutchess County made some small tweaks to our contact tracing guidelines.

Reason a school may need to go remote:  We may need to go remote due to the need for more time for our staff to conduct contact tracing.  If a large number of students and/or staff is quarantining we may need to go remote.  We may receive guidance from the Dutchess County Health Department to go remote.  The state could close schools by region or state-wide although it does not appear to be likely at this point.  Governor Cuomo has emphasized a few times in recent weeks that he sees it as mostly a local decision.

Please know that we monitor COVID-19 very closely in the district and that we take our operations very seriously.  We will do everything we can to maintain a safe environment but we also need to be prepared for any and all contingencies, like we have been all year!

COVID-19 Surveillance Testing

We see this as a way for us to add another layer of safety to our reopening plan this winter.  It is a completely voluntary program for students and staff.  We are designing a testing model that would support parents to be there with their children when they are testing.  Next week, we will share out an electronic consent form, a Frequently Asked Questions, and hopefully a video to help explain it to you.  Choosing to be part of the program helps give us information to help us with our reopening efforts.