Brown County Schools students will not be transitioning to eLearning next week.
Since many families are without reliable internet at home, and the state is under a stay-at-home order until at least April 6, district leaders have opted to use most of the 20 “waiver” days the state allowed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
During BCS “waiver” days, students are not expected to participate in any work for a grade.
Later this month, though, the district will pivot into providing some sort of instruction. It will be flexible, with options for those who do have internet and device access and those who do not, Superintendent Laura Hammack said last week.
When the governor announced that schools would be closed until May, that effectively made all days between that action and May 1 waiver days. “We have the ability to provide instruction in eLearning/extended instruction formats OR not provide any instruction at all,” Hammack said about that period.
The district started using waiver days on March 23 and will continue to do so until Easter, when school work will be phased in.
Tentative plans
The “extended learning” plan that Hammack announced in a Facebook Live chat with parents on March 30 was for BCS to be officially closed between March 23 and April 10.
This week, teachers were to be checking in with their students by phone or online “to reassure them and show you are thinking about them.”
The week of April 6, teachers would be working on creating assignments for students on paper and on digital platforms.
Starting Monday, April 13, schools would be officially reported as “open” to the Indiana State Department of Education, and instruction would be delivered to students however they are able to receive it. ELearning and “no tech” options were to be planned. This phase would last until May 1.
On Monday, May 4, students would return to classes at their schools.
In developing the plan, district leaders are mindful of providing instruction that is equitable to all families, Hammack told parents.
These will not be full-day assignments every day; they’re talking from 30 minutes to 2 hours of assignments per day depending on the age of the child, and they have a week to get them done, Hammack said.
Getting access
Students with no devices to access the internet will be able to get those from schools on an as-needed basis by contacting their principal, Hammack told parents on March 30. This includes students in Grades K-6; however, students in Grades K-4 “will most often have no-tech/packet instructional delivery,” she said.
Students in Grades 7-12 have school-issued devices that they take home, but not all students took them home before spring break. Parents can contact their children’s principals to make arrangements to get those devices from the schools. Children will not be entering the buildings; school staff will retrieve them from lockers or from the help desk if they were being repaired.
Paper packets also are options for students in Grades 5-12 if that’s what families need. Contact your school for details.
Paper packets will be distributed at schools during the free meal pick-up that’s being done on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Thanks to Bryan Gabriel of Mainstream Fiber, all schools will have free WiFi for everyone in the parking lots that can be accessed from your car if you don’t have it at home. The Career Resource Center of Brown County also is a public access point. This access includes adults who do not have children in the schools; they will be able to log on from the parking lots, too, Hammack said.
In the meantime
Phase 1 of reintroducing school to students has been what Hammack is calling a “compassion campaign.”
Teachers who have internet access at home have been setting up Zoom meetings with their classes online, even as young as first-graders; doing virtual show-and-tells of their pets, stuffed animals or craft projects; or listening to stories read by their teachers or principals.
Connecting via technology has included students in the life skills class at Brown County High School, led by Barb Kelp. “My daughter has been happy to see her friends,” said parent Melissa Myers.
Some teachers have been handing out paper packets of educational materials that parents could use at home at the free meal pick-ups.
Helmsburg Elementary kids have been tuning into the school’s Facebook page to see Tiger, the school mascot, visiting various classrooms each day, so students can see that their desks and all their favorite things at school are still there.
“These are the things that matter right now,” Hammack told parents during her March 23 chat.
“I so much more would like to see ways for our families to feel loved by the schools as opposed to feeling like school is just one more thing that you need to worry about. … We really see the schools as being the place where your needs are met, and right now, your needs are feeding you, and secondly, that we’re keeping you safe, and keeping you safe right now means keeping you at home.”
Hammack plans to continue doing Facebook Live chats with parents at 5:30 p.m. on Mondays. Search for “Brown County Schools – Superintendent” to find her page.
HAMMACK’S MESSAGE TO PARENTS MARCH 31:
Good morning,
Last night (Monday, 3/30), I held a Facebook Live event at 5:30 pm. This message is a summary of the points I covered during that presentation and also covers questions posed immediately following. We will “meet” every Monday at 5:30 pm on Facebook Live until we are back in school. That meeting was recorded on the “Brown County Schools Superintendent” page and can be accessed any time.
Breakfast/Lunch Meal Distribution
Our meal distribution program is going very well. You can still access breakfast and lunch at our distribution sites: HES, SES, VBES, BCHS, and Forest Hills Apartment complex on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 11:00 – 2:00. A week’s worth of meals are delivered on Mondays to those who are Homebound and for those who pick up at the Fruitdale Fire Station. There is no need to register for meal pick up at our distribution sites.
Two Reminders
I have received reports from community members in the town of Nashville that large groups of unaccompanied students who attend our campus schools have been gathering and not deploying social distancing. Parents/Guardians, please remind your children that they should not be gathering in large groups and we all need to deploy the Stay Home guidelines issued by the Governor.
We usually test for 2 ½ to 3 weeks every Spring with our required state assessments. We don’t have to take any of those assessments this year, so the few weeks where we don’t have instruction happening can easily be “traded” for those weeks. It might feel like students are missing a lot of instruction. In the end, there won’t be as much time missed as one might expect.
Extended Instruction Model:
Teachers and administrators are preparing for the deployment of a blended model of extended instruction. This model includes “no-tech” models of instructional delivery (packets) and “tech” models of instructional delivery “e-Learning.” K-4 students will most often have no-tech/packet instructional delivery. Grades 5-12 will most often have their assignments issued electronically with options available for paper assignments, if needed.
AMAZING EXPANSION OF INTERNET SERVICE:
With ALL of the thanks going to Bryan Gabriel from Mainstream Fiber, Brown County residents now have access to FREE wireless internet to the PUBLIC in all of our school parking lots. Specifically, parking lots at BCHS/BCIS, BCJHS Upper and Lower, CRC, HES, SES, and VBES. The signal is strong and there are no login instructions. We already heard from families who were using the service yesterday. ALL sites will be live as of today! This is AMAZING news that will help us deliver our extended learning model of instructional delivery. We are SO grateful to Mainstream Fiber!!
BCJHS and BCHS Students:
If BCJHS or BCHS students don’t have their Chromebook home right now because it was left at school or was being repaired, please contact Mr. Garman (BCJHS) or Mr. Stark (BCHS) and they will arrange a time for you to come to school to get the device.
Mr. Stark: (812) 988-6606 or [email protected]
Mr. Garman: (812) 988-6605 or [email protected]
BCIS Students:
Since most of the extended learning instruction will be presented electronically for grades 5 and 6, please contact Mr. Austin if your family doesn’t have any other device at home to complete assignments. Mr. Austin will arrange a time to pick up a device that will work until it is time to return to school. If you have a device in the home that has worked for you during other eLearning days, please continue to use that device.
Mr. Austin: (812) 988-6607 or [email protected]
HES/SES/VBES Students:
Since most of the extended learning instruction will be presented in a no-tech (packet) format for grades K-4, it’s likely not as important for your family to have a device at home. However, if you don’t have any ability to connect via a device in the home, please contact Mrs. Bruner/Mr. Killinger/Mr. Steele and they can arrange a time for device pick up.
Mrs. Bruner: (812) 988-6651 or [email protected]
Mr. Killinger: (812) 988-6625 or [email protected]
Mr. Steele: (812) 988-6658 or [email protected]
**Packets will be distributed at each building location during meal distribution from 11:00 – 2:00 on Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays. If you can’t pick up assignments during that time, please talk with your Principal. We will have a variety of options available for you to access assignments.
“Formal” Extended Learning starts on April 13
The first week of Extended Learning is April 13 – April 17. The entire week of assignments will be electronically issued on Monday, April 13. Students have one week to complete their assignments.
- April 13 – Week one assignments issued
- April 20 – Week one assignments due
- April 20 – Week two assignments issued
- April 27 – Week two assignments due
- April 27 – Week three assignments issued
- May 4 – Assignments due… and we are back in school!!! J
**If the Governor extends the time that we are out of school, we will continue with this plan of extended instruction.
Expectations for Daily Work Loads
- BCHS students are expected to have no more than 2 hours of work each day (M-F)
- BCJHS students are expected to have no more than 1 hour and 15 minutes of work each day (M-F)
- BCIS students are expected to have no more than 1 hour of work each day (M-F)
- Grades 3-4 students are expected to have no more than 45 minutes of work each day (M-F)
- Grades K-2 students are expected to have no more than 30 minutes of work each day (M-F)
Brown County High School
- We are still waiting to hear guidance about BCHS credit flexibility for the Senior Class for graduation. We like the proposed plan that IDOE sent to the State Board of Education for consideration because it provides a lot of flexibility and gets most students to graduation with no issues. It also provides opportunities for us to get any students who are in danger of not graduating to graduate. We will let you know when this guidance is issued.
- Prom and Graduation are still on as planned.
- C4, Dual Credit, and AP students have all been contacted by BCHS staff to make sure that they understand their specific responsibilities. If you have any ongoing questions about these three programs, please contact Mr. Stark.
Office Hours
In order to assist and support extended learning, certified staff (Special Education and General Education Teachers, Counselors, Related Services) will be available for 3 hours every day during an established timeframe to help support student needs. The certified staff members who work with your children will let you know what these hours are so you can get receive individualized support. If you can’t meet with the staff member you need during those hours, special arrangements can be made between you and the staff member.
Grading/Assessment
We will continue to use the traditional deployment of letter grades with extended learning assignments. We are looking for students to give their best faith effort with assignment completion. The learning environment right now is unlike anything we have ever experienced before, so our educators will execute grace when grading assignments.
If you are working on paper packets, we do not expect those packets to be returned to the schools because we are following State Department of Health/CDC guidelines about being aware that the virus can live on hard surfaces for an extended amount of time. If you have an ability to take photos or scan those assignments and send them in electronically, that is a great solution. We are still working on these details and need our younger grade families to understand that the assessment feedback might look different with packet assignments.
The Brown County Career Resource Center
The Brown County CRC will be open for adult learning and for adult community access for the computer lab beginning on April 6. The number of adults permitted in the CRC will be restricted to no more than 10 adults at a time. We are keeping the CRC open to adults 18 of years of age and older so our community can access the space to assist with unemployment and other issues that require support from our adult career center.
Voicemails are OPEN!
I recognize that this is a LOT of information. While I am happy to assist with your questions, it makes very good sense for you to reach out to your principal for specific building-based questions. We are all in agreement that flexibility is the rule for the deployment of our extended learning model. They will work with you on any specific need that you have. All voicemails in the district are being monitored every day. Call and leave a message and the person you are calling will connect with you within 24 hours.
Please let us know if you have any needs – we have a lot of resources or at least know how to connect you to resources if you or your family is in need. We miss you all SO much and can’t wait until we are all back together again!!
Wishing you all very good health,
Dr. Laura Hammack, Superintendent
