Battle Creek Times

Battle Creek Central High School issued the following announcement.

In response to the continued community spread of COVID-19 in Calhoun County, the BCPS School Board has approved a plan to move all grades to remote instruction starting Monday, November 23. This includes grades Pre-K-12 as well as Adult Education.

The last day of in-person school for Prek-K-5 students is this Friday, November 20, and remote schooling will begin on Monday, November 23.

All in-person activities for athletics and extracurriculars for all grade levels are also postponed effective immediately, as identified under the current Emergency Order from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

Learning will take place as follows:

• Students in grades 6–12 will continue to engage in remote learning through Google Classroom, as they have been since the start of the school year.
• Students in grades Pre-K–5 will bring their Chromebooks home from school on Friday, November 20, prepared to engage in remote learning using Seesaw (Pre-K–2) or Google Classroom (grades 3-5) starting Monday, November 23. Students will participate in both live and teacher-recorded learning sessions. Students will need their Clever login information to access all of the online platforms for remote learning.
• English language learners and students with IEPs are eligible for continued small-group in-person activities and will receive direct outreach about these options.
• Extended learning after school programs will continue with virtual programming.

** Login instructions and more information about each learning platform above can be found here.

According to public health officials, BCPS safety measures so far have been effective at limiting spread within our schools. However as community-based cases in Calhoun County have spiked, high numbers of staff have needed to quarantine away from work due to exposure outside of school, placing an operational strain on the district so that we cannot adequately staff for in-person learning at this time.

Current plans for a return to in-person instruction are:

• Grades Pre-K–5 to return to in-person instruction on Monday, January 18, 2021.
• Grades 6–12 to move to a hybrid model of in-person instruction beginning Monday, January 25, 2021.
• Adult Education to return to in-person instruction on Monday, January 18, 2021.
• Virtual Academy will continue being offered as an option for families. To help us prepare for a safe and smooth return to school buildings, families will be contacted during the weeks leading up to transition back to in-person instruction to select the preferred learning setting for their students for the next semester of the school year.

These plans will continue to be discussed and reviewed for feasibility with the BCPS School Board each month.

We will do our best to provide as much additional support as possible to families during this difficult time. Over the next week we will share more information about how to get a Chromebook if your child does not bring one home, expanded meal distribution plans, how to get help with internet access at home, next steps for English language learners and students with IEPs, and more.

If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to us:

• For technology questions, please first reach out to your student’s teacher. If they are unable to help resolve the issue, they will be able to refer you to the BCPS Help Desk.
• For support accessing devices, meal pickups or for any other concerns, please contact (269) 245-6129.
• For Spanish language support, please call (269) 419-1978. For Burmese language support, please call (269) 601-6029.

Original source can be found here.