Orwell Village School

Update from Governor Phil Scott’s press conference today: The start of school sports for the winter season is postponed until further notice. The state of Vermont will assess information weekly to consider when the start to this season will begin. The governor expressed the following during his remarks, “I hope adults realize the need to sacrifice to give our kids these experiences and keep them in school as much as possible.” Schools are being encouraged to inquire about participation in multi-family gatherings during Thanksgiving Break. If a staff member is made aware of participation in a multi-family gathering that person may have to quarantine for 7-14 days.

You’re invited! Slate Valley School Board Members are hosting a week of Virtual Listening Tours beginning on November 30th. Currently the board is exploring a plan for district reorganization that would include the consolidation of all district middle school students to the high school beginning with the 2022-2023 school year. This would result in the closure or educational repurposing of Castleton Village School. Sixth grade students in Castleton would then attend Castleton Elementary School. To address low enrollment of middle school students in Benson Village School, the board is considering in-district school choice (with transportation) for 7th and 8th grade students for the 2021-2022 school year. Listening tours are an opportunity to have a conversation with your board members. Please join board members at 6 p.m. to discuss district reorganization on the following dates: Nov. 30th with Tanya, Angela (West Haven) https://meet.google.com/bsc-wcrm-zbw or join by phone (US) +1 929-287-3647 (PIN: 876141866) Nov. 30th with Josh, Christine (Hubbardton) https://meet.google.com/piw-sqjk-crt or join by phone (US) +1 470-208-3216 (PIN: 271699166) Dec. 1st with Tim, Julie, Toni (Castleton) https://meet.google.com/byi-qppv-qgq or join by phone (US) +1 515-518-4964 (PIN: 853077567) Dec. 2nd with Peter, Glen, John (Orwell) https://meet.google.com/viq-uxim-get?hs=122&authuser=0 or join by phone (‪US‬) ‪+1 218-296-8729‬ (PIN: ‪318 417 490#)‬ Dec. 2nd with Mike, Rick Tara (Fair Haven) https://meet.google.com/cjv-qqvq-fhe or join by phone (US) +1 601-909-0134 (PIN: 703665728)

Reminder! Tonight (November 23, 2020) You’re invited to the Slate Valley Unified Union School District Board meeting at 6:30 p.m. Participation will be VIRTUAL ONLY. Connect by going to http://meet.google.com/dtb-pfqk-hrp or by calling (US) +1 414-909-6054 PIN: 721 315 535# Tonight’s Agenda: https://5il.co/n63m Previous Meeting Minutes: https://5il.co/n0de Upcoming Meetings: December 7, 2020 - SV Board Meeting, 6:30 p.m. December 7, 2020 - SV Finance Meeting, 5:30 p.m. December 14, 2020 - SV Board Meeting, 6:30 p.m. December 14, 2020 - SV Building & Grounds Meeting, 5:30 p.m. December 14, 2020 - SV Policy Meeting, 5:30 p.m.

You’re invited! Slate Valley School Board Members are hosting a week of Virtual Listening Tours beginning on November 30th. Currently the board is exploring a plan for district reorganization that would include the consolidation of all district middle school students to the high school beginning with the 2022-2023 school year. This would result in the closure or educational repurposing of Castleton Village School. Sixth grade students in Castleton would then attend Castleton Elementary School. To address low enrollment of middle school students in Benson Village School, the board is considering in-district school choice (with transportation) for 7th and 8th grade students for the 2021-2022 school year. Listening tours are an opportunity to have a conversation with your board members. Please join board members at 6 p.m. to discuss district reorganization on the following dates: Nov. 30th with Tanya, Angela (West Haven) https://meet.google.com/bsc-wcrm-zbw or join by phone (US) +1 929-287-3647 (PIN: 876141866) Nov. 30th with Josh, Christine (Hubbardton) https://meet.google.com/piw-sqjk-crt or join by phone (US) +1 470-208-3216 (PIN: 271699166) Dec. 1st with Tim, Julie, Toni (Castleton) https://meet.google.com/byi-qppv-qgq or join by phone (US) +1 515-518-4964 (PIN: 853077567) Dec. 2nd with Peter, Glen, John (Orwell) https://meet.google.com/viq-uxim-get?hs=122&authuser=0 or join by phone (‪US‬) ‪+1 218-296-8729‬ (PIN: ‪318 417 490#)‬ Dec. 2nd with Mike, Rick Tara (Fair Haven) https://meet.google.com/cjv-qqvq-fhe or join by phone (US) +1 601-909-0134 (PIN: 703665728)

Dear Slate Valley Families, I hope it goes without saying that we know how stressful the pandemic has been for everyone. We are all in this together and we will get through it. I want to remind everyone that our primary focus as a district is to keep everyone safe and remain open for in-person learning. However, as COVID cases begin to rise across the state and region we will only be as safe as our community makes us. It is on all of us to do the right thing and follow the state guidelines. As the days wear on, we have noticed an increase in the number of student screening questions that are not being answered accurately. We are trying to do our very best as a district to comply with the State’s Health and Safety Guidance and we need families to help make sure the screening questions are accurately and completely answered. In order to keep our schools open and safe we need every single person to do their part. Community spread in Vermont is due to people traveling to restricted areas, not wearing masks and not practicing physical distancing from those outside your household. Please keep your child home if the screening indicates they should stay home. I cannot stress the importance of this enough. Please do your part and let us know if you need support. We are here to help in these very difficult times. Best, Brooke Farrell Superintendent

What are you planning for the holidays this year? It’s hard to imagine breaking with tradition and celebrating at home, but that is what a lot of Vermont families are deciding to do in 2020. Travel increases your chance of getting and spreading COVID-19, and the way you celebrate this year will have an impact on your family, community, and Vermont. Our ability to keep schools open relies on everyone doing their part. It’s easy to let our guard down among friends and family -- people we trust. But the fact is, we don’t know if they’ve been exposed to the virus, and it’s those times that the virus can spread very easily. Please keep this in mind as you consider holiday plans. Resources https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/holidays.html

Good morning, Due to the rising COVID case counts in the Northeast effective today, November 10, 2020, the State of Vermont has suspended its leisure travel map and implemented a mandatory quarantine for anyone returning or traveling to Vermont. https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel

Slate Valley Middle School Winter Sports Registration -- Is Now Open Registration will be open from November 10 through December 15. Please go to http://www.formreleaf.com -Slate Valley Middle School -Choose your school, sport and grade level -Fill out the WHOLE form or resubmit if already in. -REMINDER of yearly physical (upload or send to nurse) -SAVE the information -Check to make sure that your information is saved, you should receive verification. Information will be coming of start dates for practices, games, etc. We will also be notifying you of ALL guidelines, restrictions, etc. Thank you for your continued flexibility and support!

Reminder! Tonight (November 9, 2020) You’re invited to the Slate Valley Unified Union School District Board meeting. Fair Haven Union High School, 6:30 p.m. Participation will be in person or virtually connect by going to http://meet.google.com/iso-hvnh-hhv or by calling (US) +1 405-656-0082 PIN: 628 068 926# Tonight’s Agenda: https://5il.co/mvql Previous Meeting Minutes: https://5il.co/mj5k Upcoming Meetings: November 23, 2020 - SV Board meeting, 6:30 p.m. (FHUHS) November 23, 2020 - SV Buildings & Grounds Meeting, 5:30 p.m. (FHUHS) November 23, 2020 - SV Policy Meeting, 5:30 p.m. (FHUHS)

Substitute Teachers 2020-2021 Vacancies Slate Valley Unified Union School District is seeking Substitute Teachers for the 2020-2021 school year for an hourly rate of $15.00. All applicants must apply on https://www.schoolspring.com/. Position will remain open until filled. EOE

Good afternoon, The State of Vermont has updated the Cross State Travel Map: https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel. As you will note, travel outside of the state of Vermont (including Washington County, NY) for non-essential reasons requires a 14 day quarantine.

Good evening, here is a link to our COVID-19 guide: https://5il.co/ml9y. We hope you find this resource helpful. Note: This guide has been updated from the one (briefly) posted this afternoon to include a missing page.

Dear Slate Valley Families, As the pandemic wears on, I know that the coming months may be especially difficult for everyone in our Slate Valley Community. I so appreciate all of your efforts and diligence as I know it has been challenging to say the least. For many of us, we miss our family and friends and long for a return to normal. I am hopeful that 2021 will bring with it a return to "normal" albeit a slow return. As we enter winter and the holiday season I would be remiss if I did not remind everyone of the holiday travel guidance from the CDC and the Vermont travel map which is now a sea of red and yellow. I know that as a result many of us will need to adjust our holiday/vacation plans and for that I am sorry. I am certainly hopeful for better days ahead. Our primary goal is to remain in person for as long as possible with everyone healthy so as such I need to remind you that if students travel out of state during the holiday breaks they may need to quarantine before they return to school. We greatly appreciate your attention to this matter as it will take all of us to do our part. I have included some recent articles on Pandemic Fatigue and the rise of cases. As always please reach out with any questions. Best, Brooke Farrell Superintendent VT Digger: Pandemic Fatigue https://vtdigger.org/2020/10/20/as-cases-rise-vermont-balances-economic-health-with-concerns-of-pandemic-fatigue/ NY Times: Pandemic Fatigue https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/17/us/coronavirus-pandemic-fatigue.html CDC Coping with the Holidays https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/holidays.html#thanksgiving Cross State Travel https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel

Good afternoon, Here is the weekly update of the cross state travel map: https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel The only Vermont border county that travel is allowed is Washington, NY. All other border counties now require a quarantine.

We are very excited that Slate Valley is offering parent tutorials for our remote learning platforms. A huge thank you to Lisa Cacciatore and Rodney Batschelet Slate Valley's Technology Integrationists! OVS: 10/28 6-7pm grades k-2 https://meet.google.com/jpn-nvtx-ikn 10/29 6-7pm grades 4-8 https://meet.google.com/odn-divm-gua

Good afternoon, here is the updated travel map for this week: https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel Please note Washington County, NY is green again. However, many more counties adjacent to Vermont are now yellow and red.

Reminder, the FHUHS REAL Class's Care Package Donation Drive runs through Friday, October 23rd. For more information: https://www.smore.com/qumzr

Cross-state Travel Update - The cross-state travel map has been updated by the State of Vermont: https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel. Please be aware that Washington County, NY is now yellow again as are many other border counties.

The FHUHS REAL Class is holding a Care Package Donation Drive from October 12 through 23. Please visit: https://www.smore.com/qumzr for more information.

Reminder! Tonight (October 12, 2020) You’re invited to the Slate Valley Unified Union School District Board meeting. Fair Haven Union High School, 6:30 p.m. Participation will be in person or virtually connect by going to http://meet.google.com/grn-jxau-emp or by calling (US) +1 225-414-2284 PIN: 456 101 981# Tonight’s Agenda: https://5il.co/lvat Previous Meeting Minutes: https://5il.co/lmhb Upcoming Meetings: November 9, 2020 - SV Board meeting, 6:30 p.m. (FHUHS) November 9, 2020 - SV Finance Meeting, 5:30 p.m. (FHUHS)