MOUNT VERNON — Countywide, schools are preparing for the extended spring break that Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced Thursday afternoon due to COVID-19 concerns. The extended spring break will run from after school on Monday, March 16 to April 3.
While each school is handling things a little bit differently, Timm Mackley, superintendent of Knox County Educational Service Center, said the broad picture is to provide access to school work either online or on paper.
“We’re doing the best we can to maintain educational progress,” Mackley said. He mentioned that school professionals will still be available to help parents and students with school work.
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- Coronavirus knoxhealth.com
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- News from the Associated Press apnews.com
- Ohio Department of Health: Coronavirus coronavirus.ohio.gov
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- Coronavirus mountvernonnews.com
“I was surprised by the governor’s announcement but I didn’t question it,” Mike Hebenthal, superintendent at Centerburg, said. He said they, at Centerburg, didn’t panic and have everything mapped out. Staff will be in the buildings providing help to the students over the phone and via email.
Hebenthal said they are in a good position and ready at the moment since they started planning two weeks ago for a situation like this. Centerburg will provide online schoolwork and, if someone doesn’t have internet access, will deliver the work to the student. For homes with multiple kids, a limited amount of Chromebooks will be handed out so the kids can do their school work. Any students who qualify for free or reduced lunch will have the option to have lunch delivered to them.
He said the spring break will still be scheduled as planned but this is a fluid situation and plans may change. More information on Centerburg’s plan and any updates will be made available online at their district website: centerburgschools.org
Highland Local Schools Superintendent Nate Huffman said all staff will be reporting as normal to help provide the best online learning they can for their students. The district is working on ensuring that every home will have a device to connect to the internet.
“It’s not perfect and there will be road blocks but we want to provide as much education and assistance to parents as much as we can,” Huffman said.
Along with online learning, he said the district is working on providing a free lunch to anyone interested for children from 1 year old to seniors in high school. The lunches will be delivered to the children by staff members. Like Hebenthal, Huffman said the situation is very fluid at this point so things may change. He anticipates things going back to normal after the three weeks but they are planning for a longer period if necessary. Huffman said if things do change they will notify the district by phone, email and post the information onto their website, highland.k12.oh.us.
Steve Larcomb, superintendent at East Knox Local School District, has created an operational plan for the district. There will be no academic instruction from March 17 - 20 but starting March 23 the students will begin receiving online lessons from their teachers. The district will provide breakfast and lunch meals which will be offered to all students enrolled in the district during the break. Parents must notify the school if they want to receive meals and how many students' meals are needed. They will be delivered on weekdays between 10 a.m. - noon. All who do not receive free meals will be charged normal price. The district spring break will remain as scheduled.
“I just really feel for the parents,” Larcomb said. He said that he is hopeful that in three weeks there will be more clarity about the situation and things can go back to normal. Updates and more information can be found at their district website, ekschools.org.
Bill Seder, superintendent at Mount Vernon City Schools, posted an update to the district website about the extended spring break. The district will be providing continuing education both online and through their ‘Blizzard Bag’ format. For those who are without internet, the district is working on a plan to provide internet hotspots for students along with pickup locations for additional Blizzard Bags. Teachers will be working daily from 8 a.m. - 3 p.m. to provide lessons and feedback to students during the break. For students who qualify for free and reduced lunch, the schools are developing a plan to provide meals during the break. Further updates and more information will be provided through their website, mvcsd.us as well as the Knox Alerts system.
Superintendent Scott Hartley of North Fork Local School District posted a district-wide update to inform the district about the steps they are taking to handle this situation. The district’s spring break runs during this extended spring break time so virtual learning will start March 30. Faculty can be reached via email. For students needing meals, they are working with the Licking County Health Department to develop a program. Any other updates will be available at their website: northfork.k12.oh.us.
Susan Hayward, superintendent at Fredericktown Local Schools said they are providing students with 15 days worth of homework to complete over the extended break. The district is planning to provide lunch to all students but not all the details have been figured out yet.
Spring break is still planned as scheduled. As more information becomes available, Hayward said it can be found on their district website, fredericktownschools.com.
Attempts to reach Danville Local Schools’ superintendent Jason Snively about the district’s plans were unsuccessful.
[nn] UPDATEOn Sunday, March 15, Danville Local Schools posted a letter from superintendent Jason Snively on danvilleschools.org.