~From Lothrop Principal! Hat day tomorrow, Oct. 19th. Whole school celebration!
Regrettably, the Lothrop PTO and Pittsford Rec will need to postpone Movie Night scheduled for this evening. They plan to reschedule for next Sat. Oct, 23 from 6-9. Reserved tickets for tonight will be honored and if you were unable to attend tonight, you can reserve for next week. This event will remain FREE! I have included the flier with the QR code if you would like to reserve for next week! (Date will change to the 23rd.)
Staffing and Bus Transportation Issues: We continue to have significant issues with finding substitute teachers and bus drivers. Like our colleagues around us, we are not fully staffed and we are not getting applicants. The result is that buses are being asked to do double runs, making some kids late and others very early. This schedule changes on a daily basis in response to what staffing we do have. This is very disruptive to families and we deeply regret this. If you know of anyone interested in being a bus driver or a substitute teacher, please have them contact our HR department. We are in dire need!
GUIDANCE: WHEN TO KEEP YOUR CHILD HOME: Per VT Dept of Health guidelines, students and staff with symptoms of COVID should be excluded from school. If your child has any of the following symptoms, they need to stay home until their symptoms have been improved for at least 24 hours without the use of Tylenol or Ibuprofen. If your child has one or more symptoms for more than 24 hours, please consult their healthcare provider for guidance and testing. If your child is tested for COVID, they should stay home until negative test results are received. Written test results will be required before returning to school.
➤ Fever
➤ Cough
➤ Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
➤ Fatigue (Very Tired)
➤ Muscle aches
➤ Headache
➤ New loss of taste or smell
➤ Sore throat
➤ Runny nose
➤ Nausea or Vomiting
➤ Diarrhea
~From Lothrop Principal
Car rider pick-up is at 11:30 AM today. Bus Rider pick-up begins at 11:45 AM. Have a wonderful weekend!
Soooooo many Kindness Tickets earned! Way to go Lothrop Learners!
COVID, Quarantine and Distance Learning: When we have a positive case, we immediately identify and notify close contacts using the VT Dept of Health guidelines. We then send general notification to the school. Unfortunately, we have had to close a few classrooms over the past week and a half and ultimately, closed Neshobe for two days. If an entire class is out on quarantine, we will provide distance learning. We will re-open the class when more than half of the students are cleared to return with a negative test. However, once a teacher has students in person once again, we will stop the distance learning.
VACCINATION INFORMATION REQUESTED: In order to know if we can relax masking requirements, we need to know who is vaccinated in our student body. Knowing this information also makes it much quicker to contact trace when a positive case exists, as vaccinated students do not need to quarantine. Please send a copy of your child’s vaccination card to your school nurse to help us reach the 80% student body indicator.
MASK REQUIREMENTS EXTENDED TO NOVEMBER 1: The governor extended his mask recommendation to Nov 1, still with the caveat that a school with 80% or more of the eligible student body vaccinated - may relax the guidelines.
STAFFING AND BUS DISRUPTIONS: We continue to have significant issues with finding substitute teachers and bus drivers. Like our colleagues around us, we are not fully staffed and we are not getting applicants. The result is that buses are being asked to do double runs, making some kids late and others very early. This schedule changes on a daily basis in response to what staffing we do have. This is very disruptive to families and we deeply regret this. If you know of anyone interested in being a bus driver or a substitute teacher, please have them contact our HR department. We are in dire need!
REMINDER - NO SCHOOL TOMORROW OCTOBER 8th: Our calendar has an October break weekend starting tomorrow, Friday, October 8th. Students have no school on October 8th and return to class on Monday, October 11th.
~ From Lothrop Principal 9/30:
Bus 2 will be picked up by Bus #26 and run about 30 minutes late this morning. #26 will be on time for the AM.
In the afternoon, Bus #26 will bring home #26 and #2, so drop off times will be similar to yesterday.
Friday plan to come!
SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS: In August, Board meetings returned to in-person meetings with a zoom option for those who wish to attend virtually. Meeting information can be found on the district calendar or on the district website: OVUU Board meets Oct. 5 (Date changed to October 5 from October 6), 6 PM @ OVUHS. RNESU Board meets Oct. 20, 5 PM.
~from Lothrop Principal:
I just heard from our RNESU that Bus 2 will be about 30 minutes late again tomorrow morning 9/29 and possibly Thursday.
Bus 26 and Bus 2 will combine for the afternoon run, and times for drop off will vary as they have for the past couple of days.
UPDATE - RNESU Phone System Issues Continue - Outgoing and Incoming phone service may be erratic, especially one party not hearing the other party.
We are aware of and have reported these issues. We apologize for this inconvenience and appreciate your patience. During this time, please consider using email and Let's Talk to reach us.
~ From Lothrop Principal 9/28:
Bus 2 will be picked up by Bus #26 and run about 30 minutes late this morning. #26 will be on time for the AM.
In the afternoon, Bus #26 will bring home #26 and #2, so drop off times will be similar to yesterday.
~Message from Lothrop Principal
Bus 26 and Bus 2 learners will all ride on Bus 26 this afternoon. Drop off times will likely be a bit off.
SCHOOL SAFETY HOTLINE: All Vermonters now have access to a new anonymous school safety tip line. The purpose of this tip line is to enhance school safety and security by providing students, faculty, staff and members of the community with a tool to report concerning behaviors that may have a negative impact on our schools. These tips will assist law enforcement, human service providers and school administrators in identifying school threats and coordinating assistance to students and families for services not needing an immediate response.
Submitted tips will be received 24 hours a day/7 days a week and will be assessed to determine if an immediate action from law enforcement or other first responders is needed. Tips that are determined to not need immediate attention, will be directed to VT 211 (United Way) and/or appropriate school officials for additional services.
Any student, parent/guardian, educator or member of the community can utilize this tip line at no cost. All tips are anonymous.
There are three ways to submit a tip: (1)Go to www.SAFE4VT.org and click on “Submit a Tip”, then fill out the form with your information. (2) Dial (844) SAFE4VT or (844) 723-3488 and speak with a call taker. (3) Send a text to 274637, type in keyword SAFE4VT and then your tip. Please share this information far and wide. Thank you!
Bus 2 will run about 30 minutes late today due to a shortage of drivers. Learners will be picked up by Bus 26. Sorry for the inconvenience.
COVID TESTING TIPS: Local doctor’s offices have told us that they may not be able to test students who are deemed a close contact unless they have symptoms, as their offices are too busy with people who are ill. It is highly recommended that an appointment for testing at one of the many state sites be made. You can do this online at the link below. As always, if you or your child have symptoms, however, please do reach out to your medical provider.
In mid October or after, we hope to offer free weekly optional testing for all staff and students right at school. Stay tuned for more information on this.
Where to test: https://www.healthvermont.gov/covid-19/testing/where-get-tested