Schools close in response to coronavirus concerns

After multiple cases of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) appeared in Wisconsin, Gov. Tony Evers mandated March 17, that all K-12 schools be shut down indefinitely. With that executive order, all after school and extra-curricular activities are canceled in the Cadott, Cornell and Lake Holcombe school districts.

At Cadott, the building will operate similar as during a break or summer, other than no availability to outside groups during the closure. Year-long staff will continue to work or they may use accumulated leave time.

The plan is to still have a school board committee meeting April 6, but it will move from the conference room to the high school library.

“We will plan to re-open…to a regular instructional schedule, unless we receive further direction from the state or county health department,” said superintendent Jenny Starck. “The biggest piece, is that all information is subject to change, even hour by hour, as we get updates from the state and county level.”

In regard to school lunches, Starck says they are working on a plan to have school lunch available for any students, beginning March 30. Parents should watch for a survey regarding family participation in the meal program.

“We are encouraging activities to help students stay engaged, but online access is not available for many of our families, so we are not requiring online programming,” said Starck.

In addition, for students with special education needs, there might not be a way to effectively address their IEP goals with online instruction. For students in an online course through eSucceed, the district is working on clarification with them.

Starck says the Cadott School District intends to apply to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) for a waiver of instructional minutes, because of the required closure of schools and the difficulty in meeting instructional requirements virtually. The DPI has initially indicated that these waivers will be approved.

The Cadott School Board will also work to determine if they are able to meet graduation/curricular requirements with the remaining time, or need to add some additional days.

However, state testing remains a concern.

“There is support at the state level, to request the federal government for a modification of required state testing this year, due to the timing of these tests and the difficulty in completing them in the required window,” said Starck. “Students will also not have the opportunity for instruction in the immediate time prior to test administration.”

Starck says she is impressed with the response and organization of the Chippewa County Health Department.

“They are quick to respond to questions and provide accurate information,” said Starck. “I also appreciate the patience and flexibility of our staff and families, as we try to make the best decisions for our students.”

With the increased number of emails and calls with questions, suggestions and input, the district is not able to individually respond to each person in a timely fashion. Starck says the administration is compiling these questions and will

See CORONAVIRUS CONCERNS/ Page 3 share information with everyone when they can.

Starck said at this time, the school has some of the answers as the district moves forward in these unique times.

“There are still areas where we will be working to provide clarification,” she said.

On Cornell’s side of things, the closure came as a bit of a shock, as the CDC and public health department were asking schools to not give into pressure, and close schools for a variety of reasons.

“So, this decision was very unexpected at this time,” said superintendent Paul Schley, “but one we have been thinking could occur, especially after some schools in the southern part of the state decided to close their schools for four weeks. Here is the game plan at this time, however, please understand this could change in the future.”

The facilities will be closed to all internal and external groups during the specified closure period, and the district will not teach online or by any other alternative means, unless those means have already occurred, such as with eSucceed and/or some CVTC academy courses.

“We will be putting more links on our elementary web page of free educational sites students can use,” said Schley. “The elementary teachers will be sending home lists of recommending things to do. If nothing else, read, read, read.”

The regular March school board meeting has been canceled, and as of now, after-school and other activities/sports will resume later on, unless the school is instructed otherwise.

Cornell plans to have school April 10 and April 13, which were previously days off. The district also plans to make up all the days, with the last day of school June 12. If the closure mandate is not extended, graduation will remain scheduled for June 5.

As people are looking for information about what is happening with the school, they should visit the district website to read the “News” column. If the answer they are looking for is not there, they can email Schley and he will respond as quickly as possible.

“In this time of uncertainty, it’s a bright spot for me to say how proud we are of the students and staff at earning the ninth consecutive Wisconsin School of Recognition Award,” said Schley. “We make academic achievement a priority here and have high expectations of everyone. We will continue with these high expectations, and figure out a way to make sure our students get the high quality education they need and deserve, once the mandated closure ends.”

Lake Holcombe is also making changes based on the governor’s mandate, as all after school activities, practices and gatherings are canceled until further notice. As new school information becomes available, the district will keep the public posted on the school’s website, social media page and through the instant alert system.

During the three-day spring break last week, staff used the time to extensively clean and disinfect the building and classrooms.

Superintendent Kurt Lindau asks that parents keep their children at home and not visit any attractions, such as theaters and water parks, that may still be open.

“A lot of things people are doing are counter productive,” said Lindau.

The district will continue to be in contact with the DPI, as well as state and county health departments. As of this week, no coronavirus cases have been identified in Rusk or Chippewa counties.

The Lake Holcombe Board of Education will meet Monday, March 23, at 7 p.m., to review information, and assess the impact to students and school community.

“During this extraordinary and unprecedented time, the health and safety of our students, staff and school remains our highest priority,” said school officials. “We ask your patience and understanding, as we sort out and plan for the continued service to our students, and school community.”