After communicating plans to introduce additional distance learning days last Friday, I was presented with compelling public feedback that suggests that for many, distance learning is solely a crisis education tool, and that now is not the time to reinvent its role for instructional innovation.
The past year demanded that we adapt quickly to teaching and learning remotely, and I'm interested in looking at potential ways we can use this experience to continue to innovate and grow as a school district.
As we head into Mid-Winter Break, I remain cautiously optimistic. We are holding strong three weeks into in-person learning. Virus rates in our immediate area continue to trend in a positive direction; staff and student quarantine levels are stable and manageable, and more than 35% of our staff has secured an appointment to be vaccinated or are already in the vaccination cycle.
After consulting with the Oakland County Health Division, MDHHS, our Board of Education, and administrative leadership, Clarkston Community Schools will move forward with a phased transition to full face-to-face instruction, beginning on Monday, February 1.
Dr. Ryan shares new information and updates related to the district's path back to fully reopening schools in this week's Superintendent's Report.
Clarkston Community Schools will return to face-to-face instruction for all students on Tuesday, January 19.
A new year is around the corner and the likelihood of our return to face-to-face instruction on January 19 is very strong.
We have seen more reported cases per 10,000 residents within our school district boundaries than any other school district in Oakland County for five consecutive weeks.
The dedication displayed by the Clarkston Community Schools Board of Education during the past several months is profound and inspiring to me as a school leader.
I am just as eager as you are to return to normalcy, and yet our reality as we experienced it prior to March 2020 simply does not exist today. We must look at the world around us in the light of day, accept what is, and make prudent decisions based on reliable information and expertise.