July 6, 2020

Hello Rangers,

A team of community and staff members has been working hard to create a school reopening plan, and we are close to bringing a recommendation to the board. This note is to let you know some of our ideas, and to encourage you to attend the board meeting on July 15^th at 6:00 (both an in-person and remote option will be available, assuming OPMA rules prohibiting in-person meetings are not extended).

Considerations for reopening are complex, and cover everything from how far students must sit from each other to how students sit on the buses to how often we sanitize surfaces in the school. To be sure, teachers have been asked to prepare for teaching in a school year in which some students will be at school, some students will get sick and have to stay at home for exptended periods, and some students won’t come to school at all. We will provide learning for all students, in all of these situations; the planning requirement is huge and our amazing staff will need more time than they would for a ‘normal’ school year.

Some quick highlights from our Reopening Team sessions:

• There will be a plan for all students to come to school most of the time. Students who cannot come, or whose families do not feel comfortable sending their children to school will be provided distance learning opportunities with their normal teacher.
• Students and staff will be required to wear face coverings, as per the Reopening Washinton Schools 2020 District Planning Guide and the related Question and Answers document. Families are expected to wash the masks daily.
• Students will be socially distanced in their classrooms and in the cafeteria. Students and staff may be closer to each other for short intervals during the school day, but the default plan is to keep a six foot distance.
• All students must have a non-disposable water bottle to use our bottle filling stations instead of using drinking fountains.
• Students will spend more time outside – make sure your children come to school dressed for outdoor activities as well as inside work – layers of clothing.

We are finalizing plans and will have more details after our board approves the plan, and will get information out to families as soon as we can. There are still many questions that must be answered – such as what will sports look like in the fall, and we will continue to learn more from the DOH, OSPI, and WIAA and pass along those developments to you.

As always, I am at your disposal if you would like to talk about our reopening plans or anything else about the school district. Please feel free to contact me through my email (fredmon@qsd48.org) or call my office to set up a meeting (360-765-2900) in person, on zoom, or by phone.

Thank you, and GO RANGERS!

Frank Redmon

Good Day Quilcene,

The Quilcene School District is re-integrating the community preschool into district operations, starting in September of this year. While this may feel like a substantial change, most of the program will remain as it has been. It is the case that Viviann is retiring, and the exploratory program for our three- and four-year old learners that she has built will be the model that will continue. To facilitate a smooth transition, Viviann will train the new person.

We are working with the Quilcene Presbyterian Church to determine if that facility will still be available, as we have no open rooms in the district facilities. At the same time, we have advertised for a new preschool teacher, and hope to have a new teacher ready to meet families and students in August to prepare for the first day of school on September 2^nd.

If you have a young person who is ready to join our preschool family, please go to our preschool’s website  at this link (https://www.qsd48.org/District/Department/95-Preschool) to find the registration form. This web page is currently being developed, and will be completed by the new teacher when she or he comes on board. However, the registration form will be there, and in the next couple of weeks the Preschool Parent Handbook will be available as well.

If you are interested in participating in the interview committee for our new teacher, or if you have any questions about preschool next year, please email me at fredmon@qsd48.org, or call my office at 360-765-2902.

Go Rangers!

Frank Redmon

Superintendent

Wednesday Survey Letter for Parents (PDF)

The K-12 School Office will be closed until August 3rd, at which time we will resume normal hours. You may contact Principal Sean Moss by email at smoss@qsd48.org or by calling (360)302-1294, if needed.

The District Office will remain open over the summer. Hours are 8:00 am - 4:00 pm. Please call the numbers below for assistance.

Superintendent's Office - (360) 765-2900

Business Office - (360) 765-2901

HR/Payroll Office - (360) 765-2952

Dear Ranger Families,

Over the last few months we’ve had to adapt in ways we wouldn’t have been able to imagine earlier this year. In the process, we’ve come together to try to create as meaningful of learning opportunities as possible given the far from ideal circumstances. As part of this, engaging students through their own strengths and interests moved beyond what we should do and became what we must do. From this, family involvement, student choice, project- based learning, and individualization all became key components. We learned that these components were essential during the closure; they will also make school more engaging and meaningful once we return. While we don’t yet have all the answers, we’re committed to safely welcoming back students to our campus in September.

To gain a full understanding of what school will look like in the Fall, we’ve formed a reopening team that consists of over 30 people including students, parents, teachers, and administrators to begin to unpack our options in order to determine what is best for Quilcene. After meeting, the team quickly realized that to do this right, we need the input from everyone. Consequently, we’ve created both a parent reopening survey and a student reopening survey. I would ask that both parents and students entering grades 5-12 complete their surveys by next Tuesday, June 23rd. As the team gets the results back from these surveys and exactly what school will looks like becomes clearer, we will be communicating over the summer using every avenue we have available.

Over the next couple of months, I would highly encourage you to take the time to enjoy the outdoors and the weather, as we’re all greatly fortunate to be able to call this beautiful place home. During remote learning, it’s became necessary to learn through technology. I would argue that now, what’s best for kids of all ages is to put the screens away and, as my son says to me when speaking about time outdoors without technology, “get back to the basics.” Whether it be fishing, camping, hiking, gardening, kayaking, or any number of other outdoor activities you prefer, have a great summer and have fun “getting back to the basics!”

Thank you and GO RANGERS,

Sean Moss

Please click the links below to access the surveys:

Parent Survey

Student Survey

The regular meeting of the Quilcene School Board of Directors will be conducted at 6:00 pm on June 17, 2020 through a Zoom Meeting.

Pre-registration is required.

To register to attend this public meeting, please RSVP at the following link: https://www.qsd48.org/District/Events/1806-Board-Regular-Meeting.html or you can email Jami Sukert at jsukert@qsd48.org to provide your name and contact phone number.

After registering using one of the above methods, the Zoom meeting login information will be emailed to you at 5:00 pm on Wednesday, June 17th.

This is a reminder that tomorrow night beginning at 8:00 pm we will hosting a Facebook Live feed of the Class of 2020 graduation Ceremony.

There will also be a short distance radio broadcast on FM station 102.1. The range will be within a couple miles from the school campus.

Congratulations to the Class of 2020! Go Rangers!