Month: April 2020

Instructed, Required and Assessed for All K-8; “Lessons” also for Preschool

I hope things are going well for you in our “instructed, required and assessed” model for K-8 and what’s probably best called an “instructed and voluntary” model for preschool.  I think I now have accounts set up so I can be a student in every class at every grade level.  I am seeing some amazing things being done, and these are only a few:

• Teachers are creating videos of themselves providing instruction while using small whiteboards or posterboard paper.
• Teachers are using document cameras to share how to do math problems or work on grammar assignments.
• Teachers are re-typing work into GoogleForms so there are easy ways for kids to provide answers.
• Teachers are using short video segments to teach about science and social studies.  One could even learn the “there” song to teach kindergartners “there” as a sight word.
• Teachers are using interactive assignments, such as a drag/drop activity for spelling.
• Specials teachers are having students visit the Figge, listen to the Quad City Symphony, or do an optional “Fitness Mathopoly” game.
• Mrs. Wolf is providing ways to help us all with our social-emotional learning and coping and providing times for those needing some one-on-one extra attention.

We have received some great feedback from families, and the Zoom parent-only meetings have been helpful as well.  We have added the weekly spreadsheet with the scheduled Zoom meetings so you can try to organize things even better, and 6th-8th grade new content will begin to be released/posted at the common time of 7:00 p.m. the night before.  Tonight at 7:00 p.m., for example, all of the content for Monday’s core subject areas in grades 6-8 will be released/posted.  A common time is particularly important for these upper grade students who may have 3-4 different teachers.  We were also experiencing some issues with YouTube videos, including, of all things, Fr. Jake’s daily reflections being blocked.  We tried switching some links to SafeYoutube links but then ran into other issues.  Don’t tell your kids, but we had to reduce the level of security on the school issued Chromebooks so we could better access the YouTube videos we want for education.

As I’ve logged into every class and tried to use Seesaw and Google Classroom as a student, I have tried to do so without reading directions or watching tutorials to try to see just how user friendly these systems are.  While I’ve been seriously challenged at times, I’ve also discovered what you are probably experiencing: it’s becoming easier over time!  When I first started using Zoom, for example, I didn’t have time to learn or even explore every feature right away; I just needed the basics to function NOW.  However, now that I can do some of the basic things fairly well, I can explore and learn other features.  This week, I’m going to try to do a poll within a Zoom meeting!

As we are trying to cut down on “bulk” emails sent to families, please don’t forget to check for the specials information on their webpages, accessible through the front page of our website, www.olvjfk.com. We’ve also rearranged the list of teachers so that specials teachers are right near the top.

I have been trying to catch up on reading posts on our JFK Moms & Dads private Facebook group.  They are inspiring!  I must admit, however, that I’m not sure Mrs. Tilkens was that impressed with my plan to do the 5K by going back and forth to the refrigerator throughout the day.  If you would like to join this private group, please contact Angie Hillebrand at school, angie.hillebrand@olvjfkmail.com.

We can do this!

Future Questions

Some of this week’s bigger questions are now moving beyond the “what do we do now” phase to “what will it look like later” phase.  Three of these questions are presented below.  We don’t have answers yet, but I thought I’d share what’s being discussed.

• When will school start again?  Governor Reynolds has waived the requirement that school cannot start before August 23rd this coming year.  Many districts are, thus, talking about starting earlier in August such as August 10th or even the 3rd.  Why start earlier?
  • Reduce the “summer slide.”  Most public school districts (87%) are not doing “instructed, required, and assessed,” like JFK, although many of the teachers are working as hard on “voluntary” as they would on “required.”   (About 60% of the private schools are at least doing required at some grade levels.) We know there is a normal summer slide between June and August.  A mid-March – late August slide would only be worse for those students who are not really engaged in work this spring.
  •  Have face-to-face instruction when you can.  What if there are more targeted closures that affect certain regions next fall/winter.  Isn’t it better to get face-to-face instruction in when you can just in case you can’t later?
  • Future COVID-19 days could be tacked on to the end of the school year.  If you start two weeks earlier in August with a planned end of the school year in mid-May (also two weeks earlier than normal) and then have to close for two weeks in February for another coronavirus outbreak, there’s an easy way to extend the school year without going too far into the summer.

• What will the rest of the school calendar look like once schools do start?
  • Will it have built-in coronavirus days like built in snow days?
  • Will there be more school days than normal?
  • Will there be early start days or remediation days perhaps even scattered throughout the year that are required for some students?

• What will school look like when we start?
  • What’s the best way to do social distancing in schools, if that’s still required?
  • Will all students start on the same day or will there be a phase in?
  • What criteria will parents and schools use to determine if a child (or teacher) is sick and needs to stay home?  How will education be provided for a student who has to quarantine due to possible exposure while attending a family gathering, for example, while his/her classmates do not need to do remote learning and can be at school?
  • Etc.

As you can see, there are more questions than answers now, but it is not too soon to start thinking about the future.  If you have ideas or just additional questions, please pass them along to me.  Even though it may not be possible to think of everything, we want to think about as much as we can while we have the chance.

Still Some Current Questions, Including the End of This School Year on June 5

While thinking about the future, there are also still many things that we will need to wrap up for this current school year:

• When will we end this school year?  The board voted on Tuesday to return to the original June 5th end date.  The only reason we had been going to extend the school year was when we thought we could pick up some face-to-face instructional time.  That scenario will not happen this spring.
• 8th grade graduation.  Some of our students have been with us 11 years, since 3 year old preschool.  We still want to have something special for them.
• Finalizing some financial movement of funds:
  • There may still be some families that owe fees for things like the second semester of band or another pair of gym shorts, for example.
  • Lunch payments:  We’ll need to determine what to do with lunch account balances.  Some families may have some hefty balances sitting in their children’s accounts, and a few may owe us some money.
  • Lunch duty payments:  No one is going to be working any more lunch duties this year.  We’ll need to reimburse everyone for the days worked or transfer their fund balances to cover their other fees.
  • ECLC and after school care accounts need to be finalized.
  • K-8 families and paying preschool families will need to finalize tuition payments and/or talk to Fr. Jake about making payment arrangements (see below).
  • Finalizing, selling, and distributing yearbooks
  • Collecting JFK and AEA library books
• Algebra aptitude testing to help with recommendations for next year’s 8th grade math
• Budgeting for Home & School, Band Boosters, etc.
• Etc.

New School Office Hours

The school office will be staffed 8:00 – 4:00 p.m. on Mondays – Thursdays.  Emily Sanderson will be in the school office on Mondays and Thursdays, and Angie Hillebrand will be there on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.  They are also available via email.

Donations, Tithing, Tuition Payments and Registration for Next Year

Both the school and the church are still dependent upon your regular contributions and payments.  Donation buttons are located on the front page of both the school (green) and parish (blue) sides of our website.  Tuition payments can be mailed, dropped off at the parish office, or made via debit/credit card over the phone.  Emily Sanderson is in the school office at least usually on Mondays and Thursdays.

Tuition payments for this school year:  Fr. Jake and Finance Council approved the following statements regarding flexibility for tuition payments.  They want to work with people even if it goes well into or through next school year too.

“From March 30th, 2020 through August 31, 2021, the Finance Council gives the Pastor authority to negotiate with families on how to pay their tuition payments.

All families who request a school contract for the 2020-2021 school year will not be denied a contract based upon how much tuition they owe the parish.

Any questions or concerns about tuition payments or contracts can be directed to Fr. Jake Greiner, greinerj@diodav.org or by calling 563-391-4245.”

Tuition Contracts for Next Year:  We still want to continue the registration process for next school year.  Returned tuition contracts helps us plan for next year as well.  Please return your tuition contract as soon as you can, even without paying the registration fee now.  That can be paid later, if necessary.  At the present time, we are extending the discounted registration fee (discounted to $100) until June 1st.  If you need another copy of your tuition contract, please contact Emily Sanderson at emily.sanderson@olvjfkmail.com.  Emily and Angie Hillebrand are also contacting families via phone to offer reminders and help.

School Meals

Recognizing the need that some families have for meals, ANY child between the ages of 1-18 years old may receive a lunch and breakfast at no cost at one of the following locations beginning on Monday, March 23, 2020, between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.  It is not a requirement that the child currently be receiving a free/reduced price lunch; it is available to any child.

• Achievement Service Center, located at 1702 N. Main Street
• Davenport Sudlow, located at 1414 East Locust Street
• Davenport Williams, located at 3040 North Division
• Davenport Frank L. Smart, located at 1934 West 5th Street
• Davenport Wood, located at 5701 North Division, Davenport

The child no longer has to be present to receive the free meal.  A sack lunch and breakfast for the following morning will be handed out on Monday through Friday.

Please open the trunk of your car or leave a seat open where staff can place the food.  This step will help reduce contact and practice a higher level of social distancing.

OLV parish bulletin:  Click HERE or use the following link/url:  https://www.olvjfk.com/olv/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/04/1032800022A-0402620.pdf

Plant Sale

Plants continue to grow in spite of COVID-19 as well.  Our plant sale sold about $11,500 worth of plants.  The plants will still be dropped off to us on April 29th and pick up will be on 4/30 and 5/1 from 11:00 – 6:00 and on 5/2 from 9:00 – 12:00.  Pick up will be different this year, with curbside only pickup.  Please click HERE to sign up for a pick up time or use the following link/url.  There are five pick up slots available in each 30 minute window:  https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/20F0C48ABAF2DA0FF2-jfkolv

Orders will be assembled ahead of time.  Please enter the school parking lot from 42nd Street and follow the directions on where to line up. Someone will be outside to take your name.  Your order will then be brought to you as soon as possible. Weather permitting, we will have extra plants for purchase located somewhere near the preschool playground.

If you are picking up orders for other people, please reserve/select more than one spot within the time slot as it will take more time to get all of the orders to you than if you were just picking up for yourself.

Fr. Jake’s Religious Icons

In the video below, Fr. Jake shares his thoughts regarding some of the religious icons in his personal collection:

 

Stay well!  Our Lady of Victory,…pray for us.

Chad

Governor Reynolds Orders Schools to Remain Closed through the End of the School Year

On Friday, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds extended the school closure through the end of the school year.  It was a bittersweet moment listening to that announcement.  In our minds, we know it’s probably the right decision, and we’re glad for that, but, in our hearts, there’s so much sadness not only for our students and families, but also for what it represents in terms of what’s going on in our broader community and country.

Instructed, Required and Assessed for All K-8; “Lessons” also for Preschool

All K-8 grades will now be using an “instructed, required and assessed” model.  There is an instructional piece, expected student work, and feedback from teachers for each of the absolutely essential standards students need before the next grade.

Sixth through 8th grade students are using Google Classroom, and PS-5th grade are using Seesaw as the main content delivery and feedback platform.  Zoom meetings both for students and just for parents are available.  The Zoom meetings themselves are optional for both students and parents so don’t panic if attendance is not possible.  The “instructed” part of “instructed, required and assessed” does not mean the instruction has to be live, and instruction will look entirely different than the teacher in front of the classroom model that we all envision in education.  Zoom meetings are to connect with students, answer questions and allow students to connect with each other as well.  The Zoom meetings are not where the “instruction” part takes place.

How to access Google Classroom, Seesaw, the Zoom meetings, etc. will be emailed each week.  The email will include a link to a spreadsheet that lists all of the Zoom meetings for each grade in a calendar format with tabs at the bottom for each grade.  We have heard the spreadsheet doesn’t look the greatest on some cell phones, and we’re looking into seeing if there are solutions to that issue.  It does look fine on a computer.  All of the same information can also be found through a link on your teacher’s webpage.  Just click on the name of the teacher from the home page of our website, www.olvjfk.com, and you will be taken to the teacher’s own page.  Information for art, music, band, and music can also be found by clicking on the teachers’ names.

We have received some great feedback from parents already, and we’ll probably collect more feedback more formally at the end of this week.  We are all making adjustments and learning as we go.  Things will become easier over time for everyone.

With required student work, “grading” for the 4th quarter and each activity will switch to a Pass/Incomplete basis.  Pass indicates that the work has been completed at an acceptable level of mastery.  Incomplete indicates that the work illustrates an incomplete mastery yet.  Emphasis is on progress towards achieving the identified student learning goals.  We do not want to use even a P/F marking system as we are truly in uncharted waters.  Specials teachers will use a P/blank system.  Although “due dates” are included for assignments, there are no late penalties.  We just want everyone to be regularly progressing toward an acceptable level of mastery.

We do have required daily religion activities for students (Lord knows we need them!), but there will not be anything that students are required to submit back to teachers.  Religion, therefore, will be blank on the 4th quarter report card.  

In addition to the minimum required activities, teachers will try to provide appropriate extensions for students to do more work and/or work of differing degrees of difficulty as well for those who are seeking them.

Preschool students in both 3 year old classes and our 4/5 year old classes will also find their “lessons” on Seesaw.  They will, however, not be required to submit anything back to their teachers.

Together, we can make sure that students do not lose 25%-30% of a school year.  We can do this!

End of the School Year Tasks

Now that we know what the decision is for the remainder of the school year, we can start to look at end of the year tasks like the following:

• 8th grade graduation
• Lunch payment refunds or rollover
• Lunch duty reimbursements
• Finalizing, selling, and distributing yearbooks
• Algebra aptitude testing to help with recommendations for next year’s 8th grade math
• “Calendaring” for next year
• Budgeting for Home & School, Band Boosters, etc.
• Etc.

Third Quarter Report Cards

Third quarter report cards were emailed on Friday.  They would have come out earlier in the week, but even teachers have internet issues at times!

Donations, Tithing, Tuition Payments and Registration for Next Year

Both the school and the church are still dependent upon your regular contributions and payments.  Donation buttons are located on the front page of both the school (green) and parish (blue) sides of our website.  Tuition payments can be mailed, dropped off at the parish office, or made via debit/credit card over the phone.  Emily Sanderson is in the school office at least usually on Mondays and Thursdays.

Tuition payments for this school year:  Fr. Jake and Finance Council approved the following statements regarding flexibility for tuition payments.  They want to work with people even if it goes well into or through next school year too.

“From March 30th, 2020 through August 31, 2021, the Finance Council gives the Pastor authority to negotiate with families on how to pay their tuition payments.

All families who request a school contract for the 2020-2021 school year will not be denied a contract based upon how much tuition they owe the parish.

Any questions or concerns about tuition payments or contracts can be directed to Fr. Jake Greiner, greinerj@diodav.org or by calling 563-391-4245.”

Tuition Contracts for Next Year:  We still want to continue the registration process for next school year.  Returned tuition contracts helps us plan for next year as well.  Please return your tuition contract as soon as you can, even without paying the registration fee now.  That can be paid later, if necessary.  At the present time, we are extending the discounted registration fee (discounted to $100) until June 1st.  If you need another copy of your tuition contract, please contact Emily Sanderson at emily.sanderson@olvjfkmail.com.  Emily and Angie Hillebrand are also contacting families via phone to offer reminders and help.

School Meals

Recognizing the need that some families have for meals, ANY child between the ages of 1-18 years old may receive a lunch and breakfast at no cost at one of the following locations beginning on Monday, March 23, 2020, between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.  It is not a requirement that the child currently be receiving a free/reduced price lunch; it is available to any child.

• Achievement Service Center, located at 1702 N. Main Street
• Davenport Sudlow, located at 1414 East Locust Street
• Davenport Williams, located at 3040 North Division
• Davenport Frank L. Smart, located at 1934 West 5th Street
• Davenport Wood, located at 5701 North Division, Davenport

The child no longer has to be present to receive the free meal.  A sack lunch and breakfast for the following morning will be handed out on Monday through Friday.

Please open the trunk of your car or leave a seat open where staff can place the food.  This step will help reduce contact and practice a higher level of social distancing.

OLV parish bulletin:  Click HERE or use the following link/url:  https://www.olvjfk.com/olv/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/04/April-19-2020.pdf

Congratulations, Mrs. Blake

Some of life’s most precious moments continue even with COVID-19.  Reading interventionist Kayelyn Blake and her husband welcomed their baby boy into their family on Thursday.  Congratulations on the birth of their son!

Plant Sale

Plants continue to grow in spite of COVID-19 as well.  Our plant sale sold about $11,500 worth of plants.  The plants will still be dropped off to us on April 29th and pick up will be on 4/30 and 5/1 from 11:00 – 6:00 and on 5/2 from 9:00 – 12:00.  Pick up will be different this year, with curbside only pickup.  Please click HERE to sign up for a pick up time or use the following link/url.  There are five pick up slots available in each 30 minute window:  https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/20F0C48ABAF2DA0FF2-jfkolv

Orders will be assembled ahead of time.  Please enter the school parking lot from 42nd Street and follow the directions on where to line up. Someone will be outside to take your name.  Your order will then be brought to you as soon as possible. Weather permitting, we will have extra plants for purchase located somewhere near the preschool playground.

If you are picking up orders for other people, please reserve/select more than one spot within the time slot as it will take more time to get all of the orders to you than if you were just picking up for yourself.

Frazzled at Teaching?

I woke up this morning while having a weird dream.  No, it wasn’t the one about school being closed for the rest of the school year; that’s real.  It was one about teaching.  I’m sure many of my colleagues in education, which now include all parents, might be able to relate to it.  In my dream, I was in (squirrel) a small classroom with a large number of students right before lunch.  “No one” was listening.  To pull everyone back together, I (squirrel) did an amazing student engagement technique and had students moving to different parts of the room.  Unfortunately, three girls (squirrel) never returned.  After the movement activity, another girl was standing on (squirrel) a chair writing something on the board and wouldn’t get down.  We did, however, manage to have an amazing discussion (squirrel) until I realized that it was the last period’s discussion question, and my notes were all mixed up.  When I finally had things going well again, (squirrel) I had to stop to deal with the two boys in the back who were having a squirt gun fight.  After the bell rang and students (squirrel) went to lunch, I was pleasantly surprised that several students were staying behind to copy the notes that were on the board — the notes from yesterday and not today!  Finally, as all the students were gone (squirrel), another teacher came into my room and looked at me oddly.  She couldn’t figure (squirrel) out why I looked so frazzled!

Faceted Windows of Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church

In the video below, Fr. Jake gives us a tour of the church and talks about the stained glass windows.

 

Stay well!  Our Lady of Victory,…pray for us.

Chad

Today, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds announced that schools will remain closed for the remainder of the school year.  Click on my quick VIDEO MESSAGE or use the following link/url:  https://kennedy-dav.zoom.us/rec/share/zpdefr_qsXhIEo304X7uXb4HQYfHeaa82ncarqdfyBnfT8370dYqWgYF0v4v50wC?startTime=1587141168000

Chad

 

 

 

Reverse Teacher Parade

Don’t forget the “reverse teacher parade” today with staggered times beginning at 11:00 a.m.  Here are the guidelines again: Parent Parade Letter, 4-9-2020 .  I saw something similar on the news last night, and participants were not following the governor’s orders.  We can do better.

No one is allowed to be outside of their cars, and all convertibles, hatches, sunroofs, and even windows must be closed throughout the entire route.

Governor Reynolds’ Next Announcement by the End of the Week

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has repeatedly said that she will give us at least two weeks notice regarding the next step for schools.  That timeframe will put us at sometime between Wednesday and Friday.  Lately, her news conferences have been at 11:00 a.m.  They are live on Facebook and YouTube.  I’ve also found it on Mediacom cable at 6.3.

Right now, all the momentum from the Department of Education down to the smallest of schools is for the closure to continue.  It, honestly, would be hard to switch the momentum to be open again on May 1st.  Before spring break, I had mentioned that we were trying to figure out how to keep our supplies of toilet paper and hand sanitizer to continue in sufficient quantities to keep school open.  I can’t imagine switching to finding masks for 500 people each day, if masks were to be required.  If I were a betting man, I would say that the closure will continue.  We’ll see what the governor says this coming week.

Closing the Books on the Third Quarter

We can’t keep putting off the end of the third quarter.  Final third quarter grades should be entered early this coming week by teachers, and we’ll try to get the report cards finalized and emailed by the end of the week.

Transitioning to Instructed, Required and Assessed

Last weekend, I previewed that we would be starting the transition from remote learning that has been “guided, supplemental and optional” to “instructed, required and assessed.”  By the time the transition is complete, there will be an instructional piece, expected student work, and feedback from teachers for each of the absolutely essential standards students need before the next grade.  This process begins the week of April 13th with the exception of preschool, which will remain at the voluntary level for however long the closure lasts.

Sixth through 8th grade students will move to “instructed, required and assessed” on Monday through the use of Google Classroom, with which the students and staff are already familiar.  Changes to the Zoom meetings for students and the addition of a Zoom meeting just for parents was emailed to families on Friday.  The Zoom meetings themselves are optional for both students and parents so don’t panic if attendance is not possible.  The “instructed” part of “instructed, required and assessed” does not mean the instruction has to be live, and instruction will look entirely different than the teacher in front of the classroom model that we all envision in education.  Zoom meetings are to connect with students, answer questions and allow students to connect with each other as well.  The Zoom meetings are not where the “instruction” part takes place.  The emailed information can also be found by clicking on your child’s teacher’s name on the front page of our website, www.olvjfk.com.  Hopefully, before the week of April 20th, we will have a weekly calendar or spreadsheet that students and parents of all PS-8th graders can access to see a schedule of all of the Zoom meetings.

Preschool through 5th grade are transitioning to a content delivery system called Seesaw.  Kindergarten and 5th grade are piloting it for us this coming week so kindergarten and 5th grade will be “instructed, required and assessed” beginning April 13th as well.  Information for kindergarten and 5th grade is also being emailed to families and will be posted on the kindergarten and teachers’ pages on our website.  Feedback from parents and these teachers will be used to guide us for the remaining grades.

Preschool and 1st through 4th grades will use the .pdf templates available via email and posted on teachers’ webpages for one more week.  Then, they will switch to Seesaw for the week of April 20th as well.  During the week of April 13th, preschool and 1st -4th grade teachers will be narrowing down the work to the required essentials but will not have the systems in place yet for students to submit work on a large scale or to efficiently offer feedback.  That will start the week of April 20th.

Specials (art, music, band, P.E., and social-emotional learning) information is available by clicking on the teachers’ names on our website, www.olvjfk.com.

“Grading” for the 4th quarter and each activity will switch to a Pass/Incomplete basis.  Pass indicates that the work has been completed at an acceptable level of mastery.  Incomplete indicates that the work illustrates an incomplete mastery yet.  Emphasis is on progress towards achieving the identified student learning goals.  We do not want to use even a P/F marking system as we are truly in uncharted waters.  Specials teachers will use a P/blank system.  We will have required daily religion activities for students (Lord knows we need them!), but there will not be anything that students are required to submit back to teachers.  Religion, therefore, will be blank on the 4th quarter report card.  

In addition to the minimum required activities, teachers will try to provide appropriate extensions for students to do more work and/or work of differing degrees of difficulty as well.

Together, we can make sure that students do not lose 25%-30% of a school year.  We can do this!

Third Round of Chromebook Pick Up

Thanks to our previous two rounds of Chromebook pick up, the technology access survey parents completed, and conversations with families, we are currently down to about 20 PS-8th grade students from 14 families that really have internet or technology device issues.  Even after working to find solutions for these families, we will still have about 60 Chromebooks left at JFK.  They will not do anyone any good sitting at school.  We will, therefore, have a third round of Chromebook pick up.  If you believe it is necessary for there to be a/another JFK device at your PS-8th grade home, please come to pick one up on Tuesday between 7:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. or Thursday between 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.  All of the social distancing precautions that we used during the bag pick up last week will be in place.  Preschool families who have not yet picked up their personal belongings may also pick them up during these times.

Donations, Tithing, Tuition Payments and Registration for Next Year

Just like your family, OLV and JFK are making sure that we have our financial house in order.  We, too, are working with all of the recent government legislation and funding to see how it might help us through these uncertain times.

That said, both the school and the church are still dependent upon your regular contributions and payments.  Donation buttons are also located on the front page of both the school (green) and parish (blue) sides of our website.  Tuition payments can also be made via debit/credit card over the phone.  Emily Sanderson will be in the school office on Tuesday and Thursday of this week.

Tuition payments for this school year:  Fr. Jake and Finance Council approved the following statements regarding flexibility for tuition payments.  They want to work with people even if it goes well into or through next school year too.

“From March 30th, 2020 through August 31, 2021, the Finance Council gives the Pastor authority to negotiate with families on how to pay their tuition payments.

All families who request a school contract for the 2020-2021 school year will not be denied a contract based upon how much tuition they owe the parish.

Any questions or concerns about tuition payments or contracts can be directed to Fr. Jake Greiner, greinerj@diodav.org or by calling 563-391-4245.”

Tuition Contracts for Next Year:  We still want to continue the registration process for next school year.  Returned tuition contracts helps us plan for next year as well.  Please return your tuition contract as soon as you can, even without paying the registration fee now.  That can be paid later, if necessary.  At the present time, we are extending the discounted registration fee (discounted to $100) until June 1st.  If you need another copy of your tuition contract, please contact Emily Sanderson at emily.sanderson@olvjfkmail.com.

School Meals

Recognizing the need that some families have for meals, ANY child between the ages of 1-18 years old may receive a lunch and breakfast at no cost at one of the following locations beginning on Monday, March 23, 2020, between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.  It is not a requirement that the child currently be receiving a free/reduced price lunch; it is available to any child.

• Achievement Service Center, located at 1702 N. Main Street
  • Note:  this site replaces DLC/Keystone
• Davenport Sudlow, located at 1414 East Locust Street
• Davenport Williams, located at 3040 North Division
• Davenport Frank L. Smart, located at 1934 West 5th Street
• Davenport Wood, located at 5701 North Division, Davenport

The child no longer has to be present to receive the free meal.  A sack lunch and breakfast for the following morning will be handed out on Monday through Friday.

Please open the trunk of your car or leave a seat open where staff can place the food.  This step will help reduce contact and practice a higher level of social distancing.

OLV parish bulletin:  Click HERE or use the following link/url:  https://www.olvjfk.com/olv/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/04/April-12-2020.pdf

Stay well!  Our Lady of Victory,…pray for us.

Chad

I hope you and your family are doing well.  This staying at  home and social distancing thing is starting to wear thin, and I don’t like telling my children not to come home for a visit.  Even though I don’t go much of anywhere or do anything real exciting, I don’t like the feeling of not being able to.  As I was doing a little yard work yesterday and my hands were cold, I thought to myself, “At least I’m not sitting in the cold at a ball field.”  That thought was immediately followed by “I wish I could sit at a ball field and be cold these days!”

My wife was making masks yesterday, and, today, she has a pattern to make hospital gowns for medical staff.  We’ll never be mass producers, but there is the feeling that “I’m not going to take this lying down.  I’m going to do something.”  At school, I’ve offered the temporary use of our 3-D printer to a non-profit organization that can make parts for face shields.  Every little thing counts.

Schools Ordered Closed through April 30

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds ordered that all K-12 public and accredited non-public schools in Iowa be closed through at least Thursday, April 30, 2020.  She promised to give people two weeks notice about what we will do after that date.  (If I were a betting man, I’d bet that we won’t open after then either, but I’m not the governor.)

What Will Education Look Like in the Future?

Currently, we’re using what I’m calling a “guided, supplemental and optional” model.  This model will continue through this week with the following changes:  only religion activities will be shared for Good Friday, and there will only be one grade level Zoom meeting.  We’ll also use this week to collect any final make up work for the third quarter and close the books on the quarter.  Preparations for the next educational model will also continue to come closer and closer to finalization.  Our end goal is an “instructed, required and assessed” remote learning model.

During the week of April 13th, we will begin the process of transitioning between the two models.  We will begin to focus only on the essential things that students need before moving on to the next grade.  By the time the transition is complete, there will be an instructional piece, expected student work, and feedback from teachers for each of the absolutely essential standards students need before the next grade.

This transition actually has already begun.  When the first school closure was announced during spring break, it was like the Wild West.  There were hundreds and hundreds of options being offered through the internet.  When we began our first three week closure at JFK, we narrowed it down for families and gave them just a few options for each subject.  Our next three week (and beyond?) closure will narrow it even further and recognize that because time is of a premium, “Do X.”  Everything else can be great extensions of student learning, but students must do “X.”

We know that there are access issues (my home internet stopped working twice just while doing the Principal’s Post today), but we will work our way through them.  The survey you completed last week, and the conversations we have had with families is very helpful to identify what we are facing.

Together, we can make sure that students do not lose 25%-30% of a school year.  We can do this!

Donations, Tithing, Tuition Payments and Registration for Next Year

Just like your family, OLV and JFK are making sure that we have our financial house in order.  We, too, are working with all of the recent government legislation and funding to see how it might help us through these uncertain times.

That said, both the school and the church are still dependent upon your regular contributions and payments.  Donation buttons are also located on the front page of both the school (green) and parish (blue) sides of our website.  Tuition payments can also be made via debit/credit card over the phone.  Emily Sanderson is typically in the office on Mondays and Thursdays, and Angie Hillebrand has irregular hours.

Tuition payments for this school year:  Fr. Jake and Finance Council approved the following statements regarding flexibility for tuition payments.  They want to work with people even if it goes well into or through next school year too.

“From March 30th, 2020 through August 31, 2021, the Finance Council gives the Pastor authority to negotiate with families on how to pay their tuition payments.

All families who request a school contract for the 2020-2021 school year will not be denied a contract based upon how much tuition they owe the parish.

Any questions or concerns about tuition payments or contracts can be directed to Fr. Jake Greiner, greinerj@diodav.org or by calling 563-391-4245.”

Tuition Contracts for Next Year:  We still want to continue the registration process for next school year.  Returned tuition contracts helps us plan for next year as well.  Please return your tuition contract as soon as you can, even without paying the registration fee now.  That can be paid later, if necessary.  At the present time, we are extending the discounted registration fee (discounted to $100) until June 1st.  If you need another copy of your tuition contract, please contact Emily Sanderson at emily.sanderson@olvjfkmail.com.

School Meals

Recognizing the need that some families have for meals, ANY child between the ages of 1-18 years old may receive a lunch and breakfast at no cost at one of the following locations beginning on Monday, March 23, 2020, between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.  It is not a requirement that the child currently be receiving a free/reduced price lunch; it is available to any child.

• Achievement Service Center, located at 1702 N. Main Street
  • Note:  this site replaces DLC/Keystone
• Davenport Sudlow, located at 1414 East Locust Street
• Davenport Williams, located at 3040 North Division
• Davenport Frank L. Smart, located at 1934 West 5th Street
• Davenport Wood, located at 5701 North Division, Davenport

The child no longer has to be present to receive the free meal.  A sack lunch and breakfast for the following morning will be handed out on Monday through Friday.

Please open the trunk of your car or leave a seat open where staff can place the food.  This step will help reduce contact and practice a higher level of social distancing.

OLV parish bulletin:  Click HERE or use the following link/url:  https://www.olvjfk.com/olv/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/04/1032800017A-040520.pdf

I hope you were able to catch Fr. Jake’s class visit this week:

 

 

Stay well!  Our Lady of Victory,…pray for us.

Chad

Governor Reynolds to Speak about Schools at Press Conference

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has indicated that she will have more to say about schools in her 2:30 press conference today, April 2, 2020.  Her press conferences can be found on Facebook Live and YouTube Live.  I found it easier to find the recordings of her press conferences then on Facebook.  I have also watched her press conferences live on Mediacom 6.3.

There is also now a virtual meeting scheduled for Iowa public school superintendents and non-public school administrators that I will be attending this evening.

I do not know what the governor will say, but, as I mentioned in my last Principal’s Post, I suspect she will at least be recommending an extension of our school closure.  It’d be much better to know something now when there’s time to prepare than on April 12th, and we are continuing to develop plans for the possibility of a longer closure.  Please do not expect details immediately.

I will have more information to share after this evening and in the upcoming days.  Please be patient.

In the meantime, please enjoy this “class visit” from Fr. Jake:

 

 

Stay well!  Our Lady of Victory,…pray for us.

Chad