Keeping our Westlake Community Safe |
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WHS Competed in the Stock Market Challenge and earned the highest net worth |
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Traditionally, the Westlake City School District has communicated with our families through the Key Communicator. This was a monthly communication tool used to share highlights from our schools and inform parents of district events. Although we have continued to spotlight the greatness of our students and staff through our website, social media and principal messages, our communication thus far this school year from the district level has been primarily focused on COVID-19 specific information.
Each Friday, you have been receiving a newsletter titled “Keeping Our Westlake Community Safe” focusing on COVID-19 and instructional model information. While this information is extremely important, the achievements of our staff and students are commendable and deserve to be spotlighted each week as our district’s focus on academic excellence has not diminished throughout this pandemic.
You can expect weekly communication from the district level to continue each Friday; however, we will now merge our Safety Update with our Key Communicator in order to continue to share relevant COVID-19/instructional model information while providing building and district highlights and current events.
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Yesterday the Ohio Public Health Advisory System was updated.
Cuyahoga County remained in Level 3/Red status. There are now 11 counties in the Level/2 Orange status and one moved to Level 1/Yellow.
However, in Cuyahoga County the cases per 100k increased this week from 187 to around 205 per 100k.
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The Westlake City School District is committed to transparency in all aspects of our school district. This includes the reporting of COVID-19 data that is connected to our school district. Each Friday afternoon, we post a weekly dashboard that displays overall district information (click here). It is the communication and partnership we have with our families that can help us keep each other safe.
Positive Cases
Our total positive cases within our school buildings have gone down from 7 total positive cases in the district to 5.
Quarantine
The number of people in quarantine reduced again. Last week we had 30 people in quarantine and this week it is down slightly to 26 people in quarantine.
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Staff Vaccination Clinic - Friday, March 12: No In-Person School for Students |
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Next Friday, March 12, 2021 we will be hosting our final staff vaccination clinic. The WCSD school campuses will be closed to all students on Friday, March 12th, including Project LINK to ensure the staff of this valuable program receive their second dose of the vaccine and can be monitored for a possible reaction.
All learning will be asynchronous. Your student’s teachers will be posting, or distributing, optional activities for students to complete on Friday. Teachers will not be available for live instruction. These will not be taken for a grade and attendance will not be taken. Your student’s teacher and principal will provide additional information and reminders regarding next Friday throughout next week. We are hopeful that this will be the last school closure due to this pandemic!
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Thank you to our staff, students and parents for a great first week of All-In! Just shy of two weeks to the day we closed our doors, it was wonderful to see our A-K and L-Z students together again! We witnessed 2nd grade students clapping in the WES cafeteria when Mrs. Tucker welcomed everyone back together, students making new friends with classmates they had only seen on a screen, and staff happy to have to worry about traffic for the first time in a year! Speaking of, thank you to all of our parents for their patience with the traffic on the WES and the Dover campuses. We have many more car riders than in years past so adjustments to the drop-off locations and procedures had to be adjusted to accommodate this increase.
Please know that although the students are back daily and the sunshine is starting to show itself more often, we are fully aware that we are still in this pandemic and that our safety protocols are just as important, if not more important, than ever before.
As a reminder, our shared safety protocols amongst all of the buildings in the WCSD are:
- Masks/face coverings are required on busses and in all of our school buildings;
- Frequent sanitizing of desks, work spaces, lunch rooms (WES), restrooms, and all high-touch surfaces;
- Limited or no locker use (grades 5 - 12) to reduce congregating in the hallways;
- Minimum of 6’ spacing from the teacher workstation to students;
- Minimum of 3’ distancing between students; desk barriers will be added to any room where a minimum of 5’ spacing between students cannot be maintained;
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Strict hallway, arrival and dismissal procedures - please see the FAQ document for building specifics;
- No water fountain use; students are encouraged to bring a water bottle and may use the touchless water bottle fillers
The All-In FAQs in the newsletter last week, containing information for each building as well as transportation, can be found here. Building protocols, in separate documents by building/department, can be found at the links below as well:
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Throughout this school year, the WCSD has focused on providing options for families. Therefore, WCSD will continue with the same two options for the fourth quarter: All-In or 100% Parent Choice Virtual Learning. As a reminder, fourth quarter begins on Monday, March 30, 2021.
If you do not desire an instructional model change for your child from third quarter to fourth quarter, there is nothing further for you to do. Meaning, if your child is currently attending daily in the All-In Model and you want him/her to continue attending daily OR your child is currently enrolled in Third Quarter 100% Parent Choice Virtual Learning and would like your child to stay enrolled in virtual learning for the 4th quarter, there is nothing for you to do. If we do not hear from you, we will assume your child is staying in their current model.
If you would like your child to switch from All-In to Virtual or from Virtual to All-In effective Monday, March 30th, please fill out the appropriate building form below or contact your student’s building principal. These forms are due by March 12, 2021 for a change to take effect on the first day of Fourth Quarter. Forms completed after this date are not guaranteed an effective change date of March 30th. Once the form is filled out, I will be in touch to finalize the model change with you and your child.
WES Families: Please note that an instructional model change will result in a teacher change.
Google Forms to Request an Instructional Model Change:
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DIS hosted their DARE graduation virtually last Friday, February 26th. You can view it here. Students participate in 11 lessons total. Lessons cover tools for problem-solving, facts about drugs, risks and consequences, peer pressure, dealing with stressful situations, effective communication, bullying, getting help from others, helping others, and safe use of over-the-counter and prescription medications.Great job Officer Cook and DIS Assistant Principal, Mackenzie Hall, for their work on this keepsake! Congratulations to our DARE graduates!
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Our very own Norah Gavin (Gr 4 Toncar/Perry) is the March cover model for Northeast Ohio Parent magazine! Norah is featured again on page 4 and then her sisters Madeline and Gwendolyn (Gr 1 Gorius/Wenzell) join her on page 44. The WES staff stated: “If you know Norah you know she is as kind hearted as they come.” |
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WES Kid’s Heart Challenge |
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WES Kid’s Heart Challenge |
In mid-January, WES kicked off their annual Kids Heart Challenge (formerly Jump Rope for Heart). It is part of the WES PE Department’s Heart Healthy Unit as well as a fundraiser for the American Heart Association. Last
week, WES wrapped up this Kids Heart Challenge Unit and Fundraiser for the
American Heart Association. As a school, they raised an AMAZING
$18,478.86! This is outstanding and goes to a great cause! Thank you to
the WES PE department, WES staff, students, parents and donors for supporting such
a worthy cause!
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