Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District

Reopening Update for Families

July 31, 2020

Good morning,

I hope that you and your family are enjoying these last days of summer. I am writing today to update you on school reopening plans. As you know, we will open on August 13th in a distance learning model for all students. Our long-term reopening plan remains a phased model as outlined here:

• Phase 1: Reopen on August 13th with robust distance learning for all students.
• Phase 2: As conditions permit, bring targeted students back for support and/or SEL activities.
• Phase 3: As conditions permit, bring all students back in-person in a part-time/blended model.
• Phase 4: As conditions permit, bring all students back in-person in a full-time modified or normal schedule.

Our ultimate goal continues to be getting our students back to some form of in-person instruction as soon as it is safe and feasible for us to do so. The timing of any movement from one phase to the next will be based upon current community health conditions and guidelines. Current state and county guidelines require Santa Clara County to be off the state “watchlist” for at least 14 consecutive days before schools can consider a return to in-person instruction. Given these requirements and the ongoing escalation in COVID cases, it appears unlikely that we will be able to return to in-person instruction any time soon. Further information regarding the state watchlist can be found via this link.

With our reopening less than two weeks away, I want to provide some key details regarding what to expect of the distance learning model we will employ, beginning with our bell schedule (pdf linked here).  

Key Features & Expectations during Distance Learning:

• Attendance: Student attendance is mandatory in each class meeting including the Wednesday morning Advisory period. Attendance will be taken each period and parents will be notified if students miss classes just as they would in a normal school setting. We have yet to receive guidance from the state regarding whether parents will be required to “excuse” absences as they normally would - we will update you once we receive such guidance.
• Office Hours: All teachers will have regular Office Hours during which students can access support from teachers. This time is intended to support students in a manner similar to how a teacher would support students as they work independently during an in-person class or during a Tutorial time.
• Advisory: The advisory period will provide an opportunity for schoolwide activities and information-sharing similar to the Tutorial period in the regular school schedule.
• Instruction: Each class meeting will include teacher-led live instruction which will be paired with independent asynchronous learning activities. This does not mean that teachers will be talking or lecturing throughout the live instruction. Rather, teachers will lead students in a wide variety of activities during each class period (i.e., discussion, collaborative group work, simulations, formative & summative assessment, etc.).
• Grades: All students will receive A-F letter grades for all courses.
• Canvas: All teachers will utilize the Canvas learning management system to assign and manage student assignments and for communication with students. We have developed Canvas norms to provide more consistency from course to course.
• IEP’s: If your student has an Individualized Education Plan, prior to the start of the school year your case student’s case manager will provide you with a document outlining how we will implement your student’s IEP during distance learning.
• School Year Calendar: Our daily bell schedule will look different during this time but our school year calendar will remain the same. The calendar can be found via this link.
• First Days of School: The first two days of school (August 13 & 14) will focus on orienting our students to distance learning and other schoolwide activities to support student success and connection. Course-specific academic instruction will begin on Monday, August 17th.
• Athletics: The CIF’s Central Coast Section, of which we are a member, previously announced that all Fall sports would be postponed until the Winter season so there will be no sports during the Fall this year. Decisions regarding Fall and Winter sports will be made based upon the community health conditions and regulations at that time.
• Other Extra-curricular Activities: Current guidelines do not allow us to have students on-campus to participate in extra-curricular or club activities in-person. When possible, extra-curricular and club activities will continue online and when guidelines allow and it is safe to do, we will resume in-person activities.

Technology & Internet Access:

In order to appropriately access online instruction, each student will need access to a computer or tablet (not just a cell phone) and internet access. If your student does not have access to one or both of these elements, please contact our IT department at techsupport@lgsuhsd.org as soon as possible and we will assist you.

Pre-School Business:

Each of our schools will send a separate message to students and families regarding their plan to take care of the usual back to school business (check out of instructional materials, etc.) and their plans for a modified freshman orientation.

If we’ve learned one thing since March, it is that we need to develop plans, but we also need to anticipate that public health conditions and resulting guidelines will continue to change so some of our current plans can rapidly become obsolete or require adaptation. Once we have resumed classes, we will continue to seek feedback from students, staff, and families on the successes and areas for growth in our distance learning program. As always, our goal is continuous improvement. Our unexpected spring experiment with distance learning taught us much and we have incorporated these learnings into our program for this fall. Despite this, we still have much to learn and will seek to adapt and evolve as we gain more experience and feedback. Thank you for your ongoing support of our students and our schools.

LGSUHSD Superintendent

July 28, 2020 Board Presentation

Archive - Past Messages from the Superintendent