February 18, 2021
Dear Shaler Area families,
During last night’s board meeting, the administration presented a summary of the parent/guardian survey results submitted earlier this month, and its recommendation to transition to 4-day in-person instruction for students in K-12 in a phased model over the course of the next two months. A copy of the presentation is available on the district website. We recognize that our community is divided on whether or not we should return to more in-person instruction, but we feel this is an important step to take as a district and in the best interest of our students’ academic growth and social and emotional well-being.
Below you will find the proposed transition timeline for increasing in-person instruction. Please note that these dates are subject to change based on the positivity rates and case counts in Allegheny County and the school district.
Date | Transition Milestone |
Friday, February 19, 2021 | Parent Commitment Form Emailed (4-day or 100% virtual) |
February 19-24, 2021 March 1-5, 2021 | Parent & Staff Town Hall Meetings (K-3) Parent & Staff Town Hall Meetings (4-6) |
Friday, February 26, 2021 Friday, March 5, 2021 | Parent Commitment Forms Due (K-3) Parent Commitment Forms Due (4-6) |
March 8, 2021 | 4-day Instruction begins for students in Grades K-3 |
March 15, 2021 | 4-day Instruction begins for students in Grade 4-6 |
Pending School District and Allegheny County Positivity Rates | 4-day Instruction begins for students in Grades 7-12 |
Dates are subject to change based upon positive rates/case counts in Allegheny County and the Shaler Area School District. |
Shaler Area’s 4-day in-person instruction model will follow a Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday schedule. Wednesdays will remain virtual for all students. This will allow us to maintain our current mitigation strategies of additional cleaning on Wednesdays and provide our teaching staff with dedicated time during the week to support students in Cohort C.
In tomorrow’s weekly communication, we will share the Parent Commitment Form that is due on Friday, Feb. 26, for K-3 families and March 5 for 4-6 families. Your commitment to 4-day in-person instruction or the 100% virtual option will help us plan for the transition in each building.
We know that you may have many questions about the district’s transition to 4-day in-person instruction, so we will host a series of Parent Town Hall meetings to help answer your questions before your grade-level commitment form is due. Below is the schedule for K-6 families. We will provide additional details for these meetings in tomorrow’s weekly communication. The Parent/Guardian Town Hall meetings and commitment forms for families 7-12 will be shared later in March.
K-3 Parent/Guardian Town Hall Meeting
Tuesday, Feb. 23 – 4:30 p.m.
Wednesday, Feb. 24 – Noon
4-6 Parent/Guardian Town Hall Meeting
Tuesday, March 2 – 4:30 p.m.
Wednesday, March 3 – Noon
We thank you for your patience and understanding as we worked toward this plan as well as your continued support to help us provide the safest learning environment possible. It is only through your commitment to following all health and safety recommendations inside school and outside of school that we can keep our area’s coronavirus concerns under control and keep our schools open to in-person instruction.
Sincerely,
Sean C. Aiken, Ed.D.
Superintendent
Bryan E. O’Black, Ed.D.
Assistant Superintendent