Dear SLUSD Community,

We would like to update you on the status of reopening our schools for the 2020-21 school year, including:

• First Day of School Announced
• Mandatory Forms and Data Confirmation Timeline
• Changes to Meal Services
• Upcoming Community Engagement Opportunities
• UPDATED State Guidance for COVID-19

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL ANNOUNCED We are pleased to announce the first day of school for the 2020-2021 school year will be Monday, August 17. This is a change from our previous calendar, where classes were starting Wednesday, August 12. This new start date gives our staff the opportunity for three full days of distance learning training and an opportunity for us to distribute necessary materials to our students and families.  You will hear more details from your school’s principal about how materials will be distributed, which will include Chromebooks for any students who do not have one and hotspots for those families who do not have internet service.

MANDATORY FORMS AND DATA CONFIRMATION TIMELINE Before the first day of school, all families are required to confirm and update their student information, review SLUSD policies, and approve important forms we need on file for every student. This process is even more critical as we prepare to start the 2020-2021 school year in a distance learning environment. This process will be completed online via the Aeries Parent Portal. This eliminates the need to fill out paper forms and helps us improve communication. Confirming and updating student information is referred to as the Data Confirmation process. Be on the lookout for a ParentSquare message from SLUSD on Monday, August 3 that will walk you through this process, including support for those families who do not yet have an Aeries Parent Portal account. Please complete the Data Confirmation process through your Aeries Parent Portal account by August 10. Only families who have completed the Data Confirmation on the Aeries Parent Portal will be able to view the student schedules/classroom assignments when they are made available.  Parent facilitators and office managers at each of our school sites are available to assist you with the process. You can find their contact information on the school directory in ParentSquare or on your school’s website.

CHANGES TO OUR MEAL SERVICE PROGRAM Our summer meal program schedule will continue until Friday, August 7, but there is an important change after that date.  THERE WILL BE NO MEAL SERVICE DURING THE WEEK OF AUGUST 10-14.  Please see our website for more information about free meal programs in San Leandro during this time. Our Food Service staff prepares for the start of school. Service will begin again on Monday, August 17 at more locations. Student ID’s will be required to receive meals. More details about that process, meal distribution locations and times will be coming next week on ParentSquare.

UPCOMING COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT OPPORTUNITIES Our administrators at each school site will be inviting you soon to community forums, prior to the start of school. These meetings will provide you with the opportunity to hear more about the specific details about how we will orient students and families to the distance model of teaching and learning for the 2020-2021 school year. Stay tuned for information coming from your principals.

UPDATED STATE GUIDANCE FOR COVID-19 Last Friday, Governor Newsom announced his plan for learning and safe schools for the 2020–2021 school year, as the California Department of Public Health issued a framework for when and how schools should reopen for in-person instruction.  “The virus will be with us for a year or more, and school districts must provide meaningful instruction in the midst of this pandemic,” said Governor Newsom. “In California, health data will determine when a school can be physically open – and when it must close – but learning should never stop. Students, staff, and parents all prefer in-classroom instruction, but only if it can be done safely.”  Fortunately for SLUSD, the Board of Education already took action to start the school year in a distance model prior to Governor Newsom’s mandate, but this guidance means SLUSD could remain in distance learning longer than anticipated if Alameda County remains on the state watch list due to “elevated disease transmission.” You can see all metrics related to the COVID-19 response in California HERE.

Be safe, be well, and expect to hear more details on the start of school coming soon,

SLUSD Communications