Dear BESD #53 Staff and Families,
We are aware of the winter weather that is forecasted over the next couple of days. Please note that canceling school or initiating E-Learning is one of the more complex decisions a Superintendent must make as the weather is not always predictable even when the forecast looks “almost certain”.
Reminders for Everyone:
We will only send a communication out if the day’s schedule has been altered such as “no school tomorrow/today” or “tomorrow/today will be an E-Learning Day”. We will NOT send out a communication that states we will have school if we are already scheduled to have school.
We will make every attempt to announce any change to the school day by 5:30 am as area Superintendents/Regional Office of Education are in communications prior to that time. Occasionally the weather/road conditions will change in such a way that we have to make the decision after 5:30 am, so we can initiate the automated call/email system and push the information out on our App. There might be rare instances that we have enough information to clearly cancel school or declare an E-learning Day the night before a school day. Obviously we are considering this scenario as we are watching this rare event develop.
E-Learning is very different from Remote Learning. Remote Learning was about trying to keep the teacher:student connectivity constantly going for longer periods of time. E-Learning is trying to fill a short gap of student engagement with a “student packet” (paper or digital) of educational materials that are relevant for the student’s current learning experience with the ability to reach their teacher on an as needed basis.
With this in mind, BESD #53’s E-Learning plan only allows for ONE E-Learning day to be taken at a time so “new packets” can be created and distributed. Any non-attendance days occurring in the days immediately after an E-Learning Day and prior to a return to in person instruction will be counted as emergency days and made up at a later date.
I hope this explanation helps you understand the process we go through when considering whether or not to cancel school/declare an E-Learning Day. We strive for excellence, but we are aware that the weather is not always predictable.
Sincerely,
Dr. Adam Ehrman
Superintendent of BESD #53