Slate Valley Unified School District

WCAX will be airing their segment honoring Super-Senior Karen Williams this evening at 6:40 PM and again tomorrow morning at 6:40 AM! You will also be able to view it online after it airs at https://www.wcax.com/news/education/super-seniors/. Congratulations Karen!

You’re invited to join us this evening at 6 PM for a Community Connections virtual discussion on District Reorganization. Community Connections are an opportunity for community members to have a conversation with Central Office administrators. Join us by going to https://meet.google.com/jxr-qubs-ptw or by phone (US)+1 609-438-1179 (PIN: 408 338 127#)

Dear Slate Valley Families, I hope this letter finds you well and beginning to see some light at the end of the very long tunnel. With the uptick in COVID cases and a holiday weekend upon us, I would like to send some reminders. As we are headed into a holiday and a week off with warmer weather, I just wanted to remind everyone to stay vigilant to protect one other. We are almost there, but the pandemic is not quite over. We want to continue to prevent any outbreaks that could result in limitations on learning, extra-curricular activities, sports, and future events such as graduation. We saw how gatherings and travel affected us after the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. There has been a recent surge in cases in our community, so maintaining precautions is very important for preventing spread. This is especially true because several individuals who have recently tested positive have experienced no symptoms. Without following mask and social distancing guidelines, people are unknowingly spreading it. Please follow our current Vermont gathering guidelines regarding the number of households and vaccine receipt. If you travel, please follow quarantine guidelines upon return. Additionally, please wear masks, stay 6 feet apart, and sanitize/wash your hands often. If parents are vaccinated, it does not mean that children can travel without quarantine. It may mean that your student may not be able to return to in person learning after April break. We know this has been so difficult and so many of us are "over it," but we need to keep up the precautions for a little while longer. Positive change is coming, but we are not there yet. And to get there as soon as possible, we all need to continue to maintain the great illness prevention work we are all doing. So do the fun holiday traditions, gather as much as you can under the guidelines, enjoy family as best you can, and soon we will be back to a much better place. Thank you for your continued support of the schools and our community's health. Sincerely, Brooke Olsen-Farrell Superintendent

Dodge House Donation Drive - A FHUHS Student’s R.E.A.L. Project Please view the flyer here for more information: https://www.smore.com/xpe32 This drive is being held by the Slate Valley Unified School District. We hope to raise awareness of homeless Veterans, and support the Dodge House in Rutland, which "provides shelter, clothing, food, and an individualized program to reintegrate veterans back into the community and help them to achieve self­ sufficiency" (http://www.chcrr.org). Donation boxes will be located in the front offices of all Slate Valley schools from March 29th and April 25th.

Dear Slate Valley Community Members, On 3-29-21 we learned about an individual connected to Castleton Village School and Castleton Elementary School that has Coronavirus Disease. This individual was in attendance while contagious. Contact tracing has been completed and all close contacts have been identified. As always we are working closely with the Department of Health. We continue to advise our staff and students to stay home when sick. We recommend that you take action to help limit the spread of COVID-19, even if your child is not experiencing symptoms. This is especially important given that we know the virus is in our community. Please read the full letter from Superintendent Olsen-Farrell: https://5il.co/r0ln

You’re invited to join us on March 31st at 6 PM for a Community Connections virtual discussion on District Reorganization. Community Connections virtual chats are an opportunity for community members to have a conversation with Central Office administrators. Join us by going to https://meet.google.com/jxr-qubs-ptw or by phone (US)+1 609-438-1179 (PIN: 408 338 127#)

Slate Valley is pleased to announce that Ben Worthing has been selected as the new Principal of Fair Haven Union High School for the 2021-2022 school year. The Slate Valley Unified Union School Board appointed Worthing to the position at their regular meeting on the evening of March 22, 2021. You may read our full press release here: https://5il.co/qvgg

Dear Slate Valley Families, We have been through a lot this year and over the last four years as a Slate Valley Community. In the past four years we have experienced a threat to school safety and COVID-19. As a result, anxiety has increased for some of our staff, students and community members. The safety, social and emotional wellbeing of students, staff and our community continue to be priorities for Slate Valley as we move towards recovery. As we move forward with recovery from the pandemic, we are also faced with the potential release of a person who threatened staff and students at Fair Haven Union High School. In 2018, the individual who threatened FHU was adjudicated as a youthful offender, a designation for a defendant under the age of 22 and facing charges within the adult criminal justice system. Youthful offender status only follows an individual through their 22nd birthday, which this individual will turn this year. In some cases these individuals are reintegrated into the community or area prior to the regulation of their youthful offender status. When someone is adjudicated as a youthful offender, information about that individual's whereabouts, treatment, or possible consequences cannot be shared. In this case the Department of Corrections and Department of Children/Families have joint oversight of this individual until his 22nd birthday which is in August. I pride myself on being able to accurately communicate when I have knowledge of matters which may impact our community, but in this case I don’t have any additional information. I have repeatedly asked for the information and have been denied access to the information. I have been left to assume there is a likelihood that this individual could return to Vermont in the very near future. If I did have the information, you would have the information as well. Although I know I don’t have specific information on this one individual, I do know that we have been doing great work in terms of school safety and we will continue to be vigilant as a school community. If at any time you have concerns directly related to this individual or any safety concern, please contact local law enforcement. They take these calls very seriously and will promptly look into concerns. I am fully aware of the anxiety that this may cause some of you on top of COVID-19. However, I felt the need to bring it to your attention as I believe you have the right to know as much as possible. Again, the safety, social and emotional wellbeing of students, staff and our community are the priorities for Slate Valley. Below you can find contact information for those agencies or individuals you can contact if you are in need of support: Students can contact their school counselors and other school support by calling the individual schools. To access community based support for mental health issues, please call Rutland Mental Health (for intake appointments) at 775-2381 or the Crisis Line at 775-1000. Families/Community Members may also contact Rutland Mental Health (for intake appointments) at 775-2381 or the Crisis Line at 775-1000. As in the past, we encourage community members to report any suspicious or concerning behaviors that may have a negative impact on schools within the District to your local law enforcement agency: Fair Haven Police Department: 802-265-4531 Castleton Police Department: 802-468-5012 VT State Police Rutland Barracks: 802-773-9101 We are all in this together and we all need to do our part to take care of one another. Sincerely, Brooke Farrell, Superintendent

Reminder! Tonight (March 22, 2021) You’re invited to the Slate Valley Unified Union School District Board (Virtual) Meeting Fair Haven Union High School, 6:30 p.m. Participation will be VIRTUAL ONLY. Connect by going to http://meet.google.com/yyb-ypeg-juu or join by phone (US)+1 617-675-4444 PIN: 867 675 227 0575# Tonight’s Agenda: https://5il.co/qtk1 Previous Meeting Minutes: https://5il.co/qgoh

Link Updated: meet.google.com/uew-eubv-gvi Join us this afternoon at 3:30 PM for a virtual meeting to discuss our draft Title I Parent Involvement Policy (E-1). This meeting will be an opportunity for parents to provide feedback on the policy. In an effort to focus our work on Wednesday afternoon, please review a draft Title I Parent Involvement Policy https://5il.co/qm74 and accompanying draft procedures https://5il.co/qm6y. These two drafts will be considered in relation to the Title I Parent/Family Engagement Toolkit https://5il.co/qm6u provided by the Vermont Agency of Education. Meeting ID: http://meet.google.com/uew-eubv-gvi Phone Number: +1 443-671-8799 PIN: 834 838 577#

This Week! The Slate Valley Unified School Board is hosting a week of Virtual Listening Tours beginning on March 16th to continue the discussion on district reorganization. Listening tours are an opportunity to have a conversation with board members. You may attend any of the meetings - regardless of which town you reside in. Please join us at 6 p.m. for a discussion about district reorganization on the following dates: March 16th with Tim, Julie, Toni, Josh, and Christine (Castleton/Hubbardton) Join with Google Meet https://meet.google.com/wyi-oqrg-pnc or join by phone (US) +1 209-850-2378 (PIN: 574504536) March 17th with Pati, Becky, Beckah, Peter, Glen, and John (Benson/Orwell) Join with Google Meet at https://meet.google.com/ifr-ijcb-qdc or join by phone (US) +1 573-343-8213 (PIN: 143009028) March 18th with Mike, Rick, Tara, Tanya, and Angela (Fair Haven/West Haven) Join with Google Meet https://meet.google.com/ust-vwqk-mmx or join by phone join by phone (US) +1 786-592-9982 (PIN: 735144976)

Tonight! (Monday, March 15) Please join us for a virtual community conversation on school safety at 6 PM. This meeting will be an opportunity to discuss in more detail some of our infrastructure upgrades, the threat assessment process, drills as well as our planning process. Join with Google Meet http://meet.google.com/jpc-hjfw-qcu or by phone (US) +1 413-998-6051 PIN: 650 703 945#

Spring Sports Registration for Slate Valley MS grades 6,7,8 is OPEN from March 9th - April 15th. Please register (http://www.formreleaf.com/) your athlete if they are interested in: CVS/OVS 7/8 Baseball or Softball FHGS/BVS 7/8 Baseball or Softball Slate Valley 6/7/8 Track and Field Reminder - Masks will be worn and yearly physicals are required. Thank you, Kim

The Slate Valley Unified School Board is hosting a week of Virtual Listening Tours beginning on March 16th to continue the discussion on district reorganization. Listening tours are an opportunity to have a conversation with board members. You may attend any of the meetings - regardless of which town you reside in. Please join us at 6 p.m. for a discussion about district reorganization on the following dates: March 16th with Tim, Julie, Toni, Josh, and Christine (Castleton/Hubbardton) Join with Google Meet https://meet.google.com/wyi-oqrg-pnc or join by phone (US) +1 209-850-2378 (PIN: 574504536) March 17th with Pati, Becky, Beckah, Peter, Glen, and John (Benson/Orwell) Join with Google Meet at https://meet.google.com/ifr-ijcb-qdc or join by phone (US) +1 573-343-8213 (PIN: 143009028) March 18th with Mike, Rick, Tara, Tanya, and Angela (Fair Haven/West Haven) Join with Google Meet https://meet.google.com/ust-vwqk-mmx or join by phone join by phone (US) +1 786-592-9982 (PIN: 735144976)

Please join us for a virtual community conversation on school safety on Monday, March 15 at 6 PM. This meeting will be an opportunity to discuss in more detail some of our infrastructure upgrades, the threat assessment process, drills as well as our planning process. Meeting ID http://meet.google.com/jpc-hjfw-qcu Phone Number (US) +1 413-998-6051 PIN: 650 703 945#

Reminder! Tonight (March 8, 2021) You’re invited to the Slate Valley Unified Union School District Board (Virtual) Meeting 6:30 PM Participation will be VIRTUAL ONLY. Connect by going to http://meet.google.com/jzz-apgt-bsw Or join by phone (US) +1 617-675-4444 PIN: 849 660 115 6341# Tonight’s Agenda: https://5il.co/q7z6 Previous Meeting Minutes: https://5il.co/pibk

An important notice to West Haven families concerning bus transportation today: Due to a bus driver shortage we are currently experiencing this morning the West Haven bus run will not start until 7:55 today. We will update people in regards to the afternoon run as soon as we have more information available.

Thank you to the Slate Valley community for your support! Here are the results from Town Meeting Day: Budget: Yes- 868 No- 810 Transfer of $882,500 to the Reserve: Yes- 1028 No-565 School Board Members elected (all incumbents): Tara Buxton Pati Beaumont-Stannard Peter Stone Rebecca Spears Toni Lobdell Christine Pouliot

Please join us for a virtual community conversation on school safety on Monday, March 15 at 6 PM. This meeting will be an opportunity to discuss in more detail some of our infrastructure upgrades, the threat assessment process, drills as well as our planning process. Meeting ID http://meet.google.com/jpc-hjfw-qcu Phone Number (US) +1 413-998-6051 PIN: 650 703 945#

Save the Date! The Slate Valley Unified School Board is hosting a week of Virtual Listening Tours beginning on March 16th to continue the discussion on district reorganization. Listening tours are an opportunity to have a conversation with board members. You may attend any of the meetings - regardless of which town you reside in. Please join us at 6 p.m. for a discussion about district reorganization on the following dates: March 16th with Tim, Julie, Toni, Josh, and Christine (Castleton/Hubbardton) Join with Google Meet https://meet.google.com/wyi-oqrg-pnc or join by phone (US) +1 209-850-2378 (PIN: 574504536) March 17th with Pati, Becky, Beckah, Peter, Glen, and John (Benson/Orwell) Join with Google Meet at https://meet.google.com/ifr-ijcb-qdc or join by phone (US) +1 573-343-8213 (PIN: 143009028) March 18th with Mike, Rick, Tara, Tanya, and Angela (Fair Haven/West Haven) Join with Google Meet https://meet.google.com/ust-vwqk-mmx or join by phone join by phone (US) +1 786-592-9982 (PIN: 735144976)