Orwell Village School

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)

This afternoon at 4:30 we'll be livestreaming an intersquad scrimmage between the CVS/OVS 7th Grade and CVS/OVS 8th Grade boys' teams over on our YouTube channel that can be found here: https://bit.ly/3kg5lBU

This video was played during the SVUUSD Annual Informational Meeting on February 22, 2021. It features scenes from around the district this school year: http://shorturl.at/rvEVX

Tonight! (February 22, 2021) Slate Valley voters are invited to join us for a virtual informational meeting. Virtually connect by going to http://meet.google.com/yjx-xnzo-dpq or by calling (US) +1 402-337-4387 PIN: 505 127 437# Resources Annual Report: https://5il.co/pc7r Budget PowerPoint (PDF): https://5il.co/pjwn Budget Newsletter: https://5il.co/pgqm

Reminder - Slate Valley voters are invited to join us for a virtual informational meeting on Monday, February 22, 2021. Virtually connect by going to http://meet.google.com/yjx-xnzo-dpq or by calling (US) +1 402-337-4387 PIN: 505 127 437# Resources Annual Report: https://5il.co/pc7r Budget PowerPoint (PDF): https://5il.co/pqu5 Budget Newsletter: https://5il.co/pgqm

High School Prep - Registration High School Prep will be held on the weeks of July 12 and July 19 from 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Families can reach out to Melissa Hoyer at mhoyer@svuvt.org 265-4966, or their school counselor with any questions. High School Prep will be a blending of time at the FHUHS campus and Lake Bomoseen State Park. The focus of Prep is to work on building connections, becoming familiar with the high school and high school staff, work on a project, and possibly earn a half credit towards high school graduation. It will be a fabulous way to kick off the high school career for the class of 2025! Register at https://forms.gle/d7iWvBa82CYrcnhG6

Today marks the start of the 2021 winter basketball season for the CVS/OVS combined girls basketball team with a home game being streamed over on our YouTube channel. https://bit.ly/3qbxJaM At 4:30 the 7th and 8th grade girls tip off versus Middlebury. Rosters for the CVS/OVS team can be found here: https://5il.co/pl53

How to Build Your Own Outdoor Classroom Outdoor learning labs can engage students in hands-on activities, while providing a safer way to attend school in person. https://www.edutopia.org/video/how-build-your-own-outdoor-classroom

Reminder - tomorrow! Saturday, February 13 10 a.m. to Noon Slate Valley and Fair Haven Concerned Essential Food Box Distribution Day Families within the Slate Valley School District are invited to pick up a Food Box.

Good afternoon, We are excited to announce the launch of our YouTube channels for our grade 5-8 athletics teams. These channels will be based on gym locations, rather than teams, to allow for the possibility of more than one event to be streamed at one time. On these channels, you’ll be able to watch live streamed athletic events via YouTube Live. Channels: Castleton Elementary School: https://bit.ly/3da2Xvj Castleton Village School: https://bit.ly/3qbxJaM Fair Haven Grade School: https://bit.ly/3tQ9Ebt Visit the new channels and be sure you subscribe and turn on notifications to be automatically notified when there is a live stream taking place.

Athletics update: Tomorrow afternoon, we will be sharing details about Friday’s sporting events - including information on how you can view them.

A message from the Vermont Department of Health: The Health Department has detected an increase in COVID-19 activity in Rutland County during the last two weeks. What we know is: Rutland City and some surrounding towns now have evidence of increased rates, multiple household clusters and workplaces with cases. Surrounding towns with increased rates include Benson, Pittsford, Castleton, West Haven and Fair Haven. At this time we are seeing an increased number of cases that are not known to be associated with an outbreak, which is an indication of more widespread community transmission. We are sharing this information to encourage community-wide public health interventions. Our area is seeing an increase in COVID-19 activity. Take these prevention steps to help slow the spread: -Stay home if you are sick. -Wash your hands often. -Keep your social circle to only the people you live with. -Stay at least 6 feet apart from people you do not live with. -Wear a mask any time you are around people you do not live with. See the complete message and resources from the Department of Health: https://5il.co/pieg

Good afternoon, All after school activities have been canceled for today (2/9/21) due to weather conditions.

Our SROs pitch in wherever they can!

Dear Slate Valley Community Member, On 2-8-21 we learned about an individual at Orwell Village School that has Coronavirus Disease. This individual was in attendance while contagious. Contact tracing is underway and anyone with possible exposure has been notified and sent home until a final determination on quarantine can be made. We expect to have contact tracing completed by the end of the day today. 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 see the full letter from Superintendent Olsen-Farrell here: https://5il.co/pfak

Slate Valley and Fair Haven Concerned Essential Food Box Distribution Day Saturday, February 13 10 a.m. - Noon Families within the Slate Valley School District are invited to pick up a Food Box.

Reminder! Tonight (February 8, 2021) Your 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/ddd-acaw-zxq Or join by phone (US) +1 617-675-4444 PIN: 267 808 206 8448# Tonight’s Agenda: https://5il.co/peud Previous Meeting Minutes: https://5il.co/p31h

Dear Slate Valley Community, I am aware that bill S.63 “An act relating to the prohibition of school resource officers” was recently introduced in the Senate Education Committee. This bill proposes to prohibit schools from contracting for the services of school resource officers. Some of the national data has clearly demonstrated a disparate level of law enforcement treatment of communities of color that have resulted in increased arrests, expulsion and suspensions. However, we have been very pleased with the level of professionalism of our school based law enforcement officers and have established clear roles, responsibilities and practices that have prioritized positive interactions, mentoring, community building and steered clear from law enforcement being seen as disciplinarians and enforcement focused. Resource officers in schools have proven to provide an opportunity to create, and support relationships that strengthen our communities. In an effort to provide equity in our communities, inequities will be created by the removal of resource officers from our schools for Slate Valley. As Superintendent, I am opposed to this bill due to our past and current experiences with our school resource officers. If you have questions regarding this bill I would encourage you to reach out to your legislators. Rest assured that I know how important our School Resource Officer program is to our district and will do everything in my power to ensure that this bill in its current language does not become law. Several years ago our community was impacted by a potential threat that resulted in a level of stress and anxiety that is still being felt today. The safety of our students, faculty and staff will always be our top priority. As such we will continue to take appropriate measures to address any school safety concerns. Link to Bill S.63: https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2022/Docs/BILLS/S-0063/S-0063%20As%20Introduced.pdf Sincerely, Brooke Olsen-Farrell, Superintendent

Good Evening, Due to the impending weather conditions all Slate Valley Schools will be closed tomorrow, February 2nd. Stay safe and enjoy your day! Brooke Farrell, Superintendent

Edutopia - How Practicing Mindfulness Outdoors Boosts Well-Being As schools have taken classes outside for safer in-person learning, many have found the value of connecting mindfulness activities to nature: https://www.edutopia.org/video/how-practicing-mindfulness-outdoors-boosts-well-being