CVSD Update

Hello CVSD Community,

This community newsletter finds us nearing the Winter Break. Before I begin with the topics below, I would like to remind our families, our staff, and our community that this time of year is one of giving, remembering, and being thankful. Please enjoy the time that you can spend with family and friends. Please let them know how much you value them and are grateful for their presence. And finally, whether you travel or stay nearby, please have fun, stay warm, stay safe, and stay healthy.

Update on the Non-Credible TikTok Threat Letter shared earlier today:

• We would like to provide a specific definition of the term “non-credible” as the Agency of Education and the Vermont Intelligence Center use it to describe threats. Non-credible in law enforcement means there is no evidence to substantiate, and there is no information about a specific target. There is no known author of the information. In this case, similar or identical information is circulating nationally. At this point, there's no other information or data to support the potential risk of harm to Vermont.

• I contacted each of our police chiefs and the state police to share information on the threats and open the communication lines in preparation for tomorrow.

• Our schools have their safety teams in place and will follow their safety protocols should the need arise.

• We felt it was our responsibility to inform you about this as it is making local and national news and many students are seeing things about it on social media. We do not have any reason to expect anything other than a typical day at school on Friday.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Updates:

DEI Town Hall

We held the first in the DEI Town Hall series of meetings on Wednesday of last week. I think it was a good first effort and look forward to the next one in February. We hosted over sixty participants at its largest, including staff, students, and community members. One of our former students, Bene Yodishembo, asked fantastic questions at the end of the Town Hall. She suggested that expectations of tangible, visible, and understandable results should be available to adults and available to students daily. In addition, students from historically marginalized populations should be aware of our efforts as a district to strengthen DEI. It was beautiful to hear that guidance. We have posted the video recording of the event on our DEI site, which can be accessed from our website. Our next Town Hall is scheduled for February 9, 2022, at 6:30 pm.

DEI Director Update

We selected three applicants out of 16 to interview with the committee. The interview committee consists of the two DEI Lead coaches, three representatives from the central office leadership team, two representatives from the district-wide leadership team, two students, two teachers, and two parents/community members. We hope to have the hiring process completed by mid-January so that the director can begin near the end of January.

Equity Audit

Six CVSD staff will meet with the Mass Insight representatives to layout the process that will take place over the next 5 or 6 months. Once we have an updated timeline, we will post it to our DEI page on our website.

Budget Process

As you’ll see from some elements below in this newsletter, the budget process is well underway to develop what will be presented to voters on Town Meeting Day, March 1, 2022. We hope that you’ll familiarize yourself with the materials available on the budget page of our website. There will be additional information posted there in the next month to further educate our community about the budget and other aspects of our district’s work. We will also be sharing information through our social media channels (Facebook/Twitter) and on Front Porch Forum in the coming weeks.

COVID Response

Despite the rest of the state and several school districts battling quarantines and isolations from COVID-19, CVSD has been somewhat fortunate about recent cases. There has been an uptick in Shelburne, and we hope the upcoming vacation time will help to dissipate the spread. Though we have a small number of cases, we have been able to keep students in school thanks to our Test to Stay program. Thank you so much to our nurses, our principals, and their staff, who have powered this program since it began making sure that our students can stay in school. Another likely reason our numbers have decreased is the students who have received the COVID-19 vaccination. With 91% of Chittenden county residents over the age of five with at least one dose, we will hopefully continue to see low positivity rates in our schools and our towns. Please see the letter further down in the newsletter from Dr. Leah Costello. She provides important recommendations about precautions we might take, especially over the coming weeks.

In closing, I would like to request again we consider the topics of love, generosity, and gratefulness, but this time in the context of Kentucky. While I could weave longer and greater narratives as to why this topic is timely, I intend to be brief this time. On the evening of December 10, a very large, very powerful tornado carved a path hundreds of miles long across four states. As of right now, more than 70 people have died, and many more are injured or recovering. Many families lost everything. Online news articles display the devastation across the state. They, too, were planning to spend time with family and celebrate the holidays, the New Year, and time off from school at this time of year. If you have the means to share with the organizations helping within Kentucky, I encourage you to do so. Finally, other Kentucky news includes the passing of native Kentucky author bell hooks, whose books and poetry were a constant in my graduate studies. Her importance as an author, poet, critic and professor cannot be overstated. Her work has challenged the understanding of feminism and patriarchy and has since influenced several generations of writers, academics, and others. I encourage you to take one of her books off your shelf or search for news articles on her passing to see her influence on many contemporary issues.

Please have a great evening, an even better weekend, and a very happy and healthy holiday season.

We thank Dr. Leah Costello for sharing this unsolicited letter with us. It addresses COVID, testing, colds, and more. Dr. Costello's words are helpful as we get closer to the holiday season and potentially more gatherings with others.

We haven't shared a reminder about Powerschool lately, but here we go! We are often required to submit various data about our district to the state. For example, recently, our school nurses were asked to share data indicating how many students have had a well-child exam with their doctor in the past year. We want to make sure that the information we provide to the state is accurate. No names are shared, just percentages. You help us by providing updated information when filling out the annual Powerschool forms. That, along with having the most current contact information for parents/caregivers, is another good reason to make sure you've successfully set up your account AND have completed all forms.

If you have not yet set up your Powerschool account, please contact your school directly. You will receive the necessary initial information that will help you get started. Once your account is set up, please complete ALL of the forms. We appreciate you taking the time to do this. If you have completed all forms, thank you!

Congratulations to senior Eva Frazier from CVU for being selected as one of two of Vermont’s 2022 United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP) delegates. Two students from each state are selected for a $10,000 scholarship and an all-expenses-paid week-long trip to Washington D.C. While in D.C., students learn about the inner workings of the federal government. They meet with members of Congress, the Supreme Court, and the Administration.

Congratulations to Allen Brook School and Shelburne Community School who recently received an email from Dan French congratulating them on their impressive efforts to support students and families by maintaining their Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) implementation despite the challenges of the 2020-2021 school year. The recognition received was based on the interventions and support the schools delivered to students and communities to achieve positive outcomes during these challenging times. PBIS was maintained as a priority, despite many distractions. The schools worked harder than ever to engage students and families, improve school climate, and consider issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Perhaps most importantly, the schools reflected on the learnings from last year and considered what was most important to bring into this school year. The schools were recognized at the Annual Vermont PBIS Leadership Forum on October 7th and highlighted in the 2020-21 VTPBIS Annual Report, which can be found on the VTPBIS website at www.pbisvermont.org.

Children between the ages of 5-11 can now receive a COVID vaccine. These are available at local pharmacies, in school-based clinics, and at pediatric offices. You can go to any school-based clinic, if that is your preference, even if it is not your own school.

Visit healthvermont.gov/KidsVaccine or call 855-722-7878.

Vaccine Q&A

Follow this link to the Vermont chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. They are offering question and answer sessions about the vaccine.

If/when your child is FULLY vaccinated, (have had their second dose) please email or contact your school's nurse to let them know, and provide your child's name and grade. This will help our school nurses with record-keeping and reporting to the state.

Thank you for protecting your child against COVID-19.

The Test to Stay (TTS) program is activated when an unvaccinated student or student(s) are identified as a close contact to a confirmed case of COVID-19. The intention of the TTS program is to allow students that would otherwise be required to quarantine to remain in school. A detailed description of this program can be found on the Agency of Education's Test to Stay website.

This optional program is for students who are NOT vaccinated, are asymptomatic, and who may have had a school exposure.

If you have not yet registered your child for Test to Stay and provided consent, consider doing that now, even if you’re not directly impacted by a positive case at this time. It’s always good to be prepared. More information about Test to Stay can be found on our website.

Important information about Vaccines and Test to Stay:

Some students are beginning the COVID-19 vaccination process. They are not considered FULLY vaccinated until 2 weeks after their second dose. They can still participate in Test to Stay until then.

Parents/Guardians - please email or contact your school’s health office to notify them that your child has completed their SECOND dose.

We have added a section to the COVID Reporting Dashboard with data around Test to Stay.

A reminder: students participating in Test to Stay should quarantine when not in the school building.

The budget development process continues with presentations at a series of School Board meetings in the coming weeks and months. All members of the CVSD community are welcome to attend Board meetings. See the schedule in the image above and on the Budget page of the district's website.

The presentations are shared on the Budget page afterward for those that cannot attend. Video recordings of our Board meetings are available within a few days after each meeting, thanks to the Media Factory.

CVSD's Board Chair, Angela Arsenault, provided this introduction to kick off an updated series of videos pertaining to the budget process. These videos are also available on the Budget Page of the CVSD website.

The series now includes videos about Special Education, ESSER, Education Quality Standards, the Operations budget, and more. See all of the videos (all 3-6 minutes in length) here.

Resources to keep accessible:

• First Call - 488-7777: phone support, crisis intervention, assessment and referrals
• In Crisis: 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) (National Hopeline Network: USA)
• National Suicide Prevention Life line- 1-800-273-TALK (8255), call or chat online
• Crisis Text Line - text HOME to 741741 (24 hours a day, seven days a week)
• Outright Vermont - support for LGBTQ+ community
• UVM Breathe In Breath Out - How to deal with stress due to COVID-19
• Vermont 211 -Vermont database of resources and services
• Vermont Support Line (833) 888-2557) - peer support warmline open 247 - 365 for call or text
• COVID Counselors @ VT-211
• Teen Crisis Text Line - Crisis Text Line provides free emotional support and information to teens in any type of crisis, including feeling suicidal. You can text with a trained specialist 24 hours a day. Text “HOME” to 741741.
• Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide - Website where you can find information to help yourself or a friend who may be having thoughts of suicide.
• Trevor Lifeline - 1-866- 488-7386 - provides suicide prevention and crisis intervention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) young people. It offers free, 24/7, confidential counseling. TrevorText—text START to 678-678; TrevorChat—instant messaging at TheTrevorProject.org/help. It also runs TrevorSpace, an affirming social networking site for LGBTQ youth at TrevorSpace.

Serving the communities of Charlotte, Hinesburg, Shelburne, St. George, and Williston

Reach out using any of the methods below or use this form to share a question.

Email: cvsdinformation@cvsdvt.org
Website: https://www.cvsdvt.org/
Location: 5420 Shelburne Road, Shelburne, VT, USA
Phone: (802) 383-1234
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChamplainValleySchoolDistrict
Twitter: @cvsdvt