Email: dana.austin@fcps.org
Website: https://education.fcps.org/myes/
Location: 429 Main Street, Myersville, MD, USA
Phone: 240-236-1900
Twitter: @MYESFCPS

Friday, January 28: Report Cards sent home

Friday, February 4: Two Hour Early Dismissal

Friday, February 11: Valentine's Parties

There will be an exchange of Valentines as well as crafts and games.

Due to contact tracing concerns:

*Only the parent party chairpersons will be present as volunteers.

*There will be no food provided.

Friday, February 18: Two Hour Early Dismissal

Monday, February 21: Schools and Offices Closed

In the past two weeks, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Maryland Department of Health (MDH) have released new guidance on isolation and quarantining for positive cases of COVID-19. When new guidance is released, FCPS and the Frederick County Health Department (FCHD) collaborate on how to apply the guidance to schools. For our response to COVID-19, this process involves adjusting all currently published guidance, editing communication tools, and sharing with staff to ensure consistency on when and how the new guidance is applied in all schools. FCPS responds as fast as possible to current guidance while ensuring that the impact does not disrupt instruction and operations in schools.

The guidance below will go into effect on January 12, 2022. Students that are currently impacted by the change in guidance will receive a communication from their school with a new return date.

Updated List of Primary COVID-19 Symptoms

• Fever of 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) or higher
• Sore Throat
• Cough
• Difficulty Breathing
• Diarrhea
• Vomiting
• New Onset of Severe Headache
• New Loss of Taste or Smell

Updated Quarantine and Isolation Guidance

Persons Who Have Confirmed or Suspected COVID-19 (Those who need to Isolate)

All persons who test positive for COVID-19 or have suspected COVID-19, regardless of vaccination status, must complete isolation as follows:

• Stay home for at least 5 full days from the date of symptom onset if symptomatic or date of the positive test if not symptomatic.
• Day 1 is considered the first full day after symptoms started or the first full day after the date of positive test if asymptomatic.
• After Day 5 of isolation, if the person has no symptoms OR if symptoms have improved AND they have had no fever for 24 hours without fever reducing medication, they may return to school IF they wear a well-fitting mask for an additional 5 days.
• If the person is unable to consistently and appropriately mask, they must remain home for at least 10 full days.
• Importantly, people who are returning to school from isolation before 10 days, may only be unmasked when eating or during naptime if applicable. They may not participate in any school sponsored activities without a mask.

Persons Who Are Exposed to Someone with COVID-19 (Those who need to Quarantine)

The following information applies to:

• Adults 18 years and older who have been boosted OR completed the primary series of Pfizer OR Moderna vaccine within the last 5 months OR completed the primary Johnson and Johnson vaccine within the last 2 months AND have no primary symptoms of COVID-19;
• Children 5-17 years old who have completed the Pfizer vaccine series as recommended AND have no primary symptoms of COVID-19; and
• All persons who have had confirmed COVID-19 within the last 90 days (i.e. tested positive using a viral test).
  The individuals listed above do not need to quarantine after exposure, but should:

• Wear a well-fitting mask 10 days after the last close contact with the person with COVID-19. Day 1 is considered the first full day after the date of last close contact.
• Get tested at least 5 days after the last close contact with the person with COVID-19 (persons who had confirmed COVID-19 within the last 90 days do not need to test).

* If the person tests positive or develops symptoms, they need to stay home and follow recommendations for isolation above.

The following information applies to:

• Persons of all ages who are unvaccinated; and
• Adults 18 years and older who have completed the primary series of Pfizer vaccine over 5 months ago or Moderna vaccine over 6 months ago AND are not boosted, or completed the primary series of Johnson and Johnson over 2 months ago AND are not boosted.

The individuals listed above, must quarantine after exposure as follows:

• Stay home for at least 5 days after the last close contact with a person with COVID-19
• If the individual does NOT test positive for or develop symptoms of COVID-19, they may return to school on Day 6, but should:
• Wear a well fitting mask consistently and appropriately at all times except while eating or napping if applicable.
• Get tested at least 5 days after the last exposure to a person with COVID-19.
• Follow the recommendations for isolation above if they test positive for or develop symptoms of COVID-19
• Remain at home for 10 full days from last close contact with a person with COVID-19 IF unable to consistently and appropriately mask around others
• Not participate in any school sponsored activities without a mask until 10 days after last exposure to a person with COVID-19.

More updates to come

FCPS appreciates the partnership with our school communities as we work together to confront and overcome the challenges presented by the pandemic. FCPS is committed to keeping our community informed when any changes occur in our response to COVID-19. We will continue to meet regularly with our FCHD partners and adjust our practices as circumstances change.

We are committed to communicating with families as quickly as possible when a child is affected by an exposure to a positive case of COVID-19. To this point, we have been phoning all families which can make the process lengthy. Beginning Monday January 10, when a child is considered a close contact, we will utilize an FCPS Call Center and One Call Now which can send notice to several families at the same time via a text or email message with a link to a document with additional information. We understand the impact that quarantining can have on families and want to be as timely as possible in our communication. The document included in the One Call Now text will include information such as:

• Date of exposure
• First date of quarantine
• Date that you may receive a COVID-19 test in order to return to school prior to a full 10-day quarantine (families may choose to wait the full 10 days, depending on their individual circumstances)
• Information to access Schoology assignments
• Information to access academic support from school staff during quarantine

Families will also receive an email from One Call Now if there is a positive case in your child’s classroom, but your child is NOT considered a close contact. This is for information purposes only and no action is needed on your part.

Teachers are posting content and assignments in the Homeroom Schoology Course for students who are quarantining. In addition to resources and materials on Schoology, MYES is also offering synchronous sessions to support Mustangs at home. This is a unique opportunity for students to connect with a MYES staff member live on Google Meet to help with questions or get connected with the resources they need! Information will be shared should a quarantine situation occur.

A schoology information sheet was sent home with every student last week. Please call the front office if you did not receive.

Do you need help with Schoology? Mrs. Carpenter will be available to assist with Schoology troubleshooting on Wednesdays from 4:15 - 4:45. Go to meet.google.com and enter the code name myes-schoology.

A note stating the reason for absence or lateness is required upon the student’s return, or the absence is automatically classified as unlawful until an approved note is provided. FCPS Regulation 400-98 mandates that a school letter be mailed when a student accumulates 3 days of unlawful absences in any marking term. These letters were sent from MYES this week.

Anytime your child will be absent from school, please either send in a handwritten note or you can email MYES.Attendance@fcps.org. If you'd like to include your child's teacher in the email as a courtesy, it would be appreciated.

The Little Mermaid Production will be splashing its way into the hearts of MYES students in the Spring of 2022.

A parent meeting has been scheduled for February 1 at 6pm. This will be a virtual meeting. If your child is interested in auditioning, it is imperative that parents attend this meeting. If you are unable to attend, please email myesplay2022@gmail.com

Google meet log in for February 1 at 6pm: https://meet.google.com/qrs-axbr-duj

Paperwork will be emailed. Please email myesplay2022@gmail.com with your child’s name and grade and we will send the packet to you. You may either complete the forms and email the packet back to us or have your child bring the completed packet to school prior to auditions. Please seal it in an envelope marked MYES PTA – Tammy Fisher.

Audition dates:
2nd and 4th graders: February 23, 4-6pm
3rd and 5th graders: February 24, 4-6pm

Play rehearsals will be held afterschool on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 4-5:30pm at MYES beginning March 8. Your child will only need to attend rehearsals when their part is scheduled. The schedule will be released after auditions.

Each auditioning student will need to have a song prepared. It can be as simple as singing Happy Birthday! Every student will be cast! There are plenty of spots for both boys and girls!

Parent Volunteers will be needed. Please sign up through SignUp Genius: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0C4CA9A728AAF58-myersville

Please sign up for Remind to receive up to date information. This will be our main avenue of communication with the parents regarding schedule changes, COVID protocols, etc. Text @myespl to 81010 to sign up.

We are happy to say that we will have a yearbook this year! The yearbook committee is working hard to make a wonderful book full of memories for your student. Order your yearbook today:

https://ybpay.lifetouch.com/Order/ with Yearbook ID: 14461222.

The price will increase on January 1, 2022.

Frederick County Public Schools has three inclement weather days remaining built into the 2021-22 school year. If inclement weather prompts FCPS to close, it will be a traditional snow day and a virtual option will not be used.

While FCPS utilized virtual learning during the early stages of the global health crisis, this year we will work toward instituting systemwide virtual learning and evaluate the viability of a virtual option for inclement weather days if all available inclement weather days are used.

How can the community find out about inclement weather decisions?

The FCPS Office of Public Affairs swiftly communicates inclement weather decisions as soon as they are made using a variety of communications tools:

• FCPS social media (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram)
• FCPS.org
• FCPS Find Out First text messages and emails
• FCPS Cable Channel 18

Local and regional media are also alerted.

What are the fastest ways to find out about inclement weather closures?

Our FCPS Maryland social media channels are usually the first to have updates about closures and delays. FCPS.org and FCPS Cable Channel 18 are also quickly updated. It can take up to 30 minutes for FCPS to alert our media partners and for a FindOutFirst message to get published.

We encourage families to sign up for text message alerts via Find Out First. Text messages are only sent in case of an emergency or in case of inclement weather closure or delay notifications. To sign up for text messages, visit www.fcps.org/fof, log in, and add a cell phone number in the profile. Text messages are distributed faster than email messages.

Myersville Elementary is a place where students and staff are engaged learners. They feel safe to take risks and all contributions are valued. Here we have fun while we learn in our school community.

Get FindOutFirst email and emergency closing phone-text messages from Frederick County, Maryland based on the areas of interest you select.

Begin following us on Instagram (MYESFCPS) and Twitter (@MYESFCPS).