Superintendent Update: 4/22/22

To view past superintendent updates, please visit District Updates on our website.

While the school year is quickly coming to a close, District Administration continues to monitor the indicators of how COVID is impacting Champaign County. The county’s current community level is “Medium.” What does this mean? You are encouraged to wear a mask if you have symptoms, a positive test, or exposure to someone with COVID. You may choose to wear a mask at any time as an additional precaution to protect yourself and others. If you or any family members are at high risk for severe illness during the “Medium” level, consider wearing a mask indoors in public settings and take additional precautions. I will continue to keep you updated if we shift to a higher community level or experience a significant increase in our District’s positivity rate (currently still les than 1%). UMS and UHS MTD riders should also be aware that the Federal Transportation Security Administration has removed the mask mandate on public transportation.

In the weeks to come, there are many events and opportunities to engage with the USD116 community. The Board of Education Update from this week’s meeting is available here: April 19 BOE Update. Check out the May dates and upcoming events highlighted in the BOE update. Hopefully, you have already marked your calendar for UHS Graduation on Thursday, May 26, at 6:00 p.m. at State Farm Center and UMS 8th grade Promotion on Thursday, May 26, at 9:00 a.m., 10:30 a.m., and 12:00 p.m.

The month of May ushers in another important time of the year in USD116. Teacher Appreciation Week is May 2-May 6 this year! As a District, we always look forward to celebrating the awesomeness of our teachers and staff. This year has been significantly more complex for many reasons, and our staff have risen to the challenge. Please reach out to your school’s office or PTA/PTSA/PTO leadership to find out how you can acknowledge or celebrate a teacher or staff member during the week of May 2-May 6.

The last day of school, May 27th, will be here before we know it; however, much teaching and learning will happen between now and then. Let’s work together to finish the year just as strong as we started in August.

Happy Earth Day!

Dr. Ivory-Tatum,

Superintendent

• April 23: Prom

• May 5-8: UHS Spring Musical | Anastasia

• May 18: UHS Honors Night/National Honors Society Night

• May 24: Adult Ed Graduation | 6 p.m. | UHS Auditorium

• May 26: 8th Grade Promotion 9 a.m. Team Divergent | 10:30 a.m. Team Jedi | 12 p.m. Team Hercules

• May 26: UHS Graduation State Farm Center 6 p.m.

On Thursday, April 28, the District will conduct a drill to help us practice our evacuation and reunification procedures. The drill will be held around noon with UMS Students on Team Phoenix. These families were notified of the drill last week.

In the event that we need to relocate students to an off-site location, we need reliable systems and processes to notify families and reunify students in an orderly and timely way. This drill will help us practice how we handle these situations so we can make adjustments or changes to our District-wide response plans.

In continued partnership with our transportation provider First Student, USD116 will

launch the FirstView App this fall. FirstView is a bus tracking and parent communications app

for your smartphone or desktop. Set up the app to track your student’s bus in real-time

and receive alerts prior to arrival.

We successfully piloted the FirstView app at UMS and Thomas Paine this spring and are excited to expand it districtwide starting this fall.

Once bus assignments have been finalized, you will receive information from your school on how to set up the app. We are excited about the timely access to bus information that the FirstView app will bring!

Tonight (April 22) is the Urbana Jazz Cafe at 7 p.m. in the UHS Commons. Enjoy a night of music from the UMS and UHS Jazz Bands with a special performance by UHS A Capella!

• There is a suggested donation of $5 at the door or maximum of $12 per family. There will be food items available for purchase.

USD #116 held its Young Authors district celebration this week. All of the elementary schools and UMS held a celebration that included a pizza party, certificate presentation and other activities. Each group also heard from the keynote speaker, local author, Janice Harrington. Each of the winners of the Young Authors Contest received a copy of her book.

This year we are also excited to offer an e-book version of the Young Authors Book. Please see the links below to read each volume.

• Volume 1
• Volume 2
• Volume 3

COMING SOON! #USD116 is starting a community newsletter!

Want to stay informed with what is happening in the U? Sign up today! We hope to connect with more of our Urbana residents who don't have kids in our schools, but anyone is welcome to subscribe!

Sign up: https://bit.ly/USDCommunityNewsletter

Save-the-date for Kindergarten Open House! Bring your student to tour their new school.

More information is on our website.

Current 5th Grade Families invited to UMS Orientation

• April 25, 2022
• 6-7 p.m.
• UMS Cafetorium

5th Grade School Visits to UMS

• 9-10 a.m. for each school
• Students will come to UMS with their class for an orientation, select elective classes, and have a guided school tour.

Elementary schools will visit on the following dates:

• Yankee Ridge: May 2
• Thomas Paine: May 3
• Wiley: May 5
• King: May 6
• DPW: May 9
• Leal: May 10

REMINDER: Online registration opens May 31. All returning students must register by Monday, July 25 in order to have transportation on the first day of school.

Email: contactus@usd116.org
Website: usd116.org
Location: 1101 East University Avenue, Suite B, Urbana, IL, USA
Phone: 2173843600
Facebook: facebook.com/usd116
Twitter: @urbana116