February 2021 certainly presented some major weather-related issues! As you know, we had to utilize eLearning days for nearly two weeks due to snow, icy roads, and cold. Hopefully we have the winter weather behind us now. I know that missing school is a hardship on students and families, so any decision to cancel school is not taken lightly.

There are multiple factors I consider when deciding whether or not to have school in person, or to announce a two-hour delay.

• I drive the roads on multiple routes to see road conditions. I cannot cover every route, but I try to look at a few different areas. Often some parts of the school district are worse than others.

• I consult with area superintendents to see what roads are like in their districts, and to see what they are thinking.

• I check with the Orange County Highway Department to see how many roads they have been able to chip or plow.

• I consider the weather forecast to see what might happen later in the day. We don't want to get into a situation where we can’t safely get students home.

• I then make a judgment based on the safety of students and staff. Sometimes I make a good call, and sometimes I don’t. I will always err on the side of caution. Safety is our number one priority.

I want to give a shout-out to our outstanding custodial and maintenance staff for the hard work they put in clearing our campus during multiple snow and ice events. It is a huge job to make the facilities safe for students and staff, and they are pros at it.

Now, let’s hope we don’t get a major flood this spring!

Trevor

* We will have our annual Kindergarten Roundup event on March 16 and 17. Contact the elementary office at 812-936-4820 to schedule a time.

* Spring Break is March 22-26.

* We will offer Driver Education this summer. This will be the driving portion only. The fee for driving is $300. Prior to driving, students will complete classroom training at www.driveredtogo.com at a cost of $70. The site is Indiana BMV approved.

* Reminder that our monthly board meetings are streamed live on our Springs Valley Media YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP4LYRNW9L125xomVq1V_xw/featured

* While the pandemic is ongoing we will post weekly COVID-19 statistics to the school website. Click on the COVID-19 Info tab on the main page. I also have the current statistics below.

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As of Monday, March 1, 2021:

Elementary:

0 positive student

0 positive teacher

0 positive staff

2 quarantined students

0 quarantined staff

Junior/ Senior High School:

0 positive student

0 positive teachers

0 positive staff

3 quarantined students

0 quarantined staff

We have 0 positives due to school contact at this time.

We have 0 quarantined due to school contact at this time.

Please contact me if you have questions or concerns!

Email: apple@svalley.k12.in.us
Website: www.svalley.k12.in.us
Phone: 812-936-4474