Baldwin-Whitehall School District: Live With Lutz 8.6.21

Press release from Baldwin-Whitehall School District:

August 9, 2021

Superintendent's Weekly Community Update "Live with Lutz"

Friday, August 6, 2021 – 12:00 p.m.

Discussion Recap

Link here for Video Archive of Community Update

Link here for District News Center & Official Announcements

School Schedules

Dr. Lutz offered information about the ongoing and still slightly tentative school schedules for this year for each building noting significant complications related to transportation-related issues, with critical emphasis on our school bus driver shortage.

There are essentially three arrival times within the District. While these schedules are still estimates, we do not anticipate significant changes or deviation from these estimates by more than 10 minutes either way.

FIRST GROUP

Baldwin High School 7:30 a.m. – 2:15 p.m.

MIDDLE GROUP

Baldwin Middle School 8:15 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

McAnnulty Elementary 8:40 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

LAST GROUP

J.E. Harrison Education Center 9:25 a.m. – 3:45 p.m.

Whitehall Elementary 9:35 a.m. – 3:55 p.m.

Family participation in surveys expected to reach you this week will be asking if parents can waive the student's spot on the bus. Please note that the assumed protocol will be that all students will have a spot on the bus unless the District receives the notification of waiving it.

We are working tirelessly to combat the complexities and challenges of a national driver shortage and continue an aggressive search. Dr. Lutz characterized the current school bus driver shortage as one of a critical/crisis level.

At this time, the District is 12 drivers short which amounts to 25% of our driver workforce that we do not have in place.

Mitigation efforts currently under consideration:

• Encouraging parents to drive their own children when possible

• Increasing route travel times due to longer routes and max capacity busses

• When transportation destinations are for schools located out of the District, some will be combined, resulting in longer routes.

• Increasing distances between stops to reduce the times needed to stop and load/unload

• Expanding our walk zones for all schools

• Expanding arrival and departure times (I.e. scheduling multiple runs for the same school)

Note that while our best efforts, recruiting, and planning are underway, families need to consider the potential for disruptions and our worst-case scenarios which will result in morning cancellations, which will always be a last resort but a real possibility, despite that this has never before occurred within the Baldwin-Whitehall School District.

We ask for families to refrain from making special requests and appreciate your patience, flexibility, and support as we work through these incredibly difficult challenges.

If you are interested in driving a bus or passenger van. Part-time with benefits, paid time off, and retirement incentives – click for information and contact the District immediately if you or someone you know is interested: https://www.bwschools.net/uploaded/Drivers_and_Attendants_July_2021.pdf

BWSD Health & Safety Plan

The BWSD School Board of Directors met on July 21, 2021, and evaluated and approved the 2021-2022 BWSD Health & Safety Plan linked here for the upcoming school year.

Elements of the plan include:

• Masks – at this point, we are still upholding a mask-optional, but encouraged protocol, and masks will be required on all District transportation.
• Physical distancing, classroom plans, cafeteria plans
• Use of sanitizers and cleaning protocols
• Ventilation and airflow
• Contact tracing

There will be much more discussion around our Health & Safety Plan. Every day, institutions are announcing and adapting to new guidelines and meeting the needs of changing circumstances.

It should be understood that with masks, there is far less risk of disrupted learning. Other than the student or adult who is sick, there is no need for quarantine.

Without masks, we will be subject to the same quarantining and contact tracing measures we were subject to during the 2020-2021 school year.

By far, the most prevalent concern of parents in our surveys was to un-tether our teachers from laptops and reducing reliance on screens. With minimal quarantines, we can get back to this natural classroom setting, but this comes down to the tradeoff of wearing masks.

There will be discussions at our BWSD School Board of Directors meetings on August 11 and 18 and if updates to these plans are made, we will communicate accordingly.

BWSD Cyber Academy

BWSD has made the commitment to offering the availability of remote education and has designed the BWSD Cyber Academy.

It is a comprehensive, K-12 online program, aligned to the Pennsylvania Core Standards and offers a blend of synchronous and asynchronous learning experiences for students.

The District is exploring in-person office hours and a Drop-In Center for Cyber Academy students.

Office hours, a drop-in center

BWSD Cyber Academy students will receive instruction through BWSD programs, BWSD technology, with full access to District events, activities, and athletics and working toward a Baldwin High School diploma. Students will have access to Steel Center and in-person electives.

At this time, there are 44 students enrolled in the BWSD Cyber Academy.

The enrollment period is still open and has been extended through Monday, August 9, 2021

If you do not enroll in the Cyber Academy, the default position is an in-person learning enrollment.

Q; Do we need to turn our Chromebook in for updates?

A: No, but continue to watch for updates from the Technology Department and seek assistance for any issues with current technology.

Q: Will there be one teacher for all classes or different?

A: We are currently looking at a model where teachers elect to manage dual instruction; additional measures of instructional assignments are still being explored for elementary levels. For high school students, subject-specific teachers will manage all courses similar to the in-person learning experience.

Q: What if a child starts out in our Cyber Academy, but opts to change at a future time?

A: Teaching schedules cannot accommodate significant changes in the midst of mid-nine-week periods, so changes must be requested in advance and take place at the onset of each new nine-week period.

Q: Will Process for Health Requirements Still Maintained?

A: All requirements of BWSD students will remain the same regardless of learning modality.

Q: What are the drop-in centers?

A: We are exploring a drop-in center at Baldwin High School, as the most centrally located building in the District, which will be staffed by a District teacher with routine office hours.

Q: How do I access supplemental supplies?

A: Supplies will be available based on the teacher's assignments and will be available to you as needed.

School Supply Lists

Dr. Lutz noted a lot of questions and conversations around access to these. Supply lists are posted on the District website and linked here:

McAnnulty Elementary Supply Lists

Whitehall Elementary Supply Lists

Harrison Education Center Supply Lists

Baldwin Middle School Supply Lists

Individual Community Questions

Dr. Lutz addressed individual questions submitted this week.

Q. Does the District offer transportation to and from daycare?

A. The District provides transportation to and from ONLY FOR daycare facilities within the established school attendance areas. We are not able to add new special stops due to the previously mentioned limitations.

Q. Will students attend school five days per week?

A. Yes.

Q. If they are vaccinated, are masks required?

A. At this time, masks will remain optional but strongly encouraged.

Q. Will there be District school orientations?

A. Yes. Please watch for news and details on these events from your school-based officials to help ensure smooth transitions for every grade level.

Q. Kindergarten

A. Kindergarten is a full day and an orientation is scheduled and will include a bus orientation as well

Q. Are there any forms required for in-person learning?

A. No.

Q. Do I need to let anyone know if my student plans to utilize District transportation this year?

A. We ask that you complete the anticipated survey, but If you do not submit the survey, the default assignment will include a bus seat for your student.

Q: How do I know which school my student will be attending, Harrison or Whitehall?

A: Please contact one of the two schools and the staff in the main office can provide this information.

Q. What will happen with closures/ quarantine this year?

A. If masks are in place, circumstances will be very different from last year. If masks are not in place, quarantines may be necessary.

Q. Will breakfast be served again this year?

A. Yes. At this time, we are offering a Breakfast for All program made possible in part by a grant. Additionally, all children will qualify for a free lunch. We are continuing a weekly meal pick-up option available for all students who reside in our District communities.

Q. When can we expect to receive a back-to-school mailing with school schedules, bus info, homeroom, teacher assignments, etc?

A. An electronic mailing will be sent one week prior to the first day of school on September 1, 2021.

Parting Reminders

Dr. Lutz thanked everyone for joining today and offered the reminder that guidance and circumstances are changing daily. We are in conversation with local superintendents, the Allegheny County Health Department, and state and national officials daily to work through decisions based on the best information available.

While we have a great deal to look forward to, we should be prepared for another challenging school year ahead. Please trust that every decision we make is guided by our students' best interests and we continue to appreciate your patience and respectful understanding.

NEXT LIVESTREAM UPDATE: Friday, August 13 at 9:00 a.m.

This press release was produced by Baldwin-Whitehall School District. The views expressed here are the author’s own.