Dear Crosby-Ironton School District families,
With the flipping of the calendar to August, we begin to look ahead to the start of a new school year. We remember the shine of the freshly waxed floors, the smell of that brand new box of color crayons and the excitement of meeting our teacher and, once again, seeing our friends. These are traditions that we count on.
Traditionally, while families are taking their last summer trips and enjoying the process of picking out the perfect first day of school outfits, principals are putting the final touches on class lists, our food service friends are creating the perfect menu for September and our transportation company is busy shining the tires on their fleet of the bright yellow busses. Again, traditions we have counted on for years at C-I.
We find ourselves in unfamiliar territory at the start of the 2020-2021 school year and look for traditions that will remain the same, bringing us comfort and guidance, so that we may confidently reassure our children. The C-I School District is currently finalizing plans that will ensure the safety of every student and employee of our district. Teachers, in more ways than ever, are busy preparing to share their gift of connecting with your child, both socially and academically - each and every day. Distance learning, last spring, gave us the opportunity to prepare for and polish our skills for any scenario we may be presented this year. In our last correspondence with you, we said that we would continue to clearly communicate the specifics of our plan, as the plans have been developed. We will outline that here for you now and continue to keep you informed, as we move ahead in the coming weeks and months.
Each school district will follow the guidelines laid out in the Safe Learning Plan to make decisions regarding the specific model of learning our families will be using at which time. Please follow this link to read the plan in detail. Be assured that we have had teams working hard throughout the summer creating frameworks for in person learning, a hybrid model of in-person and distance learning and our improved distance learning model of instruction and communication. The Crosby-Ironton school board will use the most recent data reported in the bi-monthly case rate, regarding the current number of COVID-19 cases in Crow Wing County, to determine and communicate with families.
Our district is fully prepared to move within the aforementioned styles of instruction and our teachers will deliver the top-notch level of instruction and student connection that you have come to expect; a tradition you can count on at C-I! Each student can take comfort in knowing that they will both see and hear from their teacher each and every school day. We have streamlined our communication processes for learning so that families will know exactly where to both receive instruction and submit work. We are here for families, assuring first and foremost their safety, and an education that is personalized. In any of the three learning frameworks used this school year, the students of Crosby-Ironton will utilize distance learning each Friday, to allow for deep cleaning of our buildings. Students will not meet in-person on Fridays.
At this time, Crosby-Ironton bus drivers, support staff and teachers are more than thrilled that Crow Wing County COVID-19 numbers meet the criteria for in-person learning for all students. We are thrilled to welcome children into our buildings on Monday, August 31! We will continue to receive current data reports from the county, and as this pandemic evolves, be advised that our plans for instruction will move within our three frameworks of instruction. The learning model determined may not be the same for each building. Current data of the COVID case rate for Crow Wing County will be available on August 15, allowing us to communicate with you, our definite plan for the first day of school at C-I.
If your family favors distance learning (only), as the preferred mode of receiving instruction, we request that you contact the district office today.
Here is the link to current case rate by county.
Please contact Devan at the district office at 218.545.8800 or our building principals with questions or concerns. We eagerly await the opportunity to personally connect with each student at Crosby-Ironton on August 31!
Cuyuna Range Elementary Principal Kurt Becker kbecker@ci.k12.mn.us
Crosby-Ironton High School Principal Jen Strom jstrom@ci.k12.mn.us
Kind regards,
Crosby-Ironton ISD #182