Valley Falls USD 338

Summer Nutrition -- here is a link where parents can get summer meals for their children: Sponsors and sites for summer 2020, a listing of all Kansas Summer Meals sites, including addresses and meal times is available at www.kn-eat.org, Summer Food Service Program, Locate a Site Near You.

Message for incoming Kindergarten Parents: Please be sure and check your email for links to the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ & ASQ SE-2). We want to thank parents that have already taken the time to get them filled out. Please let us know if you have any questions. angie.tillery@vfalls338.com angie.seymour@vfalls338.com

Parents/Guardians, we are seeking your input on reopening our schools. Please check your email to complete a survey. If you did not get the survey, contact Dr. Hanzlicek at volora.hanzlicek@vfalls338.com and she will send you one via email. We appreciate your feedback!

All activities within the district are continuing as planned. No postponements or cancellations. KS Board of Ed will rule on Governor's order to start school on Sept. 9 late next week. We could still start on normal schedule if they don't approve the order. Stay tuned.

Jefferson Medical Clinic is offering free sports physicals to students who might need them. See dates and times on flyer at: https://5il.co/ie1m

Reopening Schools - Navigating Change Message from Dr. Watson, commissioner of education, "Today, the Kansas State Board of Education accepted the “Navigating Change: Kansas’ Guide to Learning and School Safety Operations” document. This is a living document that will be updated continuously to reflect the changing landscape created by the COVID-19 pandemic. It is critical to remember this document contains recommendations only, not mandates, to assist districts in the creation of their reopening plans. The document is housed on the KSDE website and can be accessed at https://www.ksde.org/Teaching-Learning/Resources/Navigating-Change-Kansas-Guide-to-Learning-and-School-Safety-Operations. Please check back regularly for any updates." A small group of teaching staff will be starting the process of examining the document chunk by chunk tomorrow. Another group of department heads and essential staff members will be working on the operations section. Each group will use data gathered from surveys, town hall meetings, and feedback sent to administration as part of the decision making process. The target date to have a draft to our parents and community will be early August for feedback. Don't let this document intimidate you. If we all work on this process together, we will have a great document for our community to help guide us this year and into the future! Many educators across Kansas have done an awesome job in providing guidance through these challenging time. A new focus for our students will be competency-based learning and project-based learning! Education will become more individualized to meet the needs of all students. How can this be a bad thing? I know as DRAGONS we will attack this new opportunity with breathing fire, excitement for our students, and helping each other out in the process! We all have to do our part. Let's demonstrate Dragon PRIDE in our endeavors!! Looking forward to digging in and getting started. Please don't hesitate to send any thoughts you might have on reopening via email to volora.hanzlicek@vfalls338.com.

Announcement from Governor Kelly pushes back school start until after Labor Day. See this article from WIBW. More information to come as our school teams regroup to address this change. https://bit.ly/3ey0XtR

2020 8th Grade Promotion The 2020 8th grade promotion will be conducted Monday, July 20th at 7 PM in the east gym. In order to be able to social distance, only parents and siblings will be allowed to attend the ceremony. The SE entrance to the east gym will be the only entrance to the ceremony. We are highly recommending that those attending the ceremony wear a mask. Masks will be available at the door if you do not have one. The following protocols will be in place: Use hand sanitizer when entering Follow screening protocols in place upon entering All in attendance will be asked to register Families will be expected to social distance from other families at all times Live-stream access for those not attending the ceremony can be accessed at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcT4G2ga2GdiFOW0pEA3RQg

Graduation 2020 The 2020 graduation will be conducted this Sunday at 2 PM in the east gym. In order to be able to social distance, families have been provided tickets for the ceremony. Anyone wanting to attend without a ticket will have the opportunity to be seated in the west gym where the ceremony will be live-streamed. The graduates will parade through the west gym prior to the conclusion of the ceremony to be recognized. Handicap entrance for those with a ticket will be the SE doors to the east gym. Handicap entrance for non-ticket holders will be the North Triple Doors. All others will enter the West Vestibule doors. We are highly recommending that those attending the ceremony wear a mask. Masks will be available at the door if you do not have one. The following protocols will be in place: Use hand sanitizer when entering Follow screening protocols in place upon entering All in attendance will be asked to register Live-stream access for those not attending the ceremony can be accessed at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcT4G2ga2GdiFOW0pEA3RQg

MS Boys Basketball Camp

19-20 PK-8 yearbooks are on sale. For those who haven't ordered we need you to reserve a copy prior to placing our order. Please contact Wendy at wendy.gibbens@vfalls338.com or 945-3221. We will collect orders now through July 17. Cost $11.

Preparing to Reopen USD 338 https://5il.co/hyqb

Join Dr. Hanzlicek for a virtual Town Hall meeting "Repening USD #338". Participants will be divided into groups with a facilitator for a collaborative discussion around specific questions. Data gathered from the meeting will be utilized in the planning process. When: Jul 7, 2020 06:30 PM. Register in advance for this meeting: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0udOGuqjkiGdF7TwhchAn8F4n0pd0ucW4B OR When: Jul 9, 2020 06:30 PM Register in advance for this meeting: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcuc-mqqzooHNLOZdPc3ln0D25Rc1dAxfG2 After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. Please use your own name and email address for identification.

The PK-8 Supply List is available at: https://5il.co/hhod It has been updated to include 6th grade in middle school.

Special Board of Education Meeting on July 1st at 6:30 PM in the school library. Agenda available online at: https://5il.co/ho20

The 2020 Road Safety Art Contest is now open! Click below to learn more about the annual contest and to download the entry form. Contest ends June 26, 2020. Everyone who uses the roads has a role to play in safety. This includes large trucks and buses, cars, bicyclists and pedestrians. This contest lets children in kindergarten through sixth grade (ages 5-12) use their creativity and talent to help raise awareness of how to stay safe on the roads. https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/OurRoadsArtContest For Teens, Post Covid-19 Roads Pose ‘A Perfect Storm’ Of Risk Closed schools, fewer activities, less opportunity for summer jobs and the easing Covid-19 restrictions could prove dangerous for the nation’s teens as they take to the roads this summer. This post-lockdown phase corresponds with the “100 Deadliest Days,” the period each year between Memorial Day and Labor Day when the number of fatal crashes involving a teen driver historically rises. Read more

Hello Parents! As we continue to look at school starting back up this fall our student supply lists will be posted to our website for your easy access. A couple of items that are on those lists may still be hard to access - cleaning wipes and hand sanitizer. We would recommend that you keep an eye out for these items now so that your child will have them come August. For now, stay safe and enjoy the warm weather!

Ready! Set! Call for the Count! The Kansas Complete Count Committee in collaboration with the U.S. Census Bureau, Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, the League of Kansas Municipalities, local CCCs, and communities of all sizes are promoting a Call for the Count campaign starting on Monday, June 22, and continuing through Sunday, June 28. Timing could not be more critical. Kansas has dropped out of the top 10 in states' self-response to the 2020 Census. (See below.) Kansans will be called upon to call on neighbors, friends, co-workers and family to make sure they take part in the critically important, once-every-10-years population count. Events & Materials posted on KansasCounts include: Social Media Posts – Links to a series of themed social media posts are available for every day of Call for the Count week! Or, use the messages best suited to your audience. Email me for any assistance! Call 5 Call Tree Toolkit– Put the multiplier effect to work by encouraging five friends to complete the census and have them call five more. Resources: email template, call scripts and FAQ available to help communities phone friends! (Spanish available soon) VQA Toolkit – With support from the Kansas PS team, partners can provide Virtual Questionnaire Assistance opportunities to help individuals over-the-phone and online to complete the census. (Spanish available soon) Get ready for “Censoteria"! This census-themed version of the popular Mexican board game “loteria” is coming to Facebook Live! YES. There are prizes! Flyers (Spanish and English) attached! RSVP to play “Censorteria” via Kansas Appleseed’s Facebook Thursday, June 25, 6pm with the help of SportingKC’s Ilie Sanches and Sunday, June 28 3pm ! Thanks to Kansas Health Foundation, Kansas Appleseed and several southwest Kansas partners for hosting these awesome event! Southwest Kansas Town Hall– Tuesday June 23 7pm Kansas Counts is engaging a panel of Census Champions for this outreach event via Facebook Live! RSVP here! Press releases/Endorsements – Be on the lookout for public support and endorsement from Kansas public officials and various news outlets. An op-ed template attached as well! RESOURCE NOTE: Feel free to contact me at Melinda.a.stanley@2020census.gov for any of these resources as well! Kansas drops in self-response standings Over the weekend, Kansas dropped to 13th place in that national standings. With a 65.3% statewide self-response rate, Kansas is still nearly four percentage points above the national average. 2020 Census response rate map Top-performing Kansas counties are Johnson (74.5%), Miami (72.8%), Pottawatomie (72.7%), Harvey (72.0%) McPherson (71.3%), Saline (70.8%), Nemaha (70.6%) and Butler (69.3%). Here's how the state's four congressional districts fare with census self response: 1st Congressional District -- 61.3% 2nd Congressional District -- 64.8% 3rd Congressional District -- 70.5% 4th Congressional District -- 64.7% Counting the Homeless: Schedule change The U.S. Census Bureau released a new schedule for counting people experiencing homelessness in the 2020 Census. The operation was originally scheduled for the end of March, but health and safety concerns with COVID-19 forced a delay in these activities. Between September 2 and 24, the Census Bureau plans to send specially trained census takers to count people at shelters, soup kitchens, regularly scheduled mobile food fans and locations previously identified by the Census Bureau where people are known to sleep outdoors and at all-night businesses (i.e. transit stations and 24-hour laundromats). People experiencing homelessness will be counted where they are staying when census takers visit between September 22-24. A complete and accurate 2020 Census can ultimately help organizations provide better services, more food and improved shelter options for those in need.

Draft USD 338 Pandemic Risk Management https://bit.ly/2MpzD5m These are draft guidelines we are following as we begin to open the district facilities again. It could also be used during the flu season.

Middle School Boys Basketball Camp will be July 6th-10th from 4-5:30 p.m. 6th graders are welcome to attend and participate in the camp. If anyone has any questions or needs information please contact Dallas at 785-640-3749 or dallasbrown746@gmail.com