Dear Parents and Guardians:
We are grateful for the positive feedback being offered to teachers, staff and administration and as a team we also appreciate suggestions that are being presented to us. I know that you would agree that we are all navigating through a very unique time, as for our schools we continue to adjust to the conflict between swift changes and drawn out guidance that require us to maintain extreme flexibility.
We continue to make adjustments and improvements during this second week of distance learning. Since the onset of the implementation of our distance learning plan, our instructional administrative team has been communicating with staff and also meeting daily to assess our practices, address issues, and identify additional opportunities to enhance our programming. Please continue to correspond with your child’s teachers and building principals about specific questions you may have.
Several staff members have been using Google Meet, Seesaw, Flipgrid and Zoom as a way to interact with students. These methods of communication are likely to expand, but it is not something that will occur universally throughout the district for a variety of reasons, including student or staff privacy issues, and the individual personal circumstances of our students and staff members. Nevertheless, we will continue to research additional resources that promote interaction between students and teachers. Just as our students miss their teachers, please know that we all miss them!
On March 16, Governor Murphy issued Executive Order #104 that closes all schools in New Jersey indefinitely. Therefore, superintendents do not have the authority to open schools. Our schools will remain closed until the Governor lifts the executive order and issues guidance about the reopening of schools. As a result, we should plan for a closure that will likely extend for much longer than previously anticipated. Spring Break remains unchanged on our school calendar at this time, so distance learning will remain in place through March 27, which is the Friday before Spring Break. Distance learning will resume on Monday, April 6, and will continue as long as the executive order remains in effect.
I will continue to keep you informed as we await additional information from the New Jersey Department of Education.
Wishing you and your families continued health and well-being.
Respectfully,
Dr. Mitzi N. Morillo
Superintendent of Schools