OCSD plans expanded in-person learning to start 4/26

April 20, 2021

Dear Oswego City School District parents, guardians and community,

I am writing today to share more information about our plans for returning more students for “in-person” learning.  As you are all aware, recently I wrote to share that the district needed to pause its plans for returning students for more days of “in-person” learning.  This is because of the updated New York State Department of Health guidance, which was released on April 9, 2021. 

Given this guidance, the district had no choice but to revise some of its plans that included but were not limited to: changes to breakfast and lunch programs, changes to school schedules, changing transportation schedules for students, changes to social distancing protocols, cohorting students (placing them in smaller groups instead of allowing them all to return at the same time to school) and reviewing and employing a series of health and safety protocols. To add to this, the district was required to create a written plan that complies with all new requirements and get feedback on the plan from a group of stakeholders (parents, students, staff, health officials, etc.) before returning any additional students for more “in-person” learning.

Please know, the district has now drafted its new plan. This plan will be thoroughly discussed and vetted with our stakeholder group on this Thursday, April 22, 2021. The plan involves the following:

Elementary Schools (grades Pre-K – 6)

• All pre-K-3 students will continue to attend school for a minimum of four days per week for “in-person” learning (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday).
• All 4-6 students will be returning to school for a minimum of four days per week of “in-person” instruction (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday).
• Students who are not able to attend school “in-person” will continue to receive their instruction live streamed and/or virtually-remotely from their assigned teacher.
• Elementary schedules will be extended by one hour each day.
• Due to transportation requirements, transportation to our elementary schools will be staggered. Accordingly, two of our elementary schools (Riley and Leighton) will begin their day at 8:35 a.m. and end at 2:30 p.m. The remaining schools (Fitzhugh, Minetto and Kingsford Park) will begin their day at 9:35 a.m. and end at 3:30 p.m.
• On every Wednesday, students will receive a half day of live-streamed learning in the morning and a half day of asynchronous learning in the afternoon. Students who require one-to-one support or small group instruction will be scheduled to receive this during the asynchronous block. Academic intervention support (for specific students), social emotional support, and/or counseling services will also be provided during this time.

Secondary Schools (grades 7-12)

• Due to NYSDOH Guidance that requires that we place students in cohorts, all secondary students will continue for now, to attend school for “in person” learning for a minimum of two days a week.
• When students are not in school for “in-person” learning they will continue to have all of their classes live streamed.
• All secondary schedules will be extended by approximately one hour each day.
• On every Wednesday, students will receive a half day of live streamed learning in the morning and a half day of asynchronous learning in the afternoon.  Students who require one-to-one support or small group instruction will be scheduled to receive this during the asynchronous block. Academic intervention support (for specific students), social emotional support, and/or counseling services will also be provided during this time.

Please be advised, after meeting with stakeholders, it is possible that more changes may be added to our plan. If that is the case, I will be in touch with the community by no later than Thursday afternoon.

Given this information, parents/guardians should know that the district is ready to hit the ground running with respect to our plan. In fact, the district is now looking for a start date of next Monday, April 26, 2021, for at least our minimum plan, which is listed above. This is because, like many of you, we are concerned about our students and want to see them return as soon as possible.

With that said, I am encouraging parents and/or guardians to begin to plan for the specified start date as listed above. Regardless of what our final planning outcomes are, we will be at a minimum starting with the plan that is listed above.

Again, I will be back in touch with all of you after our meeting on Thursday. Thank you all for your efforts and patience as we work through this temporary delay with our plans.

Yours in Education,
Mathis Calvin III, Ed. D.
Superintendent of Schools