Dear District 99 Students and Families:
We are looking forward to starting the Modified Hybrid Schedule - Week One - tomorrow, Tuesday, October 20 and welcoming students who elected to start in-person learning. Please refer to our 2020-21 Updates Page for more information about the schedule.
Please also refer to your principal’s update from Friday for details: Click here for the DGN message and click here to read the DGS message. (You can look up which schedule your student will follow on Home Access Center; see instructions here.)
Please also note that today the DuPage County Health Department (DCHD) released current metrics on community transmission of COVID-19 and the County has moved into the Substantial Level based on the number of cases per 100,000. We will continue to closely monitor the metrics and consult with the DuPage County Health Department to determine how long we can safely continue in-person learning. In keeping with current guidance, if we see trending data that is not improving in the “Substantial Community Transmission” (red) levels, we may move back to a fully remote learning environment. Also factored into the decision are our district metrics. We update these each week and they can be found under “Resources” on our 20-21 Update Page. We have also added three weeks of historical data to this page and will continue to update this throughout the year.
For this week we will continue forward with the Modified Hybrid Plan, as our discussions with the DuPage County Health Department have indicated it is safe to do so under our current schedule and safety precautions.
NOTE: the District will continue to review a number of criteria before a decision is made to switch models, including: the current metrics from the DCHD on a county and local level by zip code, actual cases in the district, staffing and the impact on the educational process.
Based on our conversations with the DCHD, we feel our current Modified Hybrid Plan remains safe for students and staff to return to in-person learning and we will move forward with in-person learning this week. The DCHD made it clear to all districts on Friday that the mitigation efforts currently being implemented in schools have been effective in slowing the spread of COVID-19 in the school setting. However, a continued downward trend of the community metrics or an increase in school related cases could lead us to change course after next week.
District 99 believes it is safe to be in school because of the health and safety measures that must be followed. All students and staff must wear masks, maintain social distancing, and frequently wash and/or sanitize their hands. These preventive measures are effective and are closely adhered to in District 99. In many ways, schools are more stringent than most other places (public and private).
The DuPage County Health Department has also reminded the community in this press release that we are reliant on everyone to slow the spread of COVID-19 to allow our students to fully return to school. Please continue to wear a mask, adhere to social distancing guidelines, and frequently wash/and or sanitize your hands to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Thank you,
District 99