Please watch this important message from Dr. Santelises and read the additional information below. In the past few weeks, we have heard directly from our school leaders and school staff that with everything we have to do to support our students, many staff members are struggling both physically and mentally under the enormous workload. We want you to know that we hear you and are therefore taking a series of steps to support your wellness and provide some relief during this challenging time.
November 5 Professional Development Day and Wellness Afternoon All school staff will have the afternoon of November 5, after professional development that morning, as a wellness afternoon. Staff can do something that will restore you or bring you joy - meditate, exercise, rest, meet a friend, see a healthcare provider, etc.
Thanksgiving Break Currently, schools and offices are scheduled to be closed for Thanksgiving break on Thursday, November 25 and Friday, November 26. To give everyone some additional time off, we are asking the Board on November 9 to approve a change to the calendar to make Tuesday, November 23 an early release day for students and school-based staff and to close schools and offices on Wednesday, November 24. Once approved by the Board, we will communicate the schedule change with all staff and families.
Three Additional Early Release Days for Students We are adding three additional early release days for students throughout the rest of the school year so that school staff will have additional teacher-directed time on those afternoons to plan and complete other tasks. One of the spring early release days will also be designated as a wellness afternoon for school staff. Specific dates for these early release days will be communicated along with the Thanksgiving break schedule changes once approved by the Board.
SLOs and Student Learning Plans To give staff more time, the due date for teacher submission of SLOs has been delayed until November 12 and approval of teacher SLOs by school leaders has been delayed until December 3. In addition, the due date for Student Learning Plans has been delayed until December 23.
Extended Learning and Tutoring While schools that are ready can start earlier, extended learning and tutoring programs are now not required to begin until January 10.
Assessments and Core Content We will be reducing curriculum-based assessments, as well as content in some core content areas. The academics office and school leaders will communicate this information with school staff when available.
We hope that these shifts will provide some much-needed relief to school staff. We thank all of you again for everything you are doing to support our students through these unprecedented times.
Baltimore City Public Schools does not discriminate based on race, ethnicity, color, ancestry, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, pregnancy/parenting status, disability, veteran status, genetic information, age, or other legally or constitutionally protected attributes or affiliations, as outlined in Board Policies JBA, JBB, JICK, ACA, ACB, and ACD. Read the full nondiscrimination notice. |