Dear PSD Staff & Families,

We hope you are all well as you continue to navigate the daily challenges of the pandemic. Here are some updates for this week:

Second Grade Family Intent Surveys Sent
PSD is currently providing safe, in-person learning for preschool, K-1 students and other small groups. Our goal is to welcome back our second graders for those who wish to come to school for in-person learning on Thursday, November 5. We will continue with our planning while knowing that the addition of new students to campus is dependent upon guidance from the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department (TPCHD) and COVID-19 case rates.

Information from the survey emailed to families last night will tell us which families want their child to come to school for in-person learning and which families want their child to continue to learn remotely. This will help us to plan our staffing. Survey deadline is midnight, Sunday, Oct. 18.

Even though TPCHD is currently reporting COVID-19 case rates which are trending higher, we believe it is in the best interest of students, staff, and families to continue planning for the return of students for in-person learning.  

Other In-Person Learning Activities
Beginning in mid-October, some individual and small groups of students in grades 2-12 who receive special education services in a resource room setting have the option to come to school for in-person services. Additionally, individual or small groups of students who are English Learners, who are experiencing homelessness, and who are experiencing other challenges in successfully accessing remote learning are being identified for limited in-person services and connections with teachers and staff. These students come to school for limited periods of time and are required to adhere to our safety protocols.

Nutrition Services Staff Recognition Week - Oct. 12-16
Please join us in thanking our amazing Nutrition Services staff this week. They work hard in preparing delicious and healthy meals for our students and have adapted to distributing meals during the pandemic. Thank you for all you do! 

Community Partner Free Meal Kits
Through their partners at YMCA Camp Seymour, the Greater Gig Harbor Foundation is offering meal kits free of charge to interested families living in our greater Gig Harbor and Key Peninsula community. You can learn more and reserve a meal kit here.

Health and Safety
As we enter the cold and flu season, we fully expect to see our students on our campuses with various ailments typical for school age children (runny noses, coughs, fever, general malaise). 

Any person at school exhibiting illness is asked to leave; students are contained in a supervised isolation room until a parent arrives. Staff and parents are given instructions about next steps, including a recommendation to get a COVID-19 test. Students and staff are required to stay at home until a they receive a negative test result, a doctor’s note, or ten days have passed without symptoms. Our schools are only notified by the health department if a positive test result is confirmed for someone in our school buildings and then the TPCHD will provide direction. In all other instances, information regarding student health is confidential and cannot be shared.

Thank you, PSD Families
We want to thank you for your support of our dedicated educators who are working hard every day to teach our children in a new and different way. We also recognize the investment you have made to help remote learning be successful for your child. If your child is attending school in-person, we appreciate how you’ve adapted to the new rules by making sure your child is well and wears a face covering to school every day. As the pandemic wears on, please know we are all doing our very best to provide the education our children deserve. 

Sincerely,

PSD Leadership