Good afternoon, Fairbanks Families,
Hope everyone is doing well. My family and I were introduced to the Fairbanks Community on February 15, 2019. Since that time, we have made friends, connected with community members, and jumped into the Fairbanks family. I have learned that our community has much more in common than it has differences. Each person in our school community - teachers, students, support staff, parents, and community members - continues to do their best, working together through this school year. We will continue to move forward, focusing on the things that unite us, such as our pride for Fairbanks. Thank you for all you do to make a difference everyday for Fairbanks!
Permanent Improvement Levy Message
I would like to thank everyone who took the time to cast their ballot in this year’s general election. Fairbanks Local Schools had a renewal of the 5- Year Permanent Improvement Levy on the ballot this year. We are pleased to say the levy passed. Please see the message to our community below:
Community Connect and Town Hall
We will host our annual Town Hall on November 12th at 7:00 pm. This year it will be a virtual event. We look forward to having conversations with our community. Please look for additional information over the coming weeks.
Throughout the course of the year there will be opportunities to dialogue about Fairbanks Local Schools. Please visit our Community Connect page for the event schedule and details. The majority of events will be held virtually and links to access the meetings are posted on the website.
Fairbanks Local Digital Academy - Second Semester
Families will have the opportunity to change their learning environment by moving into or out of our Fairbanks Local Digital Academy (FLDA) in the second semester of school. Please contact Teresa Goins if you would like to continue FLDA, transfer into FLDA or transfer back into the physical school building. Families will need to make this decision no later than Tuesday, December 1, 2020.
Inclement Weather/Calamity Days
As always this time of year, we are diligently watching the weather reports. Any delay or closing of school will be communicated through email, phone call, text message and app alert. Additionally, closings and delays are communicated through our local news TV channels and radio stations. Families are encouraged to have a plan for childcare when and if school would need to delay or close due to weather.
Now that our students and staff have the ability to maneuver between in person and remote learning, there is concern that calamity days will be replaced with remote learning. While we are incredibly proud of our staff and students and their ability to adjust to the changes to our learning environment, we’re planning to keep calamity days. Due to the nature of a calamity day, it would present some challenges for our teachers to develop remote lesson plans. We will implement the blizzard bag policy or make up days as determined in the school calendar, when and if we exceed our allotment of calamity days. For more information regarding how the district manages inclement weather and calamity days, please visit our website.
Learning Level Update
Wednesday will be a remote learning day from now through Winter Break. The decision was made to keep this as a remote day so that we can continue to provide a mid-week deep cleaning of our classrooms and buildings.
Below is our current schedule:
Week of November 2nd
- Nov. 3rd: Election Day (Remote Learning; Professional Development Day)
- Nov. 4th: Remote Learning
Week of November 9th
- Nov. 11th: Remote Learning
Week of November 16th
- Nov. 18th: Remote Learning
Week of November 23rd
- Nov. 23rd & 24th: In Person Learning
- Nov. 25th-27th: Thanksgiving Break
Week of November 30th
- Dec. 1st: Last day to enroll or withdraw from FLDA
- Dec. 2nd: Remote Learning
Week of December 7th
- Dec. 9th: Remote Learning
Week of December 14th
- Dec. 16th: Remote Learning
- Dec. 18th: 1pm Early Release
- December 21st - January 3rd: Winter Break
Safety Measures and Vigilance
To move in the right direction at Level 1, we need all community members to embrace mitigation efforts across our schools and in public. This includes:
- Vigorous daily symptom assessment
- Daily hand hygiene practices
- Cleaning and sanitizing practices
- Facial Coverings/Masking
Our students, staff, and parents have done a great job in these categories, especially symptom assessment and masking. We are developing some additional strategies and visual supports to help with assessments before arriving at school. Please look for them over the coming days.
Thank you for your increased vigilance allowing us to move in a positive direction and creating a safe environment for all.
COVID Updates & Information
Please refer to the internal and external resources below for information related to COVID-19:
COVID-19 Dashboard
Safe Start Guidebook
UCHD - Epidemiological Update
UCHD - Contact Tracing Flowchart
Thank you for your continued partnership and communication. If you have questions or concerns, please contact me at adhamschirg@fairbankspanthers.org.
For Fairbanks,
Adham