sick child

Here we are the first of October faced with another school closure due to illness.  Don’t get me wrong — I believe this closure was justified and necessary (24% students/21% teachers absent) — it just creates headaches for both parents and school personnel.  

If you are like me and our teachers, you are probably wondering how long before students must make up these missed days.    You might not know this, but for  several years, Loudon County has built extra minutes into the normal instructional day to account for 13 “stockpiled” days.  In the past, these were the days used for inclement weather closures.   So far, we have used six days for illness.    The biggest worry now is about future outbreaks of flu and additional school closures later in the winter months. 

As we face these issues, let me reassure you we will do everything possible to ensure our students meet and exceed all grade level expectations.  Our master schedule has little time for “fluff,” and over the next several weeks, we will be looking for ways to “sneak” in additional teaching time. 

Our custodial staff is in the building as I write this cleaning all desks, door knobs, and stair railings.  We will all continue working together to make the best of this difficult situation.