Dear Florence Brasser Families;
“Together we teach and inspire excellence for all learners.” -District Mission
“Learning together, Leading together, Achieving together” -Building Vision
Brasser Elementary welcomes the family –school partnership:
As we reflect on the past month, it will be a memory that we will remember for a lifetime; And we still do not know what tomorrow brings. We are all responding to the rapidly changing events and the information below contains the latest updates for our Brasser school learning community. This is uncharted territory for us. The more we work as a team the stronger we will be and the more support we can give each other: school, family and our students.
New York State Education Department has now set the focus for the priority for instruction is to provide learning opportunities that will best prepare students to meet the learning outcomes for the end of a course/grade. What this means is that now our online learning activities will include new content that would have been taught if school was not closed. In addition to the new content, we will continue to provide materials for review, skill development, preview and enrichment. The Governor’s recent Executive Order requires school districts to provide remote instruction up to and including April 14. This includes the week of spring vacation. As Superintendent Dailey has stated in his weekly update: However, Gates Chili will take a common-sense approach to this directive, realizing that families are already stressed, balancing many responsibilities for the upcoming week.
Continuity of Learning:
Thank you for your support and partnership as we begin implementing new learning for students in the upcoming weeks. We are taking a measured approach with this implementation, as we truly want to ensure a healthy balance between instruction and family time. In a normal school day, instruction is from 9-3:30 (6.5 hours) Our goal and intention is to provide sound learning opportunities for students ranging from 1.5 hours to 3 hours per day dependent on your grade level with our intermediate grades maxing at 3 hours. Consistency is proven beneficial for our young learners, especially in these unknown days. Therefore, we recommend for our students to dedicate their learning time in the morning if at all possible. After completing their work, they can then eat lunch and have a fun, active afternoon. Of course, this is flexible dependent on your family needs. More information will be shared with you by your classroom teachers.
Assessment:
It is important to know that student work will not be graded at this time. This does not mean students should not be completing work; We understand the need to be flexible at this time, therefore teachers will only be providing feedback.
Instructional Technology:
This past Tuesday, we were able to provide over 200 students their laptops so learning can continue at home. We are hoping the families that were not able to make it, have access using their home devices. Parents and students who need assistance with district-issued devices, are urged to call (585) 340-5522 and leave a message. Our district Tech support will do their best to respond in 24-48 hours. You can also submit an IT Request in ClassLink or at www.gateschili.org/TechSupport. If anyone is without internet, please contact Mr. Young at 247-1880 se we can assist you in connecting.
Finally, thank you to our parents for working so closely with us to support our students. We look forward to working with you to ensure instruction continues by partnering with you and your most treasured resource…your child.
Sincerely,
Tim Young,
Principal
Meghan Bello,
Assistant Principal
Like you, our hearts are heavy each time there is a story in the news like the one this week about George Floyd. These acts of violence continue to create a massive rift in our society. It is my top priority as superintendent to provide a safe, caring environment for learning for all Gates Chili students.
As this school year winds down and we begin to plan for next school year, New York State wants to engage families in a virtual conversation to ensure all voices are heard. You are invited to participate, read and rate other participants' responses. The deadline to submit is this Friday, May 29.
Meet the candidates running for Board of Education in our Virtual Meet the Candidate Night video. Three candidates will be elected to the board at the annual district vote on June 9, 2020. Each will serve a three-year term beginning July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2023.
Assistant Superintendent for Business Dr. Mitchell Ball gives a detailed presentation of the proposed budget for the 2020-21 school year. Vote by absentee ballot by June 9 at 5 p.m.
This newsletter contains information about the 2020-21 budget on pages 6-9, along with many highlights that make up our collective GC Pride.
To say that we miss our students, our work family and our school is an understatement!
Join us in celebrating ALL our amazing staff during the week of May 4-8 by hanging a sign in your window.
