ETSD continues to closely monitor all official communications regarding the pandemic from the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH), New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE), and the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and will communicate any new information once it is received. We appreciate your continued cooperation in working with us to keep our students and staff healthy and virus-free during these challenging times. Please continue to communicate any issues or needs with your building principal, school nurse, and/or school counselor.
The district initiated reopening plans following the released guidance from the state, NJDOE The Road Back in late June. This guidance requires for the return to in-person instruction in some capacity come September. For ETSD, two options were provided for families: participation in a hybrid model, where students alternate on a rotating daily full-day schedule between in-person learning at school and remote learning at home, or a full-time remote-only option for the 2020-2021 school year. Click here to review the ETSD Reopening Plan for September 2020. This plan was presented to the public at the Board of Education Meeting on August 5, 2020 and approved for submission to the state. The state provided written approval of the plan in mid-August. All parents/guardians were provided cohort assignments for the designated learning models based on their selections on August 20th and school began for students on Tuesday, September 8, 2020. Click here for a Reopening FAQ resource for Parents/Guardians/Staff. Prioritized groups were established wherever possible, including but not limited to: preschool, kindergarten, 1st grade, ESL, students with special needs, etc. to allow for daily attendance, with the exception of Remote Learning Wednesdays.
The original plan was updated and readopted by the board on Thursday, March 25th. Updates included the elimination of all Remote Learning Wednesdays and collapsing of the two cohorts in the hybrid model to allow for daily attendance by all students electing to be in-person. These updates are effective for all elementary schools on Monday, April 12th and both middle schools April 19th. A remote-only cohort continues to be an option for families. Any family that wishes to alter their current model of learning (full in-person or full-remote) should contact their school principal for more information.
The health and safety of our students and staff, along with providing a high quality education for our students continues to our top priorities. Student expectations for remote learning days were shared with all stakeholders prior to the start of the school year and can be viewed by clicking here. As all learning models utilize some type of technology application, the district continues to have a tech support team available to students, families, and staff. The team can be contacted directly at [email protected]. Be sure to include student name, teacher name, and a contact number in your email. Click here for a parent resource with information and screencasts on accessing your child's technology platform and troubleshooting,
All NJ residents continue to be under the Governor's order as the state reopens in phases. This includes the wearing of facial covering/masks and practice of social distancing at all times. Listed below are what families, students and staff can continue to do to help reduce the spread of viruses in our school and community:
- Wash your hands often with soap and water. Use alcohol-based hand sanitizer, if soap and water are not available.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands. coughs and sneezes with a tissue or sleeve, not your hands, discard the tissue and wash or sanitize hands.
- Stay home if you are sick. Children who are sick should be kept home until they are fever free for 24 hours (with no medication) prior to returning to school.
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
- Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces.
- Get a flu shot.
- In addition, if planning to travel, parents should review and follow CDC and NJDOH travel advisories. All ETSD families must follow all travel advisory quarantines. If you become ill after returning home, call your healthcare provider.
For additional health and safety guidance from the ETSD School Nurse Department, click on one of the links below:
Parents are also encouraged to click here to view a variety of resources related to COVID-19, anxiety, working remotely, mental health services, and more.
For official information regarding the coronavirus, please visit one or more of the following websites:
NJ Department of Health
Center for Disease Control
NJ COVID-19 Information Hub
Please click here to view weekly updates for ETSD families.
Spring 2020 Extended Closure: Student online learning opportunities were initiated on Monday, March 16th and continued daily through the end of the school year. Click here to view remote learning highlights from last spring.
The district also created a Google Site webpage that includes all applicable information and communications as it relates to COVID-19. Click on the following link to access: ETSD Google Site for COVID-19 Information.