FREE MEALS DURING ON-LINE LEARNING

October 16, 2020

From the Desk of Nicole Head, Director of School Nutrition

Meal Service for Gordon Central High School and Sonoraville High School during Virtual Learning and Hybrid Learning:

• For the week of 10/19 through 10/23 Breakfast and Hot Lunch Meals will be provided for GCHS and SHS Students free of charge available in the Bus Loop for pick up from 10:30am to 12:15pm, Monday thru Friday. Students are encouraged to come to their respective high schools, but if there is another school closer- they are able to go pick up from that location as well.

• For the week of 10/26-11/30 when students return to campus for Hybrid learning models at half capacity, the students are highly encouraged to eat in their cafeterias where Breakfast and Lunch are provided Free of charge. For the students who will be on opposite schedules and doing distance learning only for the first week 10/26-10/30 those students are encouraged to pick up a Free breakfast and Hot lunch from their High school or a close by school.

• ***Each Friday during the Hybrid model of learning, students on campus will be given bags to bring home meals for their 5 days of distance learning. The bags will include 5 full breakfast meals and 5 full lunch meals with heating instructions, similar to what was done during COVID feedings in March. The bags that students will bring home will be completely FREE of charge, students are highly encouraged to take bags home with them!!

Special note: All of our kitchen managers and staff members follow ServSafe guidelines and local health code regulations to provide the safest, most nutritious meals possible to your students.

HIGH SCHOOLS TO MOVE TO HYBRID SCHEDULE

Gordon County Schools has found it necessary to move to hybrid instructional model, as outlined in the district’s Back to School guidance in August, for both Gordon Central High School and Sonoraville High School beginning Monday, October 19.  The tentative return date to full-time, in-person instruction will be Monday, November 30, 2020. 

The decision to temporarily move to a hybrid schedule for both Gordon County high schools is a precautionary measure and comes following an increase in active COVID cases, resulting in a higher number of precautionary quarantines. Currently, there are seven (7) positive student cases at Gordon Central and eleven (11) students who are under quarantine from Sonoraville High School because they have tested positive for COVID-19.  

Gordon County Schools continues to carefully monitor the active cases that impact schools.  According to the Department of Public Health, the seven-day average of new cases reported increased 4.3% statewide; however, the seven-day average is down 66% state-wide from the peak on July 24.  Gordon County is not labeled by the DPH as having high-transmission indicators at this time.

During this change in the instructional delivery model, all high school students will continue to receive instruction from their assigned classroom teachers utilizing Schoology but will only attend school in-person every other week, based upon the student’s last name.  Having only half of the students in class at one time will allow for additional distancing among students within the classroom. Faculty and staff will work to prepare for this transition on Friday, October 16, and school will be closed to students.  From Monday, October 19 through Friday, October 23, all high school students will have one week of online learning through Schoology.  This will allow adequate time for facilities to receive extra disinfecting and sanitation and for teachers to plan for hybrid instruction.

Beginning Monday, October 26, students whose last names begin with the letters A-K will attend school for in-person instruction for one week, and students whose last names begin with the letters L-Z will complete lessons online through Schoology.  The week of Monday, November 2, students whose last names begin with the letters L-Z will attend school in person, and those with last names beginning with A-K will complete lessons online.  This pattern will continue until Thanksgiving break according to the following schedule:

If a family has children in the same household who would be on a different schedule, please contact the school to make any necessary accommodations for children to attend together.  Additional details will be sent from the schools in the coming days. 

Extracurricular activities will continue, unless otherwise notified by the school.  This closure does not impact any other Gordon County school, and all elementary and middle schools will operate as normal.