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Letter To Families From Superintendent: Extended Closure Survey, Facebook Live, More
April 1, 2020 

 

Dear CH-UH Families,

I hope that you all had a relaxing Spring Break and that your children are transitioning back into virtual learning. I’m writing to share a few important items; please read this message carefully.

Closure Extension

On Monday, Governor DeWine extended the statewide school building closure for students until May 1. He will re-evaluate whether to extend the building closure even further at a later date. Tier 2 of our district’s continuous learning plan runs through April 9; this means that Tier 3 (i.e., a virtual learning plan for after April 9) must now be defined. Administrators and building leaders will continue to finalize these details and an updated plan that runs through the end of April will be shared as soon as it is available.

We would like to hear from you on the experiences your children are having thus far with distance learning. Please complete this survey (one per child). This will help inform our planning as we move forward. 

After discussions with city leaders, we have also made the decision to temporarily close the community gardens that are located on school property for health and safety reasons. 

EdChoice Update
Governor DeWine signed Ohio House Bill 197 into law on Friday, which among many other items, contains new laws pertaining to the EdChoice voucher program. We lost nearly $7.2 million this fiscal year due to EdChoice and the state budget freeze, and we originally had projected $7.5 million in losses for the next fiscal year. We expect the passage of this new law will lead to at least $1 million in additional losses for our district during the next fiscal year, for a projected total of at least $8.5 million in EdChoice-related losses. This will have a devastating impact on our budget for next year. Our Board of Education issued a strong statement condemning the State’s decision, which you can read here. I urge you to join us in taking action by writing a letter to Ohio legislators using this template as a guide.

Issue 26 - CH-UH Schools Levy

Although we understand that health and safety come first, the postponement of the March 17th Primary Election has created even greater uncertainty by delaying the decision by voters on the Issue 26 school levy. As a result, we will be forced to plan for next year without a complete financial picture, requiring us to plan for the worst case scenario in terms of funding, so that we can be prepared for either levy outcome.

Ongoing Communication

I will be going live on our District’s Facebook page tonight at 7 p.m. to discuss all of these topics and more with you. Be sure to like and follow the page so you don’t miss it. As always, I will continue emailing information and making robocalls; your child’s teachers and schools will continue their communication with you as well.

There’s no denying that we are heading into a time of uncertainty. The challenges of this pandemic and its impact on you, your children and our staff are compounded by the funding crisis we face as a result of EdChoice. Please know that all decisions will be made with care, transparency, and—above all else—with our students as the center.

Sincerely,
 

Superintendent Kirby

Twitter: @CHUHSupt

P.S. If you need assistance with internet access at home, Spectrum and Comcast are both offering free internet services. Please click the links to learn more.