School Closure

Today, Lane County became one of 3 counties in Oregon to move into the “RED” Category in regards to the CDC “community level” chart.  As a reminder, this data can be found on the right hand side of this page, on the District website at this link:  https://www.fernridge.k12.or.us/2020-school-year/

When a county moves to red, two of their recommendations are as follows:

  • Wear a mask indoors in public
  • Additional precautions may be needed for people at high risk for severe illness.

Because these are currently recommendations, and not requirements, at this time the district is simply putting out the information, and recommending folks wear masks indoors and that individuals consider further precautions based on your personal circumstances.

Tonight is graduation in the EHS gym.  Masks are recommended, but not required.  For our final week of school, absent any changes in the requirements, or significant changes to the COVID environment, I would expect this to remain unchanged.

 

American flag hanging on wallThere is no school for students tomorrow, May 27th (teacher work sample day) and in observance of Memorial Day there is no school for students or staff on Monday, May 30th.

Hope everyone has a great (and safe!) holiday weekend.

A quick update on our current COVID situation —  we continue to deal with many staff and students testing positive for COVID-19.  We currently have over 30 folks out district-wide including 10 staff members who are sick.

One of the most impactful ways you can help us maintain in-person instruction is by keeping your student(s) home when they are are not feeling well.  We all need to come together and work to keep school open for these final three weeks. 

Thank you for your continued assistance and partnership!

2022 English Language Arts (ELA) Curriculum Adoption

Stack of books clipart 5

Dear Fern Ridge School District Students, Families, and Community Members:

This year, FRSD will be adopting a new language arts curriculum for K-12 students across the district, designed to meet Oregon’s state educational standards and align between grade levels. Curriculum includes the textbooks, materials, and digital resources that support student instruction. Teams from each school including administrators, classroom and special education teachers, intervention specialists, and English language development specialists have been researching programs from various publishers.

Following a rigorous evaluation process, we are excited to share FRSD’s recommended curriculum with our families. Feedback from community stakeholders is welcomed.

K-5:      McGraw Hill – Wonders

6-8:      Houghton Mifflin Harcourt – Into Literature

9-12:    Savvas – My Perspectives

If you would like to stop by the District Office to view the materials in person, ask questions, or share your opinions, please feel free set up an appointment.

This FRSD ELA Curriculum Review.pptx outlines our review process and contains links so you can explore additional information, view publisher videos, and more. After reviewing the materials, please complete this survey to share your thoughts.

Thank you for sharing your perspective and partnering with us as we work to adopt and implement the best possible curriculum to support FRSD students’ and teachers’ needs.

Michelle Marshall

Director of K-12 Programs

541-935-2253, ext. 1220

mmarshall@fernridge.k12.or.us

 

Throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic, FRSD has followed all requirements set forth by both OHA and ODE.  On Wednesday, ODE released an update to the COVID health and safety protocols school districts in Oregon are expected to follow beginning on March 12th, the date the mask mandate ends in Oregon for K-12 schools.  Beginning the 12th, the vast majority of COVID mitigation guideline decisions will happen at the local level.

While the District will put out more specific and detailed information prior to the 12th, for now, a brief summary of the new guidelines that FRSD will follow, are listed below:

  • Contract tracing is no longer required:  FRSD will not require it.
  • Students who are exposed will not need to quarantine if exposed, unless symptomatic:  FRSD will follow this.  We are still working on the best way to provide notification to parents when their child has been exposed at school.
  • Students and staff who test positive, or become symptomatic after an exposure, must isolate:  FRSD will follow this exclusion requirement.
  • Testing:  We will continue to offer testing to families that request it.
  • Masks are no longer required for staff or students at school or on buses:  FRSD will will not require them.

If you have questions or concerns about the new guidelines, please feel free to contact me at 541-935-2253 or gcarpenter@fernridge.k12.or.us.  A complete update/graphic is in the works that outlines all critical information and will be released soon.

Please remember that there are still some staff and students who will choose to wear a mask within the school setting.  We will respect EVERYONE’S choice and as a District will not tolerate anything short of full support for this choice, as the state mandate is now lifted.

To those that have continued to show grace and patience throughout the pandemic, your support is appreciated.  Our GOAL remains the ability to continue to provide in-person instruction daily while keeping staff and students healthy and at school!  THE SINGLE BIGGEST THING OUR FAMILIES CAN DO TO HELP SUPPORT THIS GOAL IS TO REMAIN HOME WHEN SICK!

We all are looking forward to a return to something more normal, while remaining vigilant to ensure instruction is not impacted in the months to come.

Gary E. Carpenter, Jr. Superintendent, FRSD

For the foreseeable future, we will be addressing a heating issue at EHS.  This morning we found that the primary mixing valve had failed in the boiler system.  Earlier this year, our maintenance staff identified this valve as needing to be replaced and we ordered one.  It was scheduled to be here in late December to change out, however, the part has not yet arrived due to supply/factory issues and today it failed.

We will be monitoring the heat in the school closely and be doing several things to help keep the rooms to temperature until this problem can be fixed.  We had multiple experts on site today and we will continue to problem solve along side them in the days to come.

In the meantime, students should dress for cooler temperatures on campus, especially first thing in the morning, before strategies we will be implementing have time to take effect each day. We will continue to monitor and adjust.  For future updates, please follow the EHS webpage.

Today we have been able to resolve the circumstances from the January 3rd incident where it was reported to school administrators that someone had seen a “threat” on social media.  Thank you to local law enforcement (LCSO), and their numerous other partners, for working with the district diligently to resolve this.  As you may recall, due to receiving this information in the early evening hours of January 3rd, and an inability to gather enough information to solve the issue that night, the decision was made to cancel school for EHS and FRMS on January 4th.  By the end of the day on the 4th we determined this was not a credible threat and were confident enough in the circumstances surrounding this issue to return to school the following day.  Since that time, I, along with other District staff and law enforcement, have spent time on this issue each and every day.  It is one we take seriously.

Earlier this afternoon a student and her family met with law enforcement.  She was cooperative and honest about these circumstances and admitted to making up the fact that a threat had been seen on social media. She was cited in lieu of custody due to her honesty and cooperation and released to her parents.  Subsequently, I also met with the family.  Law enforcement will be pursuing appropriate charges based on these specific circumstances, and the school district will be doing the same through our discipline/due-process guidelines and policies.   The family has been very cooperative and in addition to appropriate consequences, we will be looking for ways to support this student and her family in the days and weeks to come.

A reminder to our students that threats made or reported for ANY reason will be taken seriously and they have significant ramifications and consequences to not only the perpetrator, but our entire community.  Thank you to our staff, students and parents for your patience as we worked through this.  The safety and security of all students is our first priority.  As always, if you hear or see anything that may indicate a safety issue, please report it right away.

Gary E. Carpenter, Jr., Superintendent, FRSD 28J

Today, ODE released graduation rate data for the 20-21 school  year.  That data can be viewed here:  GRADUATION RATE DATA.

A BRIEF summary of the data is below.  Thank you to all of our staff across the District K-12 that work tirelessly to support our students and their pursuit of a diploma.  In addition, thank you to the families that prioritize school and encourage the academic achievement of their children!

20-21 4 year cohort graduation rate for all students in the State of Oregon:  80.63%

20-21 4 year graduation rate for all Lane County students:  77.82%

20-21 4 year graduation rate of Elmira High School students:  91.01%

The FRSD is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative      Action/Veteran’s Preference employer.

 

The district does not discriminate on the basis of  race, religion, color, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, sex or  age in its programs or activities.

 

FRSD Title IX Coordinator

Michelle Marshall 541-935-2253 Ext 1220

FRSD ADA Title II Coordinator

Gary Carpenter 541-935-2253 Ext 1203

FRSD 504 Coordinator

Rilke Klingsporn 541-935-2253 Ext 1301

88834 Territorial Rd.

Elmira, OR 97437

            

ODE Fall 2023 Title IX Sexual Harassment Training August 2023

Title IX Review & Refresh

Title IX Sexual Harassment Part 1 of 2

Part 2 of 2

 

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