Update to the 2020-21 school year education plan

The first day of school will be August 11, 2020. At this time, we do not have education plans finalized for the 2020-2021 school year; with COVID-19, things are constantly changing. We currently have a special task force working together in collaboration with Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LADPH), California Department of Education (CDE), and the Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE) to determine how to best (and safely) serve our students and families in accordance with guidelines set forth by the state of California. The task force is comprised of Castaic Union School District (CUSD) parents, health care providers, nurses, school psychologists, teachers, support staff, and administrators, which gives us varied and valuable perspectives. The task force has considered the education models recommended by LACOE and discussed in-depth how each of these models might affect our students, staff, and families.

The first day of school will be August 11, 2020. At this time, we do not have education plans finalized for the 2020-2021 school year; with COVID-19, things are constantly changing. We currently have a special task force working together in collaboration with Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LADPH), California Department of Education (CDE), and the Los Angeles Cohttps://www.castaicusd.com/apps/news/article/1252522unty Office of Education (LACOE) to determine how to best (and safely) serve our students and families in accordance with guidelines set forth by the state of California. The task force is comprised of Castaic Union School District (CUSD) parents, health care providers, nurses, school psychologists, teachers, support staff, and administrators, which gives us varied and valuable perspectives. The task force has considered the education models recommended by LACOE and discussed in-depth how each of these models might affect our students, staff, and families.

Based on parent and staff surveys and the model that the task force believes will best serve our students, staff, and families, the CUSD Governing Board gave direction at last Thursday’s meeting for staff to pursue a blended learning option and an enhanced distance learning model that we are calling CUSD Virtual Campus.

We are considering a blended model to allow half of the students to attend classes on campus on Mondays and Tuesdays (full day) and the other half of the students to attend classes on campus on Thursdays and Fridays (full day). On Wednesdays, all students would participate in distance learning from home as well as on the days they aren’t in attendance on their respective campus. Wednesdays would also be used for teacher planning and collaboration as well as sanitizing the schools. While we still have many details to work through, please know that all of the Superintendents of the Santa Clarita Valley school districts, and specifically the William S. Hart Union High School District are working together to accommodate our families as best we can.

We understand that uncertainty creates feelings of anxiety and concern and as soon as we have finalized a plan, we will share that information with you via email and social media. We appreciate your patience as we await final direction from the state and county.