State College Area School District

We are excited to announce the next regular scheduled Straight Talk session titled: Collective Grief on Tuesday, Nov. 17 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. with TIDES’ Evelyn Wald. In these "unprecedented times" we are experiencing many changes. Whenever there is a change, there is also a loss. When there is a loss, there is grief. This presentation will explore our losses and acknowledge our grieving. Find the Zoom link to watch here: https://scasd.zoom.us/j/94344403366. A recording of t...his event can later be found on our Straight Talk website. Do you have any questions about grief and loss? Please complete the following google (https://forms.gle/3HNJ25CLjgRPey628) form prior to Monday, Nov 16. Also, don’t be afraid to bring your questions to the session. We hope to see you there.

Calling for SCASD Substitute Teachers and Paras! Dear SCASD Community Member: We need you! Currently, our district is experiencing a severe shortage of substitute teachers and paraprofessionals. For a variety of reasons, we’re facing staffing challenges, so we are reaching out to our community for help. ... These openings must be filled as soon as possible. If you, or someone you know, is interested, please apply now. To be a substitute teacher earning $95 per day, you must have at least a bachelor's degree. Paraprofessional positions require a high school diploma, and depending on their role, start at $11.50 per hour and go up from there. In addition, we are seeking substitute bus drivers, custodians, nurses, and food services workers. For all positions, we will provide the training you need. Please consider joining us for a rewarding job that will help our community’s children. To learn more or apply, please visit our job listing website (https://scasd.tedk12.com/hire/index.aspx) or contact Shelbi Smeltzer at 814-272-3910 or [email protected]. Sincerely, Bob O’Donnell Superintendent of Schools

State High Cross Country Runners Excel Despite Challenges

Dear Parents and Guardians: After consulting with our Health and Safety Team today, we have decided to remain in schools next week, Nov. 9-13. When assessing our status, we considered the number and nature of recent COVID-19 cases in the district. This week, we had four unrelated cases of COVID-19 in three separate buildings. Contact tracing identified that each case had no close contacts within the district. ... The countywide seven day average of COVID-19 cases is 34, a decrease from 45 the previous week. During the same period, we also have seen the seven-day average percent positivity drop from 16 percent to 10 percent. Even though we’re encouraged to see these changes, from our discussions with Mount Nittany Medical Center, we’re still concerned about local COVID-19 hospitalizations. In light of the virus’ continued presence in our community, please continue to exercise caution and follow safety measures such as maintaining physical distancing, wearing masks, and avoiding gatherings, especially indoors. We have received questions about how we are handling contact tracing. For student cases, our nurses conduct the contact tracing. With employees, our human resources department, in collaboration with our nurses, completes the tracing. In most cases, there are no close contacts. This is a testament to the protocols in our health and safety plan. To be clear, if everyone abides by the plan, there technically would never be any close contacts. In reality, however, this isn’t always the case, and why for every case, we have professionally trained people completing our contact tracing. To help with your understanding of isolation, quarantine, returns to school and contact tracing, our nurses developed this flow chart: https://docs.google.com//1cbQ7aJRHZrC9mWnokKE0eqV2_A/edit. Thank you for your continued commitment to following COVID-19 safety measures at all times. Sincerely, Bob O’Donnell Superintendent of Schools

The Nov. 3 Straight Talk for Parents presentation entitled, "Vaccinate the Nation," is now available to view via C-NET.

Spring Break Calendar Adjustment Proposal Dear Parents and Guardians: Last night, our district administration presented an updated draft of the 2020-2021 academic calendar to the Board of Directors. Our proposal is to reduce the number of days off during spring break to discourage travel to minimize potential exposure to COVID-19. This idea stems from Penn State previously eliminating their spring break.... The recommended plan was developed through our calendar committee, which includes parent representatives, and by a survey of our faculty and instructional support staff. As you can see below, the plan distributes the spring break days throughout the winter and spring. No school on Monday, Feb. 15 President’s Day No school on Thursday, March 11 and Friday, March 12 No school on Friday, April 30 Final student day shifts from Thursday, June 3 to Wednesday, June 2 Lastly, the below information will clarify our plans for snow days this school year. When districtwide in-person learning is offered: Snow days will be used in the traditional manner. All students will have the day off and the day will be made up at a later time through our scheduled snow make-up days. During districtwide fully-remote learning: Regular learning will occur remotely and the day would not need to be made up. For any students accessing special education services in our schools, we would work with those families on a case-by-case basis. We will bring the updated calendar back to the Board as an action item to request approval on Nov. 16. View the proposed calendar here: https://www.scasd.org//Cen/Domain/1/2021Calendar110220.pdf Stay safe and well, Chris Rosenblum Communications Director

The Monday, Nov. 2 Board of Directors meeting is now available to view via C-NET.

We are excited to announce a special mini Straight Talk session titled: Vaccinate the Nation on Tuesday, Nov. 3 from 7 to 8 p.m. with Penn State’s student program, Vaccinate America. Vaccinate America, a Penn State student-run organization, focuses on advancing vaccine awareness and helping the community make responsible, educated decisions regarding vaccination. On Nov. 3, its interactive Zoom presentation will cover the basics of vaccines: how they work, why they work, an...d how they protect not only oneself, but also other members of the community. In addition, the presentation will address several common questions and misconceptions parents and community members may have when considering vaccination for themselves and their children. There also will be a discussion about the influenza vaccine a timely topic as flu season begins in the United States. Find the Zoom link to watch here: https://psu.zoom.us/j/91053155737. A recording of this event can later be found on our Straight Talk website. Come join us for a short, informational session and don’t be afraid to bring any questions about vaccines you may have. We hope to see you there.

Trick or Treat Postponed to Sunday, Nov. 1. Due to forecasted weather, the Centre Region Office of Emergency Management is postponing trick or treat night in the Borough of State College and the Townships of College, Ferguson, Harris and Patton to Sunday, November 1 from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM. Rainfall from Hurricane Zeta is forecast to overspread the Centre Region beginning Thursday afternoon and continue into the evening. The National Weather Service forecast calls for 1 to 3... inches of locally heavy rain. The rain date was established by the Centre Region Council of Governments in September. October 31 was avoided due to the home Penn State football game. Officials wanted to ensure there were adequate resources available to ensure the safety of residents choosing to participate in trick or treating activities. Residents choosing to participate in trick or treating activities are asked to following the CDC’s guidance on Safer Trick or Treating. That guidance can be found online at: https://www.cdc.gov//daily-life-co/holidays/halloween.html See more

The State College Food Bank, the State College Area School District (SCASD), and the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank want to ensure that Centre County families have the food that they need for a great Thanksgiving meal. The State College Food Bank serves many area families, and they are already signed up to receive food for their Thanksgiving feast. The Thanksgiving distribution that is being coordinated by SCASD is for individuals and families in Centre County who are not cur...rent clients of the State College Food Bank but could use a little extra help this holiday. Complete the registration form below to receive a turkey and all the fixings for your holiday. Food pick-up will be at the SCASD North Athletics/Delta Building at 653 Westerly Parkway in State College on November 17 from 4:00 to 6:30 PM. Apply now: https://docs.google.com//1FAIpQLSe1QiB8UAj0gWWcp/viewform

Dear Parents and Guardians: After careful consideration, and in consultation with our health and safety team, we have decided to continue in-person learning next week, Oct. 26-28, as there is no school for students on Oct. 29 and 30. Advised by the health and safety team, the administration considers multiple factors when making decisions. This week, the team noted a continued downward trend of COVID-19 cases within district zip codes. The seven-day average of cases in those... zip codes went from 34 per day as of last Thursday to 20 yesterday the lowest average since Sept. 3. Since the first day of school, we have had seven positive COVID-19 cases among students and seven among employees. One point of emphasis: We want to continue offering in-school learning long-term, but for that to happen, we need everyone's commitment both in and outside of school. Please continue to be diligent about wearing masks, remaining physically distant, washing your hands and avoiding large gatherings. At the advice of our legal counsel, we are updating our process on how we notify our community about positive COVID-19 cases. This change is necessary to protect the privacy of our students and employees. When we have a positive case in a building, we will now send the same communication to that building’s employees and parents. We then will update our dashboard and post the email on our website. You may have seen that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has updated their close contact guidelines related to the 15-minute exposure time over a 24-hour period. Since Aug. 26, our district contact tracing has been utilizing the 15-minute cumulative exposure time over a 48-hour period regardless of mask-wearing, a stricter approach to determining the need for quarantine. On a final note, Centre County government will be providing a free walk-in COVID-19 testing site over a 21-day period, with testing beginning Oct. 27 and ending Nov 14. Click here for details (https://centrecountypa.gov//COVID-19-Updates-from-Centre-C). We greatly appreciate our community’s continued vigilance with health and safety measures. Sincerely, Bob O’Donnell Superintendent of School

The Oct. 20 Straight Talk for Parents entitled, "Diversity and Inclusivity," with the Youth Service Bureau Diversity and Inclusion Team is now available to view via C-NET.