• Return to School planning

    As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we know there is a great deal of anxiety and uncertainty surrounding what fall instruction looks like in District 65, and across the country for that matter. We do know that Illinois schools can re-open in Phase 4 of Governor Prtizker's Restore Illinois Plan. How we start the school year may not be how we end and some form of remote instruction will likely be possible, at least for some students and staff. We are committed to transparency in our planning and sharing updates throughout the summer.

    Building Understanding

    Given the uncertainty that lies ahead and the fluidity of the situation, we are actively planning for various scenarios for our safe re-opening in accordance with public health guidelines. We anticipate having updated guidelines from the Illinois State Board of Education and Illinois Department of Public Health by the end of June. To build awareness and understanding, we have created a five-minute video (Spanish) and one-page summary (Spanish) for community reference.

    Listening to and Learning from our Community

    Thank you to our educators, students, and families who responded to our Remote Learning Survey. We received over 4,500 responses! The information we have learned from your experiences will be instrumental in our planning efforts.

    We need to hear more from you, especially about your feelings in sending your children to school and/or returning to work and how we can best support all of you. A brief survey for D65 parents/caregivers will be forthcoming. The survey for staff closes on June 17.

    Return to School Planning Teams

    During the week of June 8, we convened our first meeting of our Return to School Task Force. This is an incredible group of over 60 staff members, parents, and community representatives. This group will spend significant time through early July in planning for various return scenarios. A list of participants is available below.

    In addition, a team of teachers, paraprofessionals, curriculum and instruction staff, and school and district administrators have formed a committee to focus on teaching and learning for the various scenarios.

Return to School Planning Updates

D65 Return to School Task Force

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