JASPER — Jasper School District created a state-mandated learning plan last year to meet challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. With fewer cases of the virus being reported and vaccines being administered, the school district is amending its "Ready for Learning" plan for the remainder of the school year.
The Ready for Learning Committee met on April 7 and its amendments to the plan were accepted by the board of education Monday, April 19. The committee is made up of board members, school staff, faculty and parents.
The school board already voted last March to no longer require masks at school if the governor lifted the mask mandate at the end of that month. Prior to the board action the entire school district staff were surveyed and over 80% of the 123 respondents indicated they did not think masks should still be required if the mandate was dismissed.
On March 30, Gov. Asa Hutchinson lifted the state mask mandate. Since that date staff and students have no longer been required to wear masks, however, everyone has the option of wearing a mask anytime they choose.
The school district will continue social distancing of 6 feet between adults, as well as adults and students, in common areas, during activities with increased inhalation like sports or band practice and in community seeings outside the classroom. If both parties voluntarily choose to wear masks, the physical distancing can be reduced from 6 feet to 3 feet.
The school district will continue to respond to confirmed cases with the school district. Information will be considered by the district's Point of Contact to determine who needs to quarantine and the length of the quarantine period.
The plan calls for continuing to provide on-site instruction, following the original Ready for Learning and District Support Plan instructional model for the remainder of the year. The only changes made to the plan were removing the mask requirement and cafeteria capacity. It will continue with screening, limiting visitors extra cleaning and sanitation efforts, social distancing and other supports outline I the plan.
As part of the American Rescue Plan Act, school districts must post for parents and the general public a summary of its plan for safe continuation of in-person learning and continuity of services.
The school district will continue to work with the Ready for Learning Committee to determine how to proceed with summer and back-to-school activities. The committee will reconvene as needed to revise the plan for safely returning to school. Any revisions to the plan will be announced, posted to the district website and public comment will be allowed.
AMI Days
The school board approved the district's Alternative Methods of Instruction (AMI) application for five years through the 2026-2027 school year. The school district is asking the state board of education to approve 10 AMI days each school year. On these days when students cannot report for classes, they will complete either technology based assignments or paper packets sent home prior to the designation of an AMI day. Parents will be surveyed during the first two weeks of school on the method of delivery they prefer for their children's AMI assignments.
All teachers will create five AMI assignments for each class they teach. These assignments will be submitted to the building principals before the end of the first nine weeks. Assignments will then be compiled into packets and made available to those parents and students who requested paper AMI in the survey Digital assignments will also be created and ready to be pushed out to those who requested digital AMI in the survey.
Students will have access to their teachers during AMI days via email, text messaging, phone and Google Hangouts and Zoom.
Should power outage be for an extended period of time, the district's administrative team will meet to discuss whether or not it is beneficial for students to continue with AMI days or whether the district should close, resume school when power and internet is restores and add the missed days to the end of the school calendar.
For the purposes of the AMI day, a student shall be determined as present if he or she returns the assigned AMI work upon returning to school. If a student does not return the assigned AMI work, he or she shall be counted as absent.
Digital learning plan and policy
The school board also approved the district's Digital Learning Plan and Remote Learning Policy for the 2021-2022 school year. The the digital learning plan is a partnership with Virtual Arkansas and is only available to students in grades 9-12. The courses offered are provided by teachers from Virtual Arkansas and monitored by certified teachers employed by the Jasper School District. All students choosing this learning model will be under the jurisdiction of Virtual Arkansas polices and regulations as well as policies and regulations et forth in the school district's student handbook.
ACSIP plan and preliminary budget
In order to meet standards for accreditation, school districts must develop its Arkansas Consolidated School Improvement Planning (ACSIP) plan. The plan provides the actions for implementing research-based practices to effectively implement the school’s goals for leadership, instruction, assessment, professional development, parent/community involvement and evaluation. The ACSIP model is an annual planning and fund distribution design that must be used by all Arkansas public and charter schools. The school board received and approved the plan at its April 19 meeting.
Each school’s comprehensive plan is developed by a local school team and based on priorities indicated by the school’s comprehensive needs assessment. The comprehensive needs assessment is based on (1) an analysis of student performance data and other relevant data that provide a plan of action to address deficiencies in student performance and any academic achievement gap evidenced in the Arkansas Comprehensive Testing, Assessment, and Accountability Program; and (2) includes a general description of the public school or school district’s use of federal and categorical funding. This plan shall be reviewed annually by the district and monitored by the Arkansas Department of Education.
The Jasper School District anticipates it will invest approximately $1.3 million in state and federal categories to meet the learning needs of the students it serves.
According to Brian Cossey, director of federal programs, the funding amounts will not be released until early August. Funding reported is the same as final 2020-2021 funding amounts due to uncertain projections or final carryover amounts given the COVID-19 pandemic and the changes to the way the district is delivering education to its students. The Title I budget will require further research and planning to make sure the district complies with federal funding guidelines.
