Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful moms who love, support, teach and mentor every day. Thank you for all you do for your families and communities -especially during these challenging times.
Today is School Lunch Hero Day. Thank you to our food service workers who are working hard to prepare meals for our students during distance learning. Below is a link to see their impressive work in action: https://youtu.be/EbRbVGAnX0U
Letter from Superintendent Nelson
Sanford School Department
Extending Distance Learning for the Remainder of the 2019-2020 School Year
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Good Evening,
During her press conference yesterday, Governor Janet Mills extended Maine’s Stay-at-Home Order through May 31, 2020. For Sanford’s public schools, this means that “distance learning” will remain in place for the remainder of the school year. Classrooms will remain closed, with the expectation of reopening in the fall as conditions permit. As you may have seen, Governor Mills provided details of a four-stage phase-in “post-COVID19” model that placed the re-opening of schools in the final stage (no earlier than September 2020 dependent on the success of stages one, two and three). This four-stage plan also included limits on group gatherings and criteria for re-opening businesses. Still to be determined is whether summer school programs, athletics, end-of-year celebrations and the use of school facilities for various summer school programs will be allowed this summer.
I will continue to carefully monitor the situation and we will communicate information as it becomes available and decisions are made regarding specific end-of-the-year activities (graduation, kindergarten screening, award ceremonies, etc.). Thank you for your patience as our school leadership teams continue to explore the various options and best ways to recognize students as we close out this school year. It may mean holding scaled back or virtual celebrations, or, in some unfortunate cases, canceling an event entirely. Safety will continue to guide these decisions and we will abide by the Governor’s plan to ensure the safety of our students, staff and community members.
I am aware of the tremendous burden that distance learning has put on our students, staff and families. Historically, it is challenging to maintain student engagement as summer draws near so I have asked our teachers to adjust their schedules and not assign any new learning after Memorial Day. The last week of May and first week of June will be focused on allowing time for students to submit outstanding assignments, practice and review key concepts and areas of weakness, return books and technology and to retrieve personal belongings; your child’s school administrative team will communicate information regarding these schedules and processes separately.
Please know that our primary focus remains the health and personal well-being of our students, staff and community members – and also the academic progress of our students. Student academic achievement is crucial as we prepare to return to the classrooms next fall. We do not want our students falling too far behind grade level expectations and benchmarks. I encourage everyone to continue their amazing efforts during this unusual time and I challenge everyone to finish the 2019-2020 school year strong.
"Max Cote is an extremely hard working 5th grader who has been doing an AMAZING job throughout our distance learning. He worked very hard on a letter expressing his gratitude for his family and for all that they have done for him. Max is a great role model and a great example of how hard our kids are working in the face of adversity."
Another week of distance learning down and another great job. Thank you! Enjoy the long weekend. Unplug and unwind. Spend time outside and with family. A reminder that meals will be delivered next week Tuesday thru Thursday. Stay safe, healthy and practice social distancing.
Good afternoon,
Important letter regarding elementary student placement for fall 2020 https://5il.co/f5rv
Good Afternoon - four weeks of distance learning in the books and over 33,000 meals served to date! Everyone's hard work is greatly appreciated. Important information regarding a change to the upcoming April vacation can be found at this link: https://5il.co/eytm Stay safe.
SJHS students share their work and discuss their readings during a zoom with Mrs. Cote!
This is message from Superintendent Matt Nelson. I am sure that many of you have heard the announcement by the Maine's Commissioner of Education encouraging schools to begin planning for distance learning through the end of the current school year. I wanted to let everyone know that we have already begun planning and we are proceeding with a measured approach that is thoughtful and strategic for our educational community. There are many factors and impacts that need to be considered before an official announcement. We are examining our approach to the upcoming April school vacation and are considering possible changes that would impact end of the year schedules. I hope to share more information soon. In the meantime, I appreciate everyone's patience and understanding. Stay safe and stay healthy.
Mrs. Cote hosts a Kahoot game with her 6th grade ELA students!
Ms. Allen's 7th graders explore science by looking for DNA food.....and finding it!
Gwen at 6th Grader at SJHS shows off her PJ's to kick off school spirit week!!
A public service announcement from Sanford Police Chief Connolly regarding Stay Home Stay Healthy: https://youtu.be/y_dS6JMYPOk
Starting on Monday, April 6th, we have made minor adjustments to the bus stops and delivery times for meal delivery. For the latest delivery schedule visit https://core-docs.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/646069/Meal_Delivery_Bus_Routes_updated_4.1.20.pdf.
Safe Stop is now activated to track your child's bus using activation code SFRD 2020. If you have questions about Safe Stop, please contact Ledgemere at 324-4888.
Good Evening.
This is Matt Nelson, Superintendent of Schools
We have just completed our 3rd week of distance learning and I want to take this time to let everyone know how proud I continue to be of our entire Sanford Educational Community for all of your hard work and support. The closing of our school buildings has been hard on everyone. The discomfort we are all feeling is understandable; these are stressful times for everyone. Please know that we are doing our best to continue to refine and improve our approach to distance learning as we learn more about what works best for our students, staff and families.
Governor Mills issued a “Stay Healthy at Home” order this week further restricting public contact and movement and extending our school closure until the end of the month. Please practice proper social distancing and proper hygiene.
Kudos to our food service department for their lunch deliveries. We are serving over a 1000 lunches daily Monday thru Friday. Starting this coming Monday, April 6th, we have made minor adjustments to the bus stops and delivery times for meal delivery. For the latest delivery schedule please visit our website. Also, the Safe Stop App has been updated and is now activated to track your child's bus using activation code SFRD 2020. If you have questions about Safe Stop, please contact Ledgemere at 324-4888.
Finally – have a great weekend and stay safe and healthy.
Great artwork that students have been creating and turning in. The artwork they're producing really shows that they're taking their time and using the Classroom tutorial videos that Sam Orchard posted for them!
March 27, 2020
The following is a letter from Matt Nelson, Superintendent of Schools
Good Evening Sanford Educational Community,
I hope everyone is safe and healthy. We have just completed our 2nd week of distance learning and I want to take this time to let everyone know how proud I am of the Sanford Educational Community for all of your hard work and support. The closing of our school buildings has been hard on everyone. The discomfort we are all feeling is understandable; these are stressful times for everyone. We have pushed ourselves outside of our comfort zone and it is definitely not business as usual. We are all doing our very best. I encourage everyone to take time to breathe and to take a moment to reflect on what we have accomplished in just two weeks - it is truly amazing. Kudos to our food service department for instituting lunch deliveries this week, serving over a 1000 lunches daily.
Let’s continue to be patient and gentle with ourselves and each other. We are monitoring the feedback we are receiving and working to find the proper balance for our expectations. We will have further information available next week regarding our distance learning plans for the remainder of this closure.
Finally, everyone have a great weekend. Please practice proper social distancing and proper hygiene but take the time to relax and read, get outside, watch a family movie, play games and enjoy family time.
Sincerely,
Matt Nelson
Superintendent of Schools
Reminder that starting today our school buses with will be delivering free lunch and breakfast “to go” at all of Sanford’s “big bus” bus stops. Deliveries will occur approximately three hours EARLIER than your child’s usual Wednesday early release day drop off time. These meals will be delivered Monday - Friday. Free lunch and breakfast to go will still be available for pick-up at Sanford’s Memorial Gym and Lafayette School from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm.
New Meal Delivery Option for Sanford Children Starts Tomorrow - Follow this link for more information https://5il.co/e4ei
Sanford School Buildings Closure Extended to April 27
Sanford School Department
March 20, 2020
The following is a letter from Matt Nelson, Superintendent of Schools
Dear Sanford School Community,
I am writing to let you know that given the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the recent declaration of Governor Mills of a Civil Emergency, the Sanford School Department school buildings closure is being extended until Monday, April 27. This decision is based on information from the Maine Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Maine Department of Education recognizing that longer school closures may be necessary to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
Even though our school buildings are closed, our goal is for learning to continue. I have been very pleased during this first week of moving to distance learning. Our faculty and staff have been working hard preparing additional learning resources and we have distributed technology K-12 in anticipation of an extended closure. I am proud of the work that our students, staff and community have done together this week and look forward to building off this success to keep learning happening.
Distance learning will continue each weekday through Friday, April 17, at which point the April school vacation will begin as scheduled with the expectation we will return to school on April 27 if possible.
During this extended closure, I want to continue to stress the importance of enforcing social distancing and practicing good personal hygiene. These are the two most effective measures of reducing spread. Students should not be gathering for social activities of any kind or gathering on school grounds for any reason. Students should remain connected to one another via technology to minimize the effects of isolation.
We have provided meals at two sites across the city and hope to deliver lunches to all school bus stops beginning Wednesday, March 25. We will be releasing specific information as it becomes available. If you or someone you know is in need of assistance, we encourage you to reach out to a teacher or principal for information regarding resources. Our Sanford Schools COVID-19 information is updated regularly and you can find the latest news, announcements and other resources at http://sanfordme.apptegy.us/o/sanford-school-department/page/2020-health-updates
Sincerely,
Matt Nelson – Superintendent