Letter to Families and Staff about Schedules, Transportation & Returning to School; 08-30-2021

Dear Families,     

We are excited for the return of school next week on our first day on Wednesday, September 8. You can find all of the letters and documents we have been sending home over the last month on our COVID-19 Updates and Resources page. 

On Friday, August 27, the New York State Department of Health filed an emergency regulation that will mandate all students, faculty, visitors, and staff of public and private schools, pre-K through 12th grade, to wear masks while inside all school buildings, regardless of vaccination status. This new information will help guide us as we finalize our reopening plans for the 2021-2022 school year. Here is a draft of the RCS Tiered Mitigation Reopening Plan.

Going home in the mail today are students' transportation routes, their schedule/placement, and back to school letters from our school leaders. Families can access their student’s schedules and placement on the SchoolTool Parent Portal, transportation information and the back-to-school letters can be found here. 

Here is some additional information and reminders for families regarding the start of school - as a reminder, all of this information can be found on our website:

Middle School/High School Student Orientation: On Tuesday, September 7 from 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM, orientation will be held at both the middle school for grades 6-7 and the high school for grades 9-10. For more information, please see the letter sent to families on August 23. Students do not need to take the provided transportation to orientation, they can be dropped off and picked up by parents. 

PreK and Kindergarten Slow Start:  Both elementary schools will be hosting Slow Start Days at the beginning of the year for PK and K. The Slow Start dates for the 21-22 school year are Wednesday, September 8, 2021, and Thursday, September 9, 2021.  Communications have been sent to families about these dates.

Transportation: We are asking families who do not need transportation for the 2021-2022 school year to fill out this form, the form asks if you will be opting out of the morning, afternoon or both. You can find more information on the transportation process and access the form for this year here, students will have access to athletic, 10th period, and late run transportation this year, when applicable. You can access the bus routes for the 2021-2022 school year here. Please note, students will not be able to use bus notes this year to go to other stops in the district. 

Chromebooks: All grades will receive their Chromebooks right from the classroom during school hours. Chromebooks do not need to travel home daily for grades PK-3. Chromebooks must go home daily to charge for students in grades 4-12. 

ThoughtExchange Survey: Last Friday, we released a Back to School ThoughtExchange survey for our families to gain a better understanding of your questions, thoughts, and suggestions regarding the opening of school this fall. This survey will be available through Wednesday, September 1. You can access more information and the survey link here

Here is a school reopening Q&A document that we have been continuing to develop as we prepare for school. This document will be updated as new questions from students, staff and families arrive.

We are excited to see so many smiling faces next week. 

Sincerely - Brian Bailey, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools