Welcome back to school! Today is our first day of distance education. JH/HS students should be checking their school email & google classrooms for instructions from their teachers. Elementary students should visit https://bit.ly/34crk4V for daily lessons.
School starts back tomorrow, so lets have some fun with a Virtual Spirit Week! Make sure to add #itsagreatdaytobeachief to your posts! You can also tag our facebook and instagram pages!
Parents and Students
Our Distance Learning Guides are on our school website at the following links.
They contain information about learning expectations, where /when assignments will be sent, grading, contact information and more. We ask that all JH/HS Students check their school email and google classrooms prior to Monday morning.
Elem - https://5il.co/em52
JH/HS - https://5il.co/em53
CPS COVID19 UPDATE 14
I just got off the phone with the State Superintendent through a Zoom meeting. She just got off a call with the White House and here are the updates.
In Oklahoma, we have 719 confirmed cases of Covid 19 with 30 fatalities. In the next two weeks the numbers, especially in Oklahoma, are expected to grow. Now is the time to stay home and distance so we do not lose ground on our fight against this virus. If you are 65 or older or immune compromised, shelter at home. Travel less and listen to the Governor’s press conference at 3PM for further guidelines.
When we do get to the peak, it will be vital that we stay with our shelter plans to reduce the possibility of relapse. Dr. Fauci was on the call with the SDE and restated that the next two weeks will get worse before it gets better. We are a strong Nation and will move past this pandemic if we keep vigilant in our fight against the spread.
Waivers have been granted for all 8th grade students needing test results or proof of enrollment. Driving testing has been suspended and you need an appointment to go into the DMV.
Grading until May 8th. Schools will provide learning and give opportunities to improve but students are not to be negatively impacted by this situation.
CPS will serve 300+ meals on Monday for the week. We will be wearing gloves and taking temperatures of our working staff.
The teacher parade was a great success! Thank you to all our teachers and community for being there for one another.
We are on track to provide educational services starting Monday. If you need internet services for school work, you can drive to the Sports Complex and use a free WiFi from the school. The ID is CPS Guest and the Password is cherokee2020. We ask that you stay in your car and keep to social distancing.
Cherokee, you rock! Keep safe and wash your hands. We miss you and can’t wait to move past this bump in the road and have kids running all over campus. Most of all, we want you safe and well, so stay home and be kind to one another.
Donna Anderson
Superintendent
Cherokee Public School
Please come by Cherokee Elementary on Wednesday, April 1, 2020 at the designated time to pick up your student’s belongings. We will be working in alphabetical order at designated times. Please drive through the circle drive and REMAIN in your vehicle so that we are adhering to social distancing procedures to keep everyone safe. DO NOT WALK UP to the building!
APRIL 1
Time and First Letter of LAST NAME
9:00 am-10:00 am A-D
10:00 am-11:00 am E-H
11:00 am-12:00 pm I-N
12:00pm-1:00 pm O-S
1:00 pm-2:00 pm T-Z
Please adhere to this schedule so we can return items as orderly as possible.
Please return LIBRARY BOOKS and other school owned books at this time.
If you would like meals next week please let us know by filling out the form found at https://forms.gle/djKMepDV1cPr8nMi6. The link is also on our app & website. You can call in your order to 580-596-3391 option 5. Please respond by noon on Thursday, April 2.
Meals for the entire week will be available for pickup on Monday.
It’s Parade Day!!! We miss seeing our students so we are having a parade!! Teachers from all grades will drive through Cherokee with the goal of seeing as many students as possible and spreading positivity!!
Teachers will be led by a police car from the Elementary School Parking Lot and make our way through town starting at 12:30 TODAY!
Lastly, please remember that no one is to gather with anyone outside of their own house for purposes of the parade.
Parents, please make sure that the kiddos heed this rule and stay within your own yard and/or driveway.
We are very excited to see everyone!!!
#family
#itsagreatdaytobeachief
CPS COVID19 UPDATE #13
There is a lot of information in this post so hang in there and keep reading.
The stimulus package passed so financial help is on the way to schools. Things are still moving quickly and the teachers are planning, virtually, as we speak. Look for more information as the week goes on.
CPS provides over 200 breakfast and lunches today for the week. This is through the Seamless Summer program. Any child 0-18 qualifies and special needs individuals to 21. If you need to sign up, I provided the link at the bottom of this post.
There will be a teacher parade tomorrow at 12:30. Teachers will be going down all residential streets in town. Please stay in your yard or drive! Please practice social distancing. The football and softball teams are burning their lights every Friday night from 8-9 to remind students and our community we are thinking of you.
We plan to push our more information this week on educational services so keep checking this FB and the school sites.
From CES:
Please drive through the circle drive and REMAIN in your vehicle so that we are adhering to social distancing procedures to keep everyone safe.
DO NOT WALK UP to the building!
APRIL 1
Time and First Letter of LAST NAME
9:00 am-10:00 am A-D
10:00 am-11:00 am E-H
11:00 am-12:00 pm I-N
12:00pm-1:00 pm O-S
1:00 pm-2:00 pm T-Z
Please adhere to this schedule so we can return items as orderly as possible. Please return LIBRARY BOOKS and other school owned books at this time.
JH/HS students who need your chromebook, Jeremy Hickman will be calling you directly and you can pick it up at the school on Thursday from 9-12. In the near future, we will schedule a time for students to come get their locker items. They will be individually bagged up and given to students.
For those of you that do not have internet for school services, we are opening up a connection for free. The password and log on are...
CPS Guest
cherokee2020
You can use this internet in the complex parking lot. Please don’t get out of your cars and keep to the CDC requirements. We hope this will help.
Christy Snider will be selling plants in an online sale in a few weeks. The FFA students can’t participate but we don’t want the beautiful plants to go to waste. More info later.
Whew, that’s a lot! Thank you to everyone for the prayers and offers of help.
Meal Requests: https://forms.gle/Gh4eJQbdtfgCwPDk9
CHEROKEE ELEMENTARY SCHEDULE FOR PICKING UP SUPPLIES FROM THE SCHOOL BUILDING
Please come by Cherokee Elementary on Wednesday, April 1, 2020 at the designated time to pick up your student’s belongings. We will be working in alphabetical order at designated times. Please drive through the circle drive and REMAIN in your vehicle so that we are adhering to social distancing procedures to keep everyone safe. DO NOT WALK UP to the building!
APRIL 1
Time and First Letter of LAST NAME
9:00 am-10:00 am A-D
10:00 am-11:00 am E-H
11:00 am-12:00 pm I-N
12:00pm-1:00 pm O-S
1:00 pm-2:00 pm T-Z
Please adhere to this schedule so we can return items as orderly as possible.
Please return LIBRARY BOOKS and other school owned books at this time.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Ruth Richmond
Just a reminder today is meal pickup day! If you requested meals for this week someone will be at the school till 12:45pm.
Just a reminder we need ALL families with students in Kindergarten - 12th grade to fill out the technology survey. This will help teachers better prepare for the remainder of the school year. https://forms.gle/rBNf8VR5VLRgeGHA9
CPS Parents & Guardians - To help our Kindergarten - 12th grade teachers better prepare for the remainder of the school year we are asking all families to fill out the attached form by Monday, March 30. https://forms.gle/rBNf8VR5VLRgeGHA9
CPS Parents & Guardians - To help our teachers better prepare for the remainder of the school year we are asking all families to fill out the attached form. Please leave questions in the comments. https://forms.gle/rBNf8VR5VLRgeGHA9
CPS COVIS19 UPDATE #12
Not a lot new today. I took some time to be silly with the grand girls today. They are sheltering at home with us.
There are three things Id like to make sure our community knows:
1. We are feeding children ages 0-18 through the Summer Seamless Program, no questions asked. Sign your children up weekly for a weeks worth of breakfast and lunch. www.cherokee.k12.ok.us or call the school and press #5.
2. We are sending out a survey to gage our student’s ability to communicate with us virtually. Look for it and send it back. It’s important that we are able to serve all students.
3. The OSSAA has informed us that all their activities are cancelled, not postponed, for the remainder of the year. There are no summer activities allowed until restrictions from the CDC are removed or revised.
Have a great weekend. Try and enjoy the beautiful weather while keeping social distance and remember we are all in this together and it’s going to be alright!
CPS COVID19 UPDATE #11
Well, the State School Board vote was to amend the previous extension of April 6th to May 8th. This means buildings will be closed to instruction but on April 6th a program of Distance Learning will have been developed by each school to meet local needs. Distance Learning does not mean only virtual. The school plan will fit the needs of the local community.
There were several waivers granted. 8th grade students are being given a medical waiver from the State for driver’s license test. Seniors without Personal Literacy and Finance are being granted a waiver and will not have to have this on their transcript to graduate. The US History test is being waived and will not have to be on senior’s transcript to graduate. Those are the waivers that effect students and graduation.
Our Child Nutrition program will continue through the summer. We were granted approval for this program even though we don’t meet the 50% free and reduced requirement. Getting your free and reduced paperwork to the school and filled out correctly is very important to your school. We would not be able to do this if we hadn’t talked into a different way to qualify. Situations like this bring home how vital it is to do everything we can to help us help you.
Activities and events are cancelled until May 8th and at that time we will adhere to the CDC requirements until relaxed. We will not be scheduling any summer activities at this time but will revisit this when the CDC allows groups of more than ten to assemble.
I know there will be many questions. The staff is video meeting in about forty minutes to start the process of moving forward. By April 3rd we will have educational services up and running for our community. As we move forward, decisions will be made about graduation and other important activities. I will put the information out as soon as possible. Please feel free to ask any questions in the comments.
We will not be broken, we will evolve so that what lies ahead is better than what’s happening now or what’s behind us. Thank you for being a part of this journey and I send up prayers of health for all our students and families for the next few months.
Donna Anderson
Superintendent
Cherokee Public School
CPS UPDATE COVID19 #10
The Governor just closed down the 19 counties for 21 days that are reporting cases of the virus. Fortunately, Alfalfa isn’t showing as a county that has been directed to shelter in place by only going to the grocery or pharmacy. The order will expand to other counties as they report cases.
Tomorrow, CPS will provide our Grab n Go meals for Wednesday-Friday. We have just been given the go ahead to do one delivery a week. So, next Monday’s pick up will have five days of breakfast and lunch. This will allow our staff to better shelter at home.
If you are a family or a senior citizen who could use a supplemental Grab n Go food bag, Heather Gottsch and the FCCLA have made 103 bags for pick up. Please come by the school tomorrow between 10-12 and pick up one per family. We will provide what we have left next Monday to any family or elderly who come by tomorrow or Monday.
Tomorrow is a busy day. The State School Board will vote to close school for the remainder of the year. Administration met today to develop a plan to move forward after April 6th. I will put out a message on Thursday that explains how we will meet the requirements of the SDE.
Keep up the great work flattening the curve and keep washing your hands. We have a great team that will work hard to provide education that enriches life for students for the rest of the year.
Donna Anderson
Superintendent
Cherokee Public School
CPS UPDATE COVID19 #9
My notes from my phone call just now with the SDE and a little of this and that.
The State Superintendent intends to take to the board a recommendation to complete the school year with continuous learning without opening the buildings. Distance learning only, no traditional or extra curricular activities. She recommends we follow CDC safety guidance. Shelter at home.
Now through April 6, we need to prepare for phase 2, continuous virtual learning. The Board will vote on keeping buildings closed through the school year.
Continuous learning.
Districts are in different places. Some have things in place some use a vendor This will not be prescriptive. SDE is providing a framework grade by grade. Not full day but will give framework. No gathering in person. Do this in a virtual meeting. Equity, we want to reach as many children as possible. The SDE is pursuing congressional aid to help. Career tech students will be provided support for competition as well as concurrent enrollment. We will focus on enrichment.
Districts need to make every effort to continue learning. There is a distance learning team at SDE. Credit granting is a local determination. Students on track to graduate are not to be negatively impacted by this emergency. The SB will be asked to grant waivers to the school year for:
1. required instructional hours
2. minimums length
3. accreditation
4. restrictions on funds
5. rsa
6. physical ed req
7. school board
8. Continuing education for board points
9. ADA March 1 cut off date
10. TLE
The US History test will be taken to the school board for an emergency rule to allow a medical waiver for all students. Friday assessment and accountability were granted
8th grade test for drivers license is being considered for an alternative method.
RSA, schools do not do k-3 screening. Use data prior to March 16 for promotion.
In exchange for waivers the SDE is looking at simple set of assurances in exchange for flexibility. Two to three pages of assurances.
I have seen some awesome FB teaching going on. Alicia Mitchell, I saw your paint class! These are the type activities we will be brain storming for educational services.
We have another call Wednesday after the State School Board meets. CPS will have a Zoom call after the state call to start the process of developing educational services that will start a April 6th.
We provided 125 meals today! That’s great news for kids! Thank you for all your patience and prayers. We are at the beginning but we will make it through. Please leave questions in the comments.
Donna Anderson
Superintendent
Cherokee Public School
We have an awesome staff that provided over 125 students with meals today!!
If you would like meals next week please let us know by filling out the form found at https://forms.gle/djKMepDV1cPr8nMi6 or calling 580-596-3391 option 5. Please respond by noon on Wednesday, March 25.
Just a reminder tomorrow we start our grab & go breakfast and lunch pick-up. This will be from 10am to 12pm on Monday thru Friday. Meals will be handed out in the HS Student Parking lot.
Please do not get out of your vehicle or come inside the building, meals will be handed to you. (Drive through style.)
If you requested delivery assistance meals will be delivered to your door step.
We have over 110 meals to hand out so please be patient with us as we figure out the logistics!
CPS COVID19 UPDATE #8
Today’s call with the SDE was informative in that it looks like a recommendation will be made on March 25th to continue education in some form virtually. No definitive decisions until the board votes but if I had a magic 8 ball it would say “most likely” lol.
So, what does that mean? Right now it means that schools need to be brainstorming for the future. The good news is that we will not test or have a school report card. We will also not allow any child to fail. We will work to ensure that students go to the next grade and graduate.
I want to write this to our senior class. I’m so very sorry you are missing the final days with your friends. So many important events are tied to more than ten people in a group. We will be watchful and grab any opportunity to make some of those things happen for you. It’s not over, it’s just on hold.
What will we do now? KEEP OUT of the school and brainstorm together after March 25th to provide some amazing educational opportunities in a virtual setting, if that is the way the boards vote.
I hope my eight ball 🎱 is wrong!
Donna Anderson
Superintendent
Cherokee Public School