From: Adam Cheeseman,
DC Superintendent of Schools
The class of 2021 started their senior year earlier this month. Their first week of school was unlike any other at Doddridge County High School. Our seniors will attend school in a situation unthinkable just a year ago. When they graduate in May they will face a world altered by a pandemic. It is the job of our teachers, and our parents, to make sure that they have the required skills to be successful in that world.
Since I became Superintendent in 2016 our Mission Statement has been: “Now is the Time: United to Make a Difference.” These words seem to take on a new meaning every year. This year these words are a call to our teachers, our service personnel and our entire community to rally around our students as they strive to excel in these unprecedented times. Our strength as a community is in caring for our neighbor. Time and again I have seen neighbors check to make sure that a neighbor’s family have what they need. I have heard stories where neighbors receive help out of the blue. By treating all of our students as important, as being like neighbors, like family, I really do think we will weather this storm.
If your child is attending school in person, please make sure that you stay in contact with your child’s teachers. If your child is attending remotely, it is even more important to stay on top of assignments. By attending virtually, students and parents will be learning in a new system. This will take some getting used to; both by the student and by the teacher.
Our teachers will be uniquely able to help, due to the Excess Levy that Doddridge County taxpayers passed two years ago. This Levy has paid for the technology that will allow your student to participate in the classroom from home. Our forward-thinking Board of Education committed funds to help build a broadband network throughout the county a year ago, before the pandemic. By this time next year our county will be a leader in the state in internet connectivity.
As I write this newsletter, Doddridge County School District is Yellow color on the state School Alert System Map. This map is created each Saturday and is released at 5 PM. The map has five colors: Green, Yellow, Gold, Orange and Red. Schools can remain open under Green, Yellow and Gold. If the Saturday School Alert System Map turns Orange or Red, schools will go to remote learning and no students will come to school. This map is different than the map that is issued by the Department of Health and Human Resources (the DHHR map), which is issued every day at 10 am. The DHHR map is only used for school purposes if a county should turn Red and schools would then close immediately.
I have attached the most recent chart that explains the state School Alert System Map. More information can be found on the West Virginia Department of Education website at: https://wvde.us/school-reentry-metrics-protocols/
The challenges we have are great. But we have the main ingredient to get through this pandemic and get to the other side: A Strong Community. By having empathy for others we can support those who are having difficulty. We can provide the leadership so essential for our community. Now is the time to unite around our students’ success.