Dear Middies:
The Middletown City School District believes the reopening of our schools should be a decision informed by applicable health and safety information. Our number one priority remains the safety and well-being of our students and staff. All Butler County school districts, including Butler County ESC, collaborated to create plans and safety protocol to bring students back to school full time for the upcoming school year.
The City of Middletown has experienced a low volume of COVID-19 cases. As of June 25, the city has 164 confirmed cases and 20 hospitalizations. Jackie Phillips, City of Middletown Health Commissioner, has been an instrumental leader in helping prepare our district for welcoming students back safely. Her expertise and leadership are deserving of the highest praise. Thank you to the community and staff for providing feedback to us through the district surveys. Fifty-five percent of survey respondents indicated their primary preference was to reopen school on a normal day with safety protocols in place. Many written comments express similar desires for students to return to school. After careful planning and collaboration, we are now excited to announce Middletown City School District will reopen all our schools for the upcoming school year, including bringing all students back to the classroom.
As we move forward with reopening our buildings, Middletown City School District is establishing general guidelines for each school. We will implement safety protocols to the highest degree possible for students and staff. In complete transparency, much like the reopening of businesses and facilities across Ohio, there is some level of risk present when students and staff return to occupy our facilities. Our number one priority remains the safety and well-being of our students and staff.
We will be onboarding our staff with the safety protocols prior to the students return. In late July, we will share our plans for communication with families in the event of a positive COVID-19 case involving a student or staff member. Our City Health Commissioner will provide us with guidance and protocols. Please join us for the remaining Virtual Town Hall meetings on Facebook Live (www.Facebook.com/MiddletownCitySchools).
We know you have many questions running through your mind. Reference the additional flyers for information on the topics below.
We are excited to welcome students back for the start of the 2020-2021 school year. We thank you in advance for your patience and understanding while we developed our plans. We thank you in advance for partnering with us to safely welcome students back to school in August. We thank you for always supporting the Middletown City School District. You are #MiddieRising!
All the best,
Marlon Styles, Jr.
Proud Superintendent, Middletown City School District
The safety and health of our students and staff is our number one priority. These general principles will guide MCSD as we move forward with reopening our schools:
Staff
Students
Bus
Cafeteria
Beginning this fall all students in grades 3-12 will be provided with a school computer. The District Technology Plan calls for this next step as part of the “Middie Modernization Movement." Equity and access to learning for all students is a commitment in the Middletown City School District.
Why not now? Prior to the pandemic, Middletown City Schools was planning on giving students district-issued devices. Our district is uniting for change! We are uniting to provide opportunities for ALL students. We are excited to offer students the opportunity to continue their learning outside of the school day. We are excited to start the process of removing the device barrier and getting ALL students "logged in." We have a systemic equity problem and we are excited to be a part of the positive solution.
Middletown Curriculum Department has been working all summer to respond to concerns and questions around online or virtual learning. You asked and we are answering your concerns.
Middletown is prepared to offer an online virtual option for learning to those students who are unable to attend school for medical and health reasons. Participation in this virtual option will be only offered by the semester. Students must commit to a full semester.
Students in grades 6-12 will have access to online courses that will provide students a comprehensive approach to learning. All courses are aligned to Ohio standards and available in an easy to use platform. High school courses are for high school credit and count toward graduation.
Students in grades K-5 will access online content through Google Classroom. All courses have an easy log-on process and regular teacher support will be provided.
In the event of another school shutdown, all teachers will be prepared to continue the learning to all students impacted by the school closure. We have restructured our online delivery system so students continue to learn and grow.
If you're interested in the virtual option, please fill out this form: bit.ly/virtualmiddies
Go to the Middletown website for:
We take the safety and well-being of each of our students and staff seriously. We are excited to announce free COVID-19 drive-up testing at the below locations. The testing begins 2+ weeks before the start of school, meaning if a student or staff member tests positive that they will have over 2 weeks to self-quarantine and recover. We look forward to a healthy start of the 2020-21 school year.