Kentfield School District Newsletter July 30, 2021

KSD News

KSD
Bacich Bears
Kent Falcons
KIK
KSPTA

Dear KSD Community,

I hope your summer has been joyous and filled with opportunities of relaxation and connection. I am excited to begin a new school year refreshed and ready to welcome back staff, students and families for a new school year.

Enclosed in this newsletter are various updates regarding:

School Facilities
KSD Staff
COVID-19 Safety Guidance for Schools
New Education Legislation & Update
Back to School Calendar

Our site office staff and administrators will be returning to campuses next week and additional updates and notifications will be forthcoming. We look forward to celebrating the return of our Bacich Bears and Kent Falcons on August 24, 2021.

Enjoy these final weeks of summer!

Sincerely,

Raquel Rose
Superintendent
rrose@kentfieldschools.org

School Facilities

Over the course of the summer the KSD maintenance and custodial team has been hard at work cleaning our campuses and preparing our facilities to welcome students and staff. Through the leadership and oversight of Maintenance Director, Paul Miller KSD Bond Projects are in process and projected to meet completion timeline. Projects include, but are not limited to:

Outdoor surveillance camera installation at both campuses
Phase I of Air Conditioning installation for school sites
New Bacich Play Structure and ADA accessibility upgrade
Classroom window maintenance for operability

Special Thanks to 2018-19 KIK Fund-A-Need donors for supporting the new Bacich Play Structure- See photos here.

Staff Updates

Welcome Kristine Duran as the new Bacich Assistant Principal and Intervention Teacher/Coach.

Kristine will join the Bacich team full time this fall. See a message from Kristine below:

Hello Kentfield Community,

I am incredibly excited to be joining the staff at Bacich Elementary for the 2021-22 school year in the position of assistant principal and intervention teacher/coach. I have worked here in Marin County for the past 12 years. I taught 1st grade for nine years and absolutely loved the energy and curiosity my students brought to my classroom on a daily basis. For the past three years, I worked as an assistant principal and was delighted to get to know the staff and students in a new way. I hold a master’s degree in curriculum with an emphasis in reading from Sonoma State University as well as a master’s degree in educational administration from San Francisco State University. When I’m not working, I love heading out to a night of musical theatre with my friends. During Covid, I rediscovered my love of baking and spent a lot of time perfecting the art of making meringues in many fun shapes and flavors.

I am excited for the opportunity to head into the classrooms to work with the students at Bacich this school year. I cannot wait to get to know the staff, students, families, and community

It is going to be an incredible school year and I look forward to meeting you all soon!

Kristine Duran

Additional Staff Updates for 2021-22

As announced in June 2021, the District would like to welcome the following current KSD faculty and staff to new roles for 2021-22.

Bacich

Katy Colwell and Jenna Maioriello will be co-teaching two classes in 4th grade for the upcoming school year.
Gretchen Harris will be joining the office staff as the new attendance secretary.
Kelly Steers will continue teaching kindergartners as our fourth kindergarten teacher for the 2021-22 school year.
Trisha Washburn will be joining the 3rd grade instructional team.

Kent

Maggie Harris joins the 7th grade team as our new 7th grade science teacher.
Wendy Holmes joins the Kent team full time as Kent’s Assistant Principal, as well as the administrative lead of KSD’s K-8 Multi Tiered Systems of Support.
Claudia Indelicato joins our Spanish department.
Brittnee Stone transitions as a new teacher to our 5th grade team.
Elizabeth Rubenstein joins our enrichment team as our new art teacher.

CURRENT KSD OPENINGS

Classroom Paraprofessional Pool (Hours Vary)

KSD Community - Family Liaison (30 Hours a week)

COVID-19 Safety Guidance for Schools as of July 30, 2021

Guidance for COVID-19 prevention in K-12 schools has been released by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and the Marin County Public Health Officer and Superintendent of Schools. The KSD is reviewing all of the information to ensure we are fully prepared to follow the most up to date guidance from our health officials for school operations in the 2021-22 school year.

Safety Measures for K-12 Schools Highlights

Masks:

Masks are optional outdoors for all in K-12 school settings.
K-12 students are required to mask indoors, with exemptions per CDPH guidance.
Adults in K-12 school settings are required to mask when sharing indoor spaces with students.
Schools must develop and implement local protocols to provide a face covering to students who inadvertently fail to bring a face covering to school to prevent unnecessary exclusions.

Physical Distancing:

Recent evidence indicates that in-person instruction can occur safely without minimum physical distancing requirements when other mitigation strategies (e.g., masking) are implemented. This is consistent with CDC K-12 School Guidance.

HAND HYGIENE RECOMMENDATION:

Teach and reinforce washing hands, avoiding contact with one's eyes, nose, and mouth, and covering coughs and sneezes among students and staff

CLEANING RECOMMENDATION:

In general, cleaning once a day is usually enough to sufficiently remove potential virus that may be on surfaces. Disinfecting (using disinfectants on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency COVID-19 list) removes any remaining germs on surfaces, which further reduces any risk of spreading infection.

July 2021 – Frequently Asked Questions

To submit additional questions please click HERE.

NEW EDUCATION LEGISLATION & UPDATES

Revision to Independent Study for 2021-22

In compliance with Assembly/Senate Bill 130, school districts and county offices of education are required to provide all of their enrolled TK-12 students with an independent study (IS) option for the 2021-2022 school year. School districts may choose to contract with a County Office of Education, offer a local program or establish an interdistrict transfer agreement with another school district to meet the requirement of offering IS for the 2021–22 school year.

The KSD Independent Study Program is designed as a short term option to address the need for a child to be absent for six to ten days. The requirements of AB/SB 130 are robust and designed to support well-established virtual Independent Study programs for students based on need.

In an effort to support all KSD students, the KSD’s primary mode of instruction will be in-person instruction, with an option for independent study (IS). The KSD’s option for IS is through an interdistrict agreement with the Novato Unified School District (NUSD) to participate in NUSD’s Virtual Independent Study (VIS) program. If you are interested in this program please complete this brief survey for support through the Interdistrict Transfer process and enrollment.

Math Framework Update

On June 21, staff heard an update related to the new Math Framework. Updates outlined new considerations for the framework, which focus on equitable access and helping to make meaning out of mathematical learning. Any changes to the KSD’s course of study and/or Board Policy is a local decision. See the CDE Math Framework FAQ for more information.

Universal Meal Program
The universal school meals program will launch in the 2022-2023 school year. This legislation is part of the landmark state budget agreement reached between Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Legislature last month. The program ensures that all students will be offered breakfast and lunch at their school. More details about how this program will impact the KSD will be forthcoming.