The Community Building Committee Hosted our first Welcome to Kindergarten 101 event to embrace our new parents and to have their questions answered by our PTA Presidents. This is another in a series of 101 events to help our community learn about our school system and to bring people together.
BOE 8/17 Statement
I want to thank Dr. Ponds for his update tonight as well as his weekly updates. I was also very happy to hear from Ms. Morgan describing the differences we will be seeing in the remote learning plan for the fall.
Following are update for our PTAS and the PTAC:
All of our elementary school and middle school PTAs have been working to support their students, families, teachers and principals as we go back to all remote school. Although there was a lot of discussion about hybrid instruction, we knew that remote instruction was likely to be the reality for many families and so we have been striving to support that model.
Unfortunately our traditional PTA programs and activities such as ice cream socials, delivering school supplies and welcome breakfasts have all been upended. Instead our elementary and middle schools have all been working with their principals to provide support in new ways. Several PTAs are purchasing things like tents to support outdoor learning, or supply kits for families to enhance at-home learning. Others have been hosting online story times, organizing buddy systems to build community between families and students, and arranging meet-ups to introduce new students to their teachers.
The PTAs are reaching out in new and exciting ways. For example, PTAC recently hosted a “Welcome to Kindergarten” Zoom program featuring the PTA presidents from all the elementary schools. The event was designed to replace the traditional playground play-dates and ice cream socials. At Buzz Aldrin and other schools, the PTAs are using the National PTA’s MemberHub platform, which will enable families to easily connect online with others in their children’s classroom or house. And, in collaboration with Dr. Ponds, PTAC applied for a grant that, if we learn in 3 days that we got it, will help address the mental and emotional health needs of our K-2 families.
Although it has been something high school parents have requested over the years – there is no parent group at the high school. We are poised to start conversations with high school parents to learn their ideas about forming a group and recently had an initial conversation with Ms. Trigg-Scales about that project.
In addition to the activity of our school PTAs, the PTA Council and its committees have been hard at work on initiatives for the coming year. One of our largest committees is the Equity, Anti-Racism and Opportunity Gap committee, with about thirty members so far. That committee will work with schools and community leaders to address the continuing problem of white supremacy and racism in our schools. Most, if not all of the school PTAs have also been meeting with each other and with their principals to develop and implement anti-racism initiatives.
We are very proud of the hard work and community spirit displayed by all of our PTA volunteers during this difficult time. We are honored to work with Dr. Ponds and Sergio Gonzalez as our Board liaison. And we look forward to continued collaboration with all of our partners in the service of our schools and our children.
8/11 mtg with Dr. Ponds – 24 questions
This a summary of the 8/11/20 PTAC meeting with Dr. Ponds and BOE member and PTA Liaison, Sergio Gonzalez. The call was attended by 50+ people, including officers of the PTA Council, the executive boards of our PTAs, PTAC committee members, and MPS staff including Director of Technology Chris Graber, Director of Operations/School Support Services Felice Harrison-Crawford and Supervisor of Nursing Betty Strauss.
Prior to the meeting, PTAC had sent Dr. Ponds a list of questions to guide the discussion, which was expanded to include suggested questions from PTAC members. Dr. Ponds opened his remarks by saying that he puts out weekly communications because he believes it’s important to codify everything in writing. He is also responding to parents and others who send him emails. He emphasized that they are getting continual (and sometimes changing) guidance from the NJ Department of Education that informs their decisions. He emphasized that he cannot talk about personnel matters and this might limit some of his responses. His priority is the safety of students and staff and making sure instruction has rigor – “first and foremost.” He wants that there be a lot of instruction during the day, focusing on core curriculum. He is also looking at how to integrate the magnet themes. Providing proper ventilation for our schools is also a high priority.
See below for responses to 25. Questions. All responses are from Dr. Ponds except for health-related questions (indicated) addressed by Betty Strauss, Supervisor of Nursing.
- What hurdles need to be overcome to put the current plan for our schools in place?
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- Dr. Pond’s primary concern is safety for students and staff. He asked for an inspection of all facilities with respect to ventilation and is expecting a report “today” (the 11th).
- He is working with the schools’ physician on safety protocols.
- Instruction (both in person and remote) must demonstrate “rigor.” HIs “benchmark” is live instruction in the core* classes every day, which he defined as “someone talking to you directly”. This will be in writing and codified in a future update. (Note it was unclear whether global language classes are considered “core” classes for this purpose.)
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- What does the most current data from parents/caregivers about choosing a plan show?
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- Parents go back and forth in response to changing news. They want to know what the day to day schedule will look like. Future updates will have more information about this so parents can make their decisions.
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- How will every child have access, irrespective of their means, to remote learning if they choose to do so? The last survey had requests for 400 laptops.
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- Dr. Ponds said he is working to address this. Ideally we would be a one-to-one district but that would cost $1.3 million. If anyone has ideas about how to find/raise this money, contact Dr. Ponds!
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- About Mounties and Bulldogs, will students in one family be assigned to the same group even if they are in different schools?
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- Yes. But K-2 students will NOT be included in the Mounties/Bulldogs designations as they will have a different system. Parents will get a request through school messenger/genesis asking them to choose all remote or hybrid after which students will be assigned Mounties and Bulldogs.
- The hybrid model is four hours for in-person days. How late [in the day] will the last school begin? How much time is scheduled/anticipated for arrival, inclusive of temperature screening?
- The priority is being able to get quality rigorous academic work done. Scheduling issues are still being worked out. The schedule may not follow the traditional times. For example, classes may be scheduled so that older (HS) students would be able to help pick up younger students in their families from school. Dr. Ponds is also working with the YMCA to provide morning care and afternoon care.
- Regarding arrival procedures and length of time that will take: Dr. Ponds has been working with Chris Graber, Director of Technology, to obtain mobile screeners. People will just walk through the screeners to cut down on time required. Children will be screened before boarding busses.
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- What is the average number of hours per day on-line students will be attending synchronous classes? K-5, 3 – 5, 6 – 8, 9 – 12? Will this be a mandate or a recommendation?
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- Discussions are ongoing and there are currently some disagreements. When we have resolved it, the information will be sent out. One concern is screen fatigue– determining how much time students can/should spend online.
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- Is the district having a difficult time recruiting teachers for the hybrid model? For the all on-line model?
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- This is a personnel issue. The district is collaborating with the MEA. Dr. Ponds wants to be a true collaborative partner with MEA – does not want to do or say anything to affect that goal. He said association members are part of the design teams and that they are working with us.
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- Will a given teacher be responsible for simultaneously teaching students in the classroom and connected remotely? Or will teachers be scheduled so that they’re teaching only in-person or only remote at a given time? Is this the same K-12?
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- Dr. Ponds repeated that he wants to be a true collaborative partner with the MEA – it is still being worked out.
- Many hybrid plans are designed so that students stay in the same classroom while in school, and the teachers rotate from class to class. Is this true of our plan? How will it work for high school students who have more complicated schedules?
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- Dr. Ponds is working with his medical team, the department of health and reviewing CDC guidelines. He emphasized the importance of getting the right team in place.
- Betty Strauss, Supervisor of Nursing – with regard to screening children when they come into the schools, they will be using thermal scanners. Staff will also be eyeballing the students to make sure they look OK. Temperatures will be taken on busses. There will be social distancing in the classrooms. Schools will institute one-way hallways and social distancing in lines, for example, lines to the bathroom.
- Every student will need to wear a mask or a shield, according to the governor’s most recent ruling.
- Nurse Strauss is working on a rubric for symptoms – how do deal with every student and make a judgement specifically about that student when they are ill.
- Nurses will be wearing scrubs. There will be weekly health reminders for staff and students. In the event of illness, judgements will also take into account the difference between casual and close contact.
- Betty Strauss is also conferring with the Healthy Minds Committee.
- This is also a personnel matter
- Are extracurriculars being included in the hybrid plan? In the remote plan?
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- The importance of extracurriculars (“specials”) in our magnet system was acknowledged but is not yet clear how they will be handled.
- Dr. Ponds did add that he hopes to have live gym classes at home.
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- What happens when a teacher or child reports that he/she is sick? Or that he/she has tested positive for COVID? Does the entire school then have to quarantine/go remote, or the entire “Team” (Mounties or Bulldogs) at the school? Or just the class?
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- Betty Strauss, Supervisor of Nursing: The NJ State DOE is putting out guidelines and the Department of Health recommends assessing each situation individually and using contact tracing, which is what the district will do. Investigations will rapidly determine if/whether the classroom needs to be closed, if a class needs to quarantine, close versus casual contact, etc. Everything will be handled on a case by case basis. Information will be relayed to the Public Health department, which will make recommendations as to how to respond.
- The latest guidance differentiates between close and casual contact. All families will be notified about a positive diagnosis, but it doesn’t necessarily require quarantining for other students/staff. The classroom may need to be closed for a couple of days to clean. Whether others have to quarantine will depend on the social distancing in that situation.
- Anyone who walks into the building will be screened. Contact tracing will take place as indicated. There will be no differentiation between student and staff.
- Each school will have designated space/staffing close to the nurse’s office for isolation. If someone is sick/appears at risk for COVID, parents will be asked to pick students up ASAP, and staff will be asked to go home. A negative test will be required before returning.
- There will be no COVID testing onsite. If students are sick with other illnesses, they will need to present a doctor’s note to return to school. It may be difficult to draw lines as COVID presents so many different symptoms.
- All school nurses will be taking a Johns Hopkins class on contact tracing. District will follow directives of the Dept of Health. Guidelines for everything are changing twice a week.
- Example of moving the original graduation date – Dr. Ponds worked with a team of people to decide.
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- What is the procedure if a teacher reports that a particular child attending for live instruction has shown himself/herself unwilling or unable to comply with mask use, social distancing, etc?
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- Mask-wearing is required. Maintaining a safe learning environment is first responsibility. Discipline for noncompliance will be handled in accordance with the child’s age and “intent.” If someone cannot wear a mask, they can wear a face shield instead.
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- As teachers call in sick, will hybrid students be taught by a substitute teacher, whether it’s a hybrid or a remote day? Are there enough substitutes willing and able to come in to provide live instruction? Might the teacher deliver instruction remotely from home to students who are physically at school in the classroom
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- The district is working to make sure there is enough coverage for each building. Substitutes have to meet safe health/safety screening before coming into the buildings – temperature check and questionnaire.
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- Are there contingency plans in the event of a teacher strike or other job actions (e.g., sick-out, widespread FMLA or other leave requests)?
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- Dr. Ponds did not answer as this is a personnel matter.
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- Do you expect the plan to change drastically from what has been described? Will we be prepared? Under what criteria will we switch to all remote learning?
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- Dr. Ponds is planning right now to move forward with the current plan – if that changes, it will be communicated as soon as possible.
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- We had inquired about the possibility of our After-School Enrichment programs using school grounds for small, in-person enrichment classes to help ‘level the playing field’ – which is our model. What are the rules with regard to PTAs and other groups using school property in the fall?
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- Normally he is in support of this, but using school property or anything related to schools would require the same safety protocols (screening, etc) as in person instruction.
- Dr. Ponds will address this issue in September as he needs to consult with the district attorney.
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- Can you explain why the conversations for high school parents/caregivers interested in creating a parent group were postponed?
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- Dr. Ponds wants to have a conversation about this with our PTAs and PTAC group. He Is in favor of communication and conversation, but wants it to be fully collaborative and inclusive. (Note: PTAC officers have a meeting scheduled with Dr. Ponds and high school staff members for Friday 8/14 and will follow up.)
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- What about outdoor instruction?
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- He is currently having conversations about this possibility and working to get it approved by the county. Also, working with the MEA to see if it can be done. There is an MEA representative on all of the design teams.
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- What the plan is for contact tracing and notification if there is an outbreak. Will the district do it? Contract a company to do it? Rely on the county health department? (Which was overwhelmed in April and could not handle the volume.)
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- Mr. Santagato had conversations with the department of health and the school physician. It all depends on proximity. For example, everyone on the football field is not considered a close contact. If a student or teacher gets sick we would probably have to close down the classroom for a couple of days. The class would switch to virtual.
- What exactly are the metrics for possible school closure? What is the trigger? Number of cases? (If so, how many?) Only an order from the health department or governor? And would any shutdown be district wide or done on a school by school basis?
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- State guidelines are changing everyday. We will do what’s safe and be conservative in our judgements.
- What is the protocol for handouts and individual attention for students who arrive for hybrid learning?
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- We are looking at using on-line books. Passing paper could be a problem. We want to make sure we can do our work without much contact. But it may be different for young students who work with manipulatives.
- For families with children in K-2 and in the older grades in elementary school (assuming the same school), pick up can be tricky during in-person days with K-2 being 2.5 hrs and the older grades being 4 hours. Can the younger students stay at school until their siblings are done?
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- Great questions – we are still reviewing K-2. And discussing morning and afternoon care with the YMCA. Dr. Ponds thanked parents for responding to the survey about bussing. Aftercare can be tricky and hard – there will be more information about this on Friday.
- If a teacher is quarantined, how would we ensure that applicable Mountie and/or Bulldog sessions receive appropriate instruction – would all affected children join the remote learning group? How will the district ensure that the online instructor isn’t overburdened with too many children, or that the students who join into the remote learning experience and those that were in-person learning are on the same level?
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- There are HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) regulations around reporting when personnel get sick. Same for when students get sick. This also influences what can be said about procedures.
- Will children (and teachers) who fail the temperature check be administered a COVID test on site? How will they safely quarantine children if multiple fail the check (only a subset could actually be infected with COVID).
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- There will be no COVID testing on sight. Every school has to have at least one isolation area. Carved out with plexiglass. Anyone with symptoms will be isolated. They do not have rapid tests.
8/12/20
Courtney Redfern
Debbie Villarreal-Hadley
PTAC GENERAL MEETING MINUTES 8-10-20
AUGUST 10, 2020
IN ATTENDANCE: Diane Terhanian, Meredith Pressler, Larry Livietsky, Marco Pedersen, Martha Bonta, Anna Kondic, Julie Clemens, Simone Robin, Daniel Garcia, Norrina Hayat, Natalie Sullivan, Veronica Harris, Patty Gramcsik, Colleen Dougherty, Kathryn Fogliano, June Raegner, Payal Mariar, Jada Roman, Christin Banks, Laura Farrell, Mary Ann Vanco, Dory Hack, Karina Linch, Brad Haggety, Mary Sue Youn, Marci Clark, Erin Herlihy, Jaime Bedrin, Irene Ronsenthal, Patti Marn, Sarah Spagnola Young, Christine Calderon, Eileen Birmingham, Selma Avdicevic, Allison Silverstein, Yvette Frazier, Anne Kilkullen, Phoebe Williams, Najla Wazeem, Reggie Valentine, Meslissa Shrager, Deborah Villarreal-Hadley, Tessie Thomas, Brian Fleischer, Courtney Redfern and Kirstin Wood-Werner
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Minutes of June 8 and June 16 meetings were submitted for approval and the minutes were unanimously passed.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Discussion of school year-opening operations. Membership drives should be focused on increasing and encouraging diversity of membership and participation
PTAC has submitted a National PTA grant application focused on the mental and emotional needs of K-2 families
There is a lot of discussion about supporting pods for students in need– more information needed to determine how PTAs can/should support. Superintendent said there would “probably” be difficulty with holding ASE on school grounds, MFEE is exploring working with the MNDC, holding programs at local churches.
PTAC meeting with Sergio Gonzalez of BOE and Dr. Ponds tomorrow– all PTAC Members invited to attend
VP of SCHOOLS REPORT
Tessie and Marci have organized “MPS 101” for incoming kindergarten parents. PTA Presidents will participate and parents can break out by school
A first meeting of ASE committees was held in an on-going effort to enable collaboration among the schools. The ASE’s will share materials on the PTAC Drive. Next meeting is scheduled for the 25th.
PTA calendars and distinct calendars are being organized for submission to the district (for conflicts)
PTA UPDATES (by school)
BRADFORD
PTA applied for National PTA Grant. Have been working with principal on antiracism initiatives and are doing a “book read” focused on racism.
BULLOCK: The new PTA leadership has been meeting, figuring out how to best support the community, the principles and the teachers. They’ve been discussing a resource list for families as well as exploring ideas for ASE in the fall.
EDGEMONT: A town hall with parents was held on July 31. Many concerns were expressed about remote learning, safety, and special needs. The principal had no answers as yet. They are exploring the funding of six outside learning areas. The SATp has been working on cultural inclusion. They are also working on a buddy system for new families.
HILLSIDE: There was a significant loss to the parent community when Barry Hartsfield passed away. The PTA helped support/facilitate a drive for his family. The PTA has a meeting with the principal tomorrow. They have drafted an equity and anti-racism statement which should be approved shortly.
NISHUANE: The PTA is finalizing its calendar. The board is meeting with the principal weekly and they are working on their website. The committees are kicking off. PTA President Reggie Valentine expressed an interest in collaborating with other PTAs.
NORTHEAST: They have a number of new board members. They are planning all activities being remote until further notice. They are meeting weekly with their principal and working on the calendar. They are planning two story times with kindergarten teachers and counselors. They are putting together welcome bags, including whiteboards, which their teachers suggested might be helpful. The SATP is discussing anti-racism measures. They are exploring buying tents for outdoor learning.
WATCHUNG: They are considering re-institution of a buddy system for families. They are talking to the pre-K about creating outdoor classrooms and they are also exploring the possibility of providing welcome bags for families. They have created potential calendars which are in the first draft.
BUZZ ALDRIN: They are organizing welcoming zoom calls by grade for sixth, seventh and eighth graders. They intend to send out welcoming materials by August 31. They also filed for a PTA grant. They are exploring ASE programs at the middle school on a free or low-cost basis, such as D&D and outdoor drama. The most exciting thing is that they will be using MemberHub going forward for communications and community building and they highly recommend it.
GLENFIELD: Their main focus is supporting the administration. They feel it is premature to do other work because there’s just not enough information. They are considering a buddy system similar to that done in other schools.
RENAISSANCE – was not able to attend the meeting.
VP OF COMMITTEES AND COMMITTEE REPORTS
Committees are having their first meetings. Zoom account established and Brian/Tessie will manage sharing,
EAROG
Committee forming– approximately thirty members so far. Surveying them to determine areas of focus and availability.
COMMUNICATION
New PTA websites. All PTAs will create websites using WordPress. After the new websites are created, future communications will have to go through mailchimp or MemberHub as the websites do not have messaging capacity.
COMMUNITY BUILDING
Welcome to MPS for new families.
FINANCE/FACILITIES
Q will there be any savings as a result of remote instruction?
SEPAC
Upcoming Zoom meetings with administration
LEADERSHIP
POLICY
TECHNOLOGY
Submitted report: https://docs.google.com/document/d/19YAv-lPZkFAjvlRxAiePb2e8a5OcN5D7S25L1sm2kZs/edit?usp=sharing
NEW BUSINESS
Meeting adjourned
8/10 Agenda
2. Approval of minutes
– June 8 and June 16 meetings
– School year-opening operations, including membership drives to encourage diversity
– National PTA Grant application
– Potential for pod-like support to students in need
– Meeting with Sergio Gonzales, BOE and Dr. Ponds on Tuesday, 8/11 from
– PTA updates (3 minutes each)
Elementary Schools
Middle Schools
– ASE meeting
– PTA Calendars and District Calendar
EAROG
Communication – Websites
Community Building
Curriculum and Special Education
Finance
Policy
Technology
Wellness
National PTA Grant Application
REASONING
The Montclair public school district has approximately 6800 students, with 1350 children in the K-2 years. We are a highly diverse district– approximately 44% of our school population identifies as Black or African-American, Hispanic or Multi-racial. Approximately 15% of our children receive free or reduced price school lunch.
In determining the best focus for a possible grant, we met with our district’s Superintendent, technology director, nursing supervisor, and business administrator. We also consulted with community leaders including the head of the Developmental Learning Center (public preschool for students with disabilities), the local NAACP Education Committee interim chairperson and head of the Montclair Fund for Educational Excellence (MFEE). In addition, we reviewed parent survey data in June 2020 about their families’ experiences with remote learning.
Our needs analysis showed that our youngest learners K-2 are particularly vulnerable during remote learning. They have difficulty learning independently, they are struggling with social-emotional issues due to isolation and they are very dependent on their parents. At the same time, their parents are struggling with pandemic-related stress, trying to work from home while helping teach their children, and perhaps facing unemployment, financial insecurity, unstable housing or personal losses due to COVID-19. Recent societal events and unrest have only added to the stress felt by many in our community. The combined effect of all of these stressors is having a detrimental effect on the mental health and wellbeing of all of our families.
Our district is currently planning a hybrid school environment for the fall. Depending on the status of the pandemic locally, we also may be thrust back into a wholly remote learning model.
With the funding we hope to receive, Montclair PTA Council will focus our efforts on helping the families of our youngest learners by providing parent learning sessions to help parents and families during another period of remote or hybrid instruction.
Tentatively titled “Family Coping During Remote Instruction,” the interactive series will be led by mental health experts and consultants discussing the following topics:
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Session 1: Mental health and wellbeing for adults– recognizing the impact of stress, trauma and uncertainty; self-care; putting your mask on first; making connections with other parents during the pandemic
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Session 2: Sacred Space– creating the learning environment at home, talking to your child about remote learning
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Session 3: Facilitating instruction– setting up routines, tips and tricks, using visuals, using manipulatives, getting what you need
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Session 4: Mental health and well-being (children)– understanding child development, addressing child mental health issues, handling screen fatigue, advocating for your children
Our parent support series is consistent with the mission of the National PTA in several ways:
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We are Committed to the educational success of children as well as the engagement of their families;
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We are Collaborating with the school district and community groups in planning the program;
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We are passionate about Diversity and Equity in our district and about meeting the needs of all families as we serve a school population that is racially, ethnically and socio-economically diverse.
COLLABORATION PLAN
In planning this program, we are consulting with a variety of stakeholders within the school district and in the community at large. The series will be a collaboration between the PTAs, district administrators and staff, mental health professionals and developmental education experts across the community.
Depending on their availability, the panels may feature:
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Lloyd Talley, Ph.D.,, a developmental psychologist, educational researcher, consultant and experienced provider of training and professional development in the area of trauma
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Gerard Costa, Ph.D., Professor of Early Elementary and Literacy Education at Montclair State University and founder of the Center for Autism and Early Childhood Mental Health
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Christy Crawford, a highly experienced K-8 educator and educational consultant with a strong background in leveraging technology.
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Jennifer Finnerty, head of Montclair’s Developmental Learning Center
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Student Assistance Counselors from the district
In designing the series, we will be collaborating with the aforementioned individuals as well as our Superintendent Dr. Jonathan C. Ponds and Assistant Superintendent Dr. Kalisha Morgan. The program will be planned with input from all of these stakeholders, and community groups such as the NAACP Education Committee, the Montclair Mommies and Daddies group, and the Montclair Fund for Education Excellence (MFEE).
Current and incoming K-2 parents will be invited to submit their questions and concerns to ensure the program directly addresses their needs. The series will be publicized through mailers from the district, postings on Facebook and other social media platforms, and outreach to community groups such as Head Start, local PreK programs, the Developmental Learning Center and the Neighborhood Child Care Center. Montclair PTAC has already been building and deepening our relationship with all of these individuals and groups.
The Montclair PTA Council and the school PTAs are only as valuable to the community as parents get engaged in it. By providing this valuable resource to families, we will further this engagement with families so that parents and caregivers see it as an important part of their children’s school lives, a resource to be consulted, and something to get involved in for years to come. This initiative will also help strengthen the collaborative relationship between the administration and the PTAC, and further enable PTAs to provide important resources in the area of parent education and family engagement.
Anti-Racism & COVID statement to BOE – 6/3/20
First, the PTAC would like to acknowledge the anger, pain and grief that is affecting so many of our families as a result of the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery. Racism and white supremacy can only be eliminated in our country, in our town and in our school district if we accept our responsibility to take action and make changes. As PTAs we commit to that work. We appreciate the principals and teachers who have made resources available to parents who wish to discuss these events with their children, also the MEA for organizing Actions in Response to Racism and the NAACP Youth Council for Sunday’s Black Lives Matter Unity Walk. We look forward to partnering with local groups including the district, the MEA, the Montclair NAACP, the MFEE, the National Independent Black Parents Association, and other community partners who are leaning into the hard work of anti-racism, both locally and nationally.
Secondly, because the end of the school year is near, we need to talk about virtual instruction standards. Although it’s too soon to say when or how we will be in the buildings, the district should be working on a plan for remote instruction based on what the students have experienced in the last 10 weeks. Now, more than ever before, we know the best education for our students’ academic growth and social emotional well-being is to have them in a classroom with their teacher and their fellow students. The goal for remote instruction is to recreate that experience for our students as much as possible.
So we weren’t surprised that from the start back in March, many of our teachers instinctively set to work putting together engaging, virtual classes – sourcing materials on the internet, also creating their own videos and meeting face to face with their students. Honestly, that was our expectation for all of our teachers and how all of our children would learn. And we were grateful that the district distributed laptops and WiFi hot spots to help make this happen for all our families. But as the weeks have gone by, the stories we’ve heard from parents paint an extremely varied landscape – some students are overly scheduled with live classes, while many other students have yet to see or hear from their teachers, despite guidelines that were sent out. There are issues with attendance taking, confusion over where to find assignments and a lack of follow-up or feedback on assigned work. Grading is hard to understand. And teachers and students alike are facing challenges – like not having enough bandwidth or devices in a family to go around and feeling uncomfortable meeting ‘live’.
If we thought COVID-19 was a once-in-a-lifetime aberration that would end before next year, we could just wait and let the kids catch up in the fall. But that would be naive and short-sighted. We need the district to issue virtual instruction standards that would be made applicable in the fall. The state will be coming out with guidelines at some point, but given the complexity of our magnet system and our rich curriculum, those guidelines may not be sufficient to meet the needs of Montclair public school students.
To be clear– we are asking that the district start work now on virtual instruction standards that are specific to a student’s grade level and their ability to access the internet, with a minimum for live instruction of 1 class per week per course (which can be videotaped for viewing after the fact), and to develop best practices for giving assignments and grading during remote instruction. And we want a timeline for when we can have 1:1 technology for grades 6 – 12. The plan should also embrace the concept of scaling – sharing live instruction and original videotaped lessons with students in the same course, across classes or even across schools.
Lastly, we understand that our teachers had only one day, on March 13, to learn how to manage their jobs remotely. Our teachers should be provided professional development and modeling in best practices for remote instruction using Google Suite and the other tools that are available to them through the district’s licenses or free online. Money from unused stipends can be used to hire outside resources, or our own teachers to share best practices they have developed in the last few weeks.
We understand from Ms. Church that there will be a task force dedicated to developing a plan for remote learning with the prospect of students going back and forth between at-home and in-school learning environments, and that PTAC and parents will be represented on that task force. That is a very good sign. We are not education professionals but virtual instruction requires a different kind of partnership between teachers and parents. So we appreciate being involved and look forward to good results.
Anti-Racism Statement to BOE 3/5/20
On behalf of the PTA Council, I’ll be making a statement tonight regarding racism in our school district.
Recently I was given feedback from a parent that the PTA’s silence during the past few weeks on the topic of racism in our school district was hurtful and could potentially be misinterpreted by the community at large. I immediately recognized the truth in what was shared with me so, hoping to make things right, I worked with our PTAC board on a statement which we then circulated to all of our schools’ PTA presidents and VPs. After a lot of conversation and back and forth we negotiated what would be included in the statement that we could all agree upon. It was good that we went through this process and we accomplished the task but of course it’s just a beginning. we plan on continuing the conversation in our meetings going forward, especially to discuss aspects which came up but are not included in our statement here.
The statement reads…
- we know that any racist behaviors and biases, whether overt or implicit, in our children’s classroom hurts our children of color
- because all of our children observe and learn from these behaviors it can perpetuate racism in our district
- we believe that it is the responsibility of our superintendent, our BOE, teachers, staff, parents and the whole community to learn to recognize systemic and interpersonal racism and to take steps to address these situations in the moment
- our district’s policy on Educational Equity and Anti-Racism compels zero tolerance for racism in our schools and we wholeheartedly support that position
- we support the funding of anti-racism training for our teachers and all of our staff
As PTA leaders, we recognize the value we can bring engaging in conversations about race in the district. To that end…
- members of PTAC have formed an America to Me Real Talk Montclair watch and discussion group to which all our welcome
- in the fall we created a PTAC committee for Equity, Curriculum and Instruction and look forward to connecting with the district and other community leaders on how we can support our common goals in this area
- our PTAs strive to be inclusive to help make every child’s potential a reality regardless of race, ethnicity, gender identity, religion, or economic status.
We welcome any additional feedback or ideas on how we can best support the Montclair school community in this endeavors.
Outcome report reveals more applications, but fewer acceptances for Class of 2019
An article in the Montclair Local discussed a report given to the Board of Education during the December 4th. The report may be found here. Video of the meeting may be found here.
The report described the next steps in life being taken by the June, 2019 graduates of Montclair High School.
It should be noted that the report discusses only the 474 students that actually graduated in 2019. The graduating class was approximately 10% larger than this; we don’t know the outcomes of those students that didn’t graduate.