SCSD Nutrition Department
601 Dr Creighton Circle
Shenandoah, IA 51601

The USDA has EXTENDED APPROVAL FOR FREE MEALS

Dear Parent/Guardian

The USDA has extended approval for FREE Breakfast and Lunch for all students from now through the end of the school year or June 30, 2021, whichever comes first. Your student(s) enrolled with the Shenandoah Community School District will not be charged for regular school meals from now through June 30, 2021.

How does this affect your student(s) school meal status?

If your student(s) is a full pay or reduced meal status, then they will REMAIN on a FREE status through the end of June. No meal charges will be made to the student's account through this time. All money deposited into meal accounts will carry over until regular meal prices resume.

Ala carte options will be available and charged to their meal account. Extra milk and sack lunch milk will be $0.40. Please add funds into your student(s) account to cover this cost if they choose to bring their lunch and plan on getting milk or wish to purchase additional milk at meals, as well if they want to purchase any extra ala carte items. You may add funds to your student(s) meal account using myschoolbucks.com or you may send money to school to be deposited with your student(s) as well.

How does this affect applying for Free/Reduced meals?

We still highly recommend and encourage you if you have not already as a Parent/Guardian to please fill out the Iowa Eligibility Meal Application to apply for Free/Reduced status. You can access this application by going to https://www.shencsd.com/ click on the Nutrition tab, scroll down the left-hand side to Free/Reduced Meals and click, and this will direct you to the website and walk you through the process. You may also pick up an application at any school office.

This Institution is an Equal Opportunity Provider.

If you have any questions, please contact the Shenandoah Community Schools Nutrition Department at 712-246-3773 or email questions to edwardsk@shenandoah.k12.ia.us.

Thank You,

Kristin Edwards, SCSD Food Service Director

K-8 Families--  Hopefully you all had a great week and found a nice, warm, cozy spot to settle into on this cold Sunday.  Every Friday I send out a message to the K-8 Staff and my most recent message to them reminded them to make sure we are caring for ourselves, mentally and physically.  In the strangeness that is 2020, I hope you are getting that opportunity to care for yourself and family too.  

1) If for some reason you end up with a student who is put into quarantine, please make sure you are checking your email or your students are checking their Google Classrooms.  While out, students are still expected to be doing their work.  Teachers are making contacts with their students and helping them get the materials they need, please help us make sure the students are getting it and are working while they are out.  If they don't get done with the work while they are out, they will be completing the work when they return which equals double the daily workload.  We want our students to be successful and that takes your support!

2) Don't forget to check out our school website (www.shencsd.com) or Facebook page (www.facebook.com/shenpk8) to keep up with what we are doing here at school.  

3) Hopefully you all have received an invite to sign your students up for Parent-Teacher Conferences.  We are extremely sorry that you may have gotten some messages for other students, there was a glitch in the system we used to send those messages out.  Please take the time this week to sign up your students for Thursday, Oct 29.

4) Our MS Fall sports wrapped up this week.  Congrats to all who participated and represented our school in a great way.  Congrats to the XC runners on their high finishes at the H10 meet, we had some really good times and places including the second place finisher on the boys side!  

I know I say this every week, at the end of each message, "if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to me."  This is an honest message.  We are a team and I am more than happy to answer any questions.  If you don't ask me directly or bring it to my attention, I can't help you.  Let's work together!

I continue to be amazed at the great things we are doing here and I look forward to seeing the next great thing our students and staff are doing!  If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to me.  Thank you and have a great week!  --Mr. Burdorf #horsepower

We want to say a big thank you to Optimal Aquafeed and Green Plains in partnership with the Emerald Isle for their donation of $1020 to the school lunch program.  Back on September 12th, the Emerald Isle hosted a fish fry, with the fish being donated by Optimal Aquafeed and Green Plains, with the proceeds being donated to the Shenandoah School Lunch Program.  Thank you to these great people for helping Shenandoah students!

There has been much written about COVID 19 that I hesitate to add further to what may feel like an excessive volume of information.  However, when the community spread positivity rate has escalated as rapidly as it has in our area, I think it is important to communicate more about it.

The District has publicly reported a total of six positive COVID 19 cases since the start of the school year. Many individuals have been sent home due to signs of illness,  were asked to isolate or quarantine due to direct exposure or referred for testing. However, we use the Iowa Department of Public Health guidelines to decide who is sent home and the length of time required to stay home before returning to school.  As a District, we believe adhering to this guidance helps reduce the spread of COVID 19 in our schools and is in the best interest of all involved.

I recognize some families have been frustrated with being asked to isolate themselves or quarantine. I agree with you; it isn’t convenient or comfortable to do so. We have worked closely with Page County Public Health  throughout this process. We are required to report students and staff who are COVID 19 positive or who have been directly exposed to them and follow the quarantine guidelines and procedures established by the Iowa Department of Public Health. At times like this, we need to remember that all involved are working together to create a safe and healthy school environment and reduce the spread of COVID 19. 

I also know that it can be stressful to wait for test results to come back. Once a person is tested, they are to remain isolated until the results are known.  Students are not allowed to attend school while they wait for their test results. Some have had to wait several days for test results, which can make waiting even harder.  Shenandoah Medical Center has responded to this concern positively and now has options that allow for a more rapid response. I appreciate their responsive leadership to meet a community need.  Test Iowa in Clarinda is another option to consider.

It is not always possible to maintain social distance in a school environment. In a school setting, correctly wearing a face-covering may make a difference in whether or not your child is sent home from school and required to quarantine. I would encourage you to talk with your child about the importance of wearing face coverings that fully cover their mouth and nose, maintaining social distance, and other preventative measures. Doing these things increases the likelihood that we can stay in school and continue to have school activities.  

The following documents will help answer some of the questions you may have about how decisions are made related to quarantine and keeping schools open.

We would like to congratulate our September Students of the Month here at the Shenandoah Elementary and Middle School.  Students earn "The Mustang Way" cards for being respectful, responsible, and being safe throughout the month from teachers and staff.  Those cards are then used to randomly select the winners for each month.  Those winners then receive an award for being chosen.  This month's winners are:

Middle School

7th Grade Maren Bosley, 6th Grade Sarah Pickens, 5th Grade Carter Sells, and 8th Grade Ayden Strange

We would like to congratulate our September Students of the Month here at the Shenandoah Elementary and Middle School.  Students earn "The Mustang Way" cards for being respectful, responsible, and being safe throughout the month from teachers and staff.  Those cards are then used to randomly select the winners for each month.  Those winners then receive an award for being chosen.  This month's winners are:

Elementary

Front Row (L to R)

Caitlyn Carter, Joss McGinnis, Teegan Fuller, Madisyn Greene, Elizabeth Moore, Elliott Kirsch, Collins Comstock, Graham Mather, Ariella Catlett

Back Row (L to R)

Leo Weber, Journey Hielen, Eliana Emery, Andy Hansen, Aidan Trowbridge, Charlie Liles, Ruthie Martin, Brooklyn Herron, Precious Verdonck, Keegan Peters, (not pictured Lilyana Androy)

This past summer, Mrs. Hunter worked with the Nishnabotna Wildlife Unit helping to manage and restore the wetlands and prairie habitats.  She built a beaver management device that allows water to flow through a culvert in the McPaul Wildlife Management Area that had been clogged by debris.  She also headed up the capturing and banding of mourning doves and geese.  The information gathered through banding will aid in the monitoring harvest rates, survival rates, and effects of hunting on bird populations.  All of this was made possible through the Iowa STEM Teacher Externships program.  By participating Mrs. Hunter posses new skills for helping students develop employability skills related to her field of study.  

Here is what Mrs. Hunter had to say about her experience, "PBL has been cool for me to experience firsthand because going through the steps of research, ordering, dealing with salesmen, asking advice, picking up all the parts, building on our own, making adjustments, and collaborating made it all that more meaningful and something that I am proud of.  This experience will help me develop classroom projects that are more meaningful to students."

 2020 Shenandoah Fall Activities Guidance

General Spectator Information:
●    Face coverings are strongly recommended when unable to social distance for all spectators at all times. Face covers are required when entering, exiting and moving around school facilities.
●    Spectators should follow proper social distancing guidelines and sit six feet apart.  Please adhere to the markings on any bleachers.  Families are encouraged to sit together and away from other families.
●    Please do not attend a sporting event if you feel sick or have any symptoms of Covid 19.
●    Students in grades K-8 MUST be accompanied by and sit with an adult.
●    There will be limited capacity for events held in the Middle School/Elementary gyms. You must have a ticket in order to purchase a ticket to attend. Each player (home and away) will receive two tickets.
●    Live Stream options should be available soon for most Shenandoah sporting events.
●    We will be using digital programs. You can take a picture of the program or use the Varsity Bound website/app.

Admissions:
●    Event entrances may be modified depending on the event and venue.
●    Activity pass purchases are highly encouraged to reduce cash transactions
        ○    If cash is used, the exact amount is highly recommended.
●    Admission workers will be required to wear a mask if they are not behind a barrier such as plexiglass.
●    Social distancing will be required in line. Please adhere to all posted signage.
 

Concessions:
●    Exact cash amount is highly recommended when ordering from the concession stand.
●    Social distancing will be required in line. Please adhere to all posted signage.
●    Modifications will be made to the setup of the concessions stand to ensure safety.
●    Concessions stand workers will go through a health screening and wear face coverings and 
gloves when contacting food.

Media/Event Workers:
●    All event staff and workers should remain socially distant, when possible.
●    Face coverings are required if event staff cannot be socially distant from other staff.
●    Media must maintain 6 feet of distance when interviewing coaches and students.
 

Important Things to Remember
★  Wear a face covering, when possible
★  Frequent Hand Washing
★  Monitor Your Health - If you feel sick, stay home!
★  Remain Socially Distanced (6 feet)
★  Avoid Face Touching
*Last Updated 8/21/2020