Dale Schools will still begin the new year on Wednesday, Aug. 12, Acting School Supt. Ky Wilkins informed the Board of Education Monday evening.
“Our reopen plan is to roll the buses out of here at 7 a.m. that morning,” he advised members.
He also told the board members “If we have a student test positive of COVID-19, we’re going to follow CDC guidelines as handed down by the Oklahoma State Health Department.”
Wilkins said, “We’ll use our system also to notify everyone in the district if and when someone tests positive.”
Wilkins along with Elementary Principal Bruce Throckmorton and Assistant Secondary Principal J.D. Widener anticipate the overwhelming majority of students will attend classes on campus. Both traditional and virtual are offered and available, but they estimate at this time only 30 to 40 will attend virtually.
“Our kids want to be here,” Wilkins said.
Wilkins told the board, though, “This has to be right. We have to dot the I’s and cross the T’s.
He acknowledged that virtual “has not been an easy process.” He explained. “The vast majority of the teachers think this is going to be handy in a year.”
Teachers are being provided with virtual training. Throckmorton said, “Some are struggling. They’re doing a great job. Our teachers are stressed out right now, but things are going well,” he added.
“We’re getting lot of calls from parents each day. We’re trying to answer all their questions. We need our kids in the classroom,” he thinks.
He related that the fifth grade is being moved to the sixth grade building.
Throckmorton said only six elementary students are signed up for Virtual at this time, but we know of a few others.” Administrators said there are 24 students in grades 6-12 who are signed up for Virtual.
He noted, “Virtual is not going away. It’s new to our teachers.” He mentioned to the board that he believes, “We’ll get some of those kids back from EPIC Charter.”
Wilkins said, “We’re teaching Oklahoma standards.
“I’d say 99 percent of the teachers are on board with whatever we have to do. No one has all the answers. We’re going to do the best we can. Everyone wants normalcy,” Wilkins feels.
Regarding masks that are required for students in the second grade and up, along with all teachers and staff, Wilkins emphasized, “We have to use common sense and we’re going to have to be flexible.
“Our kids need to be in school,” he reiterated.
“We are going to keep it as simple as possible,” he stressed.
Wilkins also told board members, “We got our state aid allocation and it’s about $100,000 short. We expected that. We’re hoping for another CARES Act. But we have to pay attention to expenses though.
“We’ll watch our supplies. We have $53,000 in education sales tax funds.
In other business:
The board reorganized. Tim Collins is now president, Roger Batt is vice president and Ronnie Newton is clerk.
Board members approved participation in the Alternative Education program with Bethel Public Schools. Wilkins said this participation with Bethel has been in place several years now.
They approved a nondiscrimination policy. “We’re just revising it,” the board was told.
They also approved the student policy handbook and were informed there are no changes.
Fundraisers were authorized for the Vo-Ag program, the band program and the Elementary school in that order.
Board members also hired Oklahoma Speech Consultants, PLLC at $65 an hour.