03/16/2020 School Update Video Transcript
Good evening fellow citizens of Hamblen County. My name is Jeff Perry. I currently serve as superintendent of schools for the Hamblen County Board of Education.
We will produce a video frequently to keep our community informed and to help answer any questions you may have. Please visit the school district’s webpage (www.hcboe.net) to access these updates. Individuals may submit questions and concerns which will be answered on the video. Please submit questions or concerns to Mrs. Kellie Smith (smithk@hcboe.net) or contact us at 423-586-7700. Citizens can also pick up a paper copy of the presentation at the Hamblen County Board of Education if you cannot access the internet. In addition, we have an automated text/email/voice messaging system that can provide community members with important updates about school. Contact Mrs. Kellie Smith if you need help.
Hamblen County Schools will be closed for the remainder of this week. We are out for spring break the following week. We will assess the situation during spring break and make the determination of when we will return to school. We made the decision to close because some of our staff members have medical conditions which would place them at a higher degree of risk. Other staff members are primary caregivers for spouses, parents or children who are considered high risk and they were reluctant to come to school. We were concerned that we would not have the necessary staff to adequately supervise the students. We decided to attend school on Monday to give parents and the rest of our community an opportunity to prepare for school closures. Closing schools places a tremendous burden on local industries and working parents and we wanted to give our community time to prepare.
At this point we are planning to return on March 30. However, we will monitor the status of the virus during these next two weeks. We will update parents during spring break to ensure everyone has ample notice to plan accordingly.
At this point we are cancelling all school-related events. All extra-curricular and athletics are cancelled, and there will be no practices during school closures. The schools will not be open to any outside organizations unless it is an emergency situation. There are a number of questions regarding events such as prom, graduation, open houses, registrations, etc. It is much too soon to make a decision about these future events. We will do everything in our power to provide our students with these important experiences, but safety issues will take precedent. We will keep you updated on these events.
We were very concerned that healthcare and safety providers will be unable to perform critical services for the community due to the closure of school. Individuals within these professions could be forced to make a decision between work or staying home with young children. We hope to help with this decision to some degree. The task force will provide free childcare during the workweek for any parent working in the hospital, medical clinics, first responders, EMS, law enforcement, fire protection, or any other health/safety profession. Please contact Mrs. Stacy Gibson at 423-276-0668 to determine eligibility for this daycare. We will start this program on Tuesday, March 17, and continue until school reopens or the spread of the virus forces us to cancel the program.
In addition to this program, we will also provide services for parents who must work but have no child care options. There will be a fee ($15 for the first child and $10 for additional siblings per day) for this program. Again, please contact Mrs. Gibson for fee payments and availability. These programs will be held at Hillcrest Elementary School. We will open at 6:00 a.m. and close at 6:00 p.m.
Many of our school-age children live in poverty and may not have access to nutritious meals during a school closure. We are currently working on a plan to provide at least one meal each day to these students while schools are closed. Other organizations are supporting our efforts and will also provide food to ensure everyone is fed. Please continue to monitor this website and these presentations to receive the necessary details. Meals during this time will be free to any individuals 18 years old or younger. We will create a plan to provide meals at school or transport them to various staging areas in the community if necessary.
We are finalizing a plan to provide families with online curricular options to keep students engaged in learning while school is out. More details will be included soon about how to access these resources from our school district website. In the meantime, please take an opportunity to read with your elementary-aged children.
We care deeply about this community, our school system, and our students. The Board of Education and the Office of the Superintendent are committed to doing everything we can to help our students and community. Please continue to check this website for additional information. We wish you the best.