Weekly Update
January 21, 2022

e-Connections Post

Good afternoon, Sacramento City Unified School District Families,

As we continue to address challenges stemming from the COVID surge due to the omicron variant, we wanted to provide you with an update for this week.  For the week of January 18-21, we saw an estimated 5% increase in student attendance* and an 8.1% decrease in staff absences. Our County is also seeing less omicron detection in wastewater and, according to Sacramento Public Health Officer Dr. Olivia Kasirye, “All the projections indicate that we will likely reach a peak in January or late February.”

While this is great news and we continue to strive to keep schools open amid this current surge to minimize inequitable disruption to the lives of our families, there has nonetheless been significant disruption to the academic growth, mental health and wellbeing of our students. For this reason, we have sent a reminder to our school leaders and secondary teachers to consider semester grading approaches that are mindful of the impact of COVID and the recent surge due to the omicron variant.

This is an important reminder as our Student Support staff have reported unprecedented rates of escalated student mental health concerns which, exacerbated by COVID, have impacted academic performance and attendance and elevated student concerns about how traditional grading practices may affect their future success. Equally important, we want to ensure that students with COVID symptoms remain home without feeling undue pressure to attend school to maintain their semester grades.

We have asked our educators to consider the following grading approaches for the first semester of this academic year ending on January 28, 2022: 

  • Students are held harmless for a decline in grades associated with absences AND missed assignments and assessments incurred after Winter Break and before the end of the semester (January 3-28, 2022). 
  • First semester grades are based on coursework completed prior to Winter Break, before our students and staff were most impacted by the COVID-19 Omicron variant, with strong consideration for Quarter 2 grades given to student performance from the Quarter 1 grading period ending on November 5, 2022 and the start of Winter Break on December 17, 2022.
  • Allowances are made for students to improve their grades during the period from January 3-28, 2022 and grades are not negatively impacted due to a decline in attendance, engagement, performance and assignment completion. 

Here are some additional highlights that are happening in the SCUSD community. 

K-8 OPEN ENROLLMENT 

K-8 Open Enrollment begins on February 1 and is a great opportunity for incoming Kindergarten through 8th grade students who reside permanently in the boundaries of SCUSD to apply for spots in schools beyond their neighborhood school when space is available. Click here to learn more.

SLY PARK TRIPS

Unfortunately, due to the omicron wave, all field trips to Sly Park scheduled for February have been canceled. In partnership with Sacramento County Public Health, Sacramento County Office of Education and El Dorado County Public Health, we are continuing to monitor the situation and will keep families informed of whether we will be able to move forward with field trips that are scheduled in March.

N95 AND KF94 MASK DISTRIBUTION

We are excited to inform you that we will be able to provide every student and staff member with N95 and KF94 masks, which the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has recognized as the most effective mask types for preventing the spread of COVID-19. More detail on the timing of these shipments and distribution can be found in today’s eConnection. Please reach out to your school site if you are already cleared to volunteer in the District to check if they could use support with this distribution effort. 

COVID-19 TESTING

We have extended our COVID-19 testing center hours and staffing to provide more testing access. Please note that we have pushed back the start time at Albert Einstein Middle School to ensure that our students and families may leave for dismissal without being impacted by testing center lines. We want to ensure the health and safety of our Albert Einstein Middle School students and families, while also providing this community benefit. 

Serna Center Testing

  • Monday through Thursday: from 10am-4pm 
  • Fridays from 10am-3pm (shortened hours due to vaccination clinics on Fridays from 4-7pm)

Albert Einstein Middle School Testing

  • Monday through Friday: 4-7pm

Surveillance testing is taking place in our schools and testing is also available in school site care rooms upon request. If you haven’t already done so, please register your child for COVID-19 testing today to help us stop the spread. 

UPCOMING VACCINATION CLINICS

Below are this coming week’s COVID-19 vaccination clinics that we will be hosting. 

Friday, January 21

Thursday, January 27

Friday, January 28

WE’RE UNIFIED AGAINST COVID IN SACRAMENTO

Our Board of Education members and other local elected officials, including Sacramento Mayor Steinberg and council members Eric Guerra and Mai Vang, bring a message of solidarity to get vaccinated against COVID-19, report your vaccination status to SCUSD and register for testing. Watch the video here

 


 

*Please note this is an estimate as many of our school sites update attendance the following school day.