Dear District 30 Family,
We had a great week of learning! Thank you for your partnership as we continue to navigate this time together. Thank you to those of you who were quarantined after travel and with COVID-19 symptoms to keep our school community safe and operating. Thank you to our teachers for generating videos for our virtual curriculum night, and thank you to our parents for taking the time to learn with us. I also know that we all appreciate the continued extra effort our teachers give to support all of our students.
Tomorrow, our country remembers 9/11/2001 when nearly 3000 lives from 90 countries were lost. I will never forget the images from that day. My son and I spent the next evening under a star-filled sky, which did not house a single plane for the first time in either of our memories. The silence absorbed our nation and us as we tried to comprehend the loss and conceive of the seeds of hatred that generated these acts. It is truly impossible to understand to this day.
As we rewind through the last twenty years, three inspiring lessons emerge. First, we witnessed and learned from the perseverance of impacted nations, especially ours, and families who lost loved ones and continued loving, hoping, and giving. Second, optimism from the belief and knowledge that we can change the world for the better. Volunteerism and meaningful acts of kindness rose out of the ash from September 11 and continue across our community and country. Finally, the lesson of the responsibility we all have to each other. For each of us, life spawns small and substantial challenges, times where we need others. We are at our best when we realize the courage to ask for help and support others when the need inevitably arises. As we reflect together tomorrow, I ask each of us to continue to answer the calling to make this world a more civil and caring place, and I thank each of you for bringing these lessons to life in our community.
Included here are a few notes as we continue this journey together:
SHIELD Illinois COVID-19 Monitor Testing: This week, the district continued working with our provider to establish the state-funded voluntary saliva testing program using the SHIELD Illinois test, a PCR test developed by the University of Illinois.
SHIELD screening testing will tentatively begin on Wednesday, September 15, at Willowbrook and Maple and Wescott on Monday, September 20. Testing will occur for unvaccinated individuals who have not opted out. Times have been established that generate the required 45-minutes without food or water before testing. Thank you to everyone participating (over 97% of eligible students) and for updating your primary contact information. Look for more details next week with directions to access your child’s test results.
Monitor testing will help detect potential cases, clusters, and outbreaks before they become widespread. Also, please note that participation in the SHIELD screening will be required for unvaccinated students to engage in athletics. We are also finalizing details on a Test-to-Stay program that we expect to be available for unvaccinated students participating in SHIELD monitor testing. With Test-to-Stay, eligible close contacts can test 1, 3, 5, and 7 days after exposure to a COVID positive case. If an eligible student remains symptom-free and continues to test negative, the student will be able to stay in school without quarantining.
Tina Payne Bryson, Ph.D. Parenting Support: Community Action Together for Children’s Health (CATCH) will partner with Northfield Township Schools to put on Parenting and Pivoting in a Pandemic (click on the contained link & a Zoom link will be sent out next Thursday) virtually with Tina Payne Bryson, Ph.D., on Monday, September 20. Please join us for this valuable opportunity!
School Support: Please don’t hesitate to reach out for help through our teaching staff if and when the need arises. Remaining connected and accessing the many resources in our community is a strength.
Thank you for your continued support, and have a great weekend!
Sincerely,
Dr. Brian K. Wegley
Superintendent
