A message from the Indian Hill School District

Brave Return to School 2020-2021

An important message from Superintendent Kirk Koennecke

Braves:

We are ready to welcome you back on Thursday, August 27, for a Brave Return to the 2020-2021 school year.

Our administrators joined our teachers to present our final plans and recommendations that included input from parents, faculty, staff, and public health experts to our Board of Education on Thursday, July 30. This was a community effort, and I sincerely thank every member of our Brave family who helped develop these models.

School will look different; here is what you need to know.

The Plans

Each family will begin the 2020-2021 school year with two options:

1. In-person Learning at the Indian Hill School District 2. Brave Virtual Academy

In-Person Learning

Plan A: Five days a week of in-person instruction

Plan B: Hybrid, two days a week of in-person instruction and three days of online learning

Plan C: Online learning facilitated by assigned teachers if conditions warrant that a face-to-face setting is not safe

Please note: If you select In-Person Learning for your student, local health conditions will help to determine whether our District will participate in Plan A, Plan B, or Plan C. Please see accompanying documents for more information about the Indian Hill Schools Attendance Model Overview.

What does the start of the school year currently look like for In-Person Learning?
For the start of the 2020-2021 school year, students who select to participate in In-Person Learning will return to school in a Plan B, hybrid model on Thursday, August 27.

Do I have a choice of days for the hybrid learning model?

Students will be assigned to Team 1 on Mondays and Tuesdays or Team 2 on Thursdays and Fridays. Though we would like to make this a choice per family, we will be sorting students into these groups based on several factors: coordinating the same schedule for siblings in the same family; transportation routing and needs; and enrollment balance. Families will be notified of placement through a placement letter by August 13. We also recognize that there will be some families who have extraordinary circumstances that may warrant a request of a specific group. In that placement communication that will be sent to you directly from your student's building, there will be a form to complete to indicate a request to change team assignment due to extraordinary circumstances.

Not comfortable with In-Person Learning? Welcome to the new Brave Virtual Academy!
The Brave Virtual Academy is a brand new offering of the Indian Hill School District. This option is available to all students K-12 who choose to remain home. We are only requiring students commit a quarter at a time to give families as much flexibility as possible. Students in the Brave Virtual Academy will work directly with Indian Hill faculty in a virtual setting using our unique Indian Hill curriculum.

Our staff did an incredible job of navigating emergency distance learning in the midst of so many unknowns this past spring. This upcoming school year will be different. Our educators have spent the summer entrenched in professional development with national experts to sharpen skills for our Brave Virtual Academy.

Specific teachers will be assigned to the Brave Virtual Academy. Their sole responsibility will be the education of students who have selected this learning plan. At Indian Hill High School, students will have access to the full course of study. An individual learning plan will be developed for each Indian Hill High School student that may include participation in a state-of-art eLearning platform, independent study, and virtual participation in in-person classes.

What Brave Virtual Academy isnot: Plan C.

This has been a point of mild confusion, so we want to help explain what will happen with your student.

If you selected In-Person Learning and the District is forced to transition to Plan C due to safety concerns, your student will continue learning with the same teachers and same peers online. Students who selected Brave Virtual

Academy will see no change if the District transitions to Plan C. The students in the Brave Virtual Academy will remain in their previously established courses with Indian Hill faculty and peers.

Before you make your selection ... check this out!

We want you to have complete details for all that our Brave Return to School program entails including: health and safety measures; attendance model overview; plan details; and our COVID-19 screening flowchart.

Click here to view the information packet we have built; we hope these documents will answer your questions.

Select Your Child's Participation Here: A Brave Return: Student Registration

Now, it is time for you to tell us which plan your student will participate in!

The selection of a learning model for your child is a quarter's commitment.We know some of you already made a selection in a previous parent questionnaire that was sent out, however, information has changed, and we ask that all parents/guardians complete this information using the link above - even if your choice has not changed.

The deadline for this enrollment information is Friday, August 7 at 12:00 p.m.

What about transportation?

The Indian Hill School District will provide transportation to students to and from school. To organize our bus routes, we need your help. Your indication of whether your child will use transportation or not is an important factor in our work. Please use the Transportation Information Form to indicate whether your child will use our transportation system.

Select Your Child's Transportation Needs Here: A Brave Return: Transportation Information Form

For directions on Final Forms and what forms need to be completed by Friday, August 7, click here.

This is all brand new ... who has questions?

We have created aFrequently Asked Questions page to help get you the information you need. If you have a question that is not included in the FAQ, email bravereturn@ihsd.us and our team will work to update the FAQ document with those answers. We have also developed a Brave Return to School website that will be updated on a regular basis; this resource contains all of the information communicated within this email.

What will stay the same? Our #IHPromise to you and your family ...

Each day brings change and challenge, but also new opportunities. We have a vision of Enduring Excellence in Learning, Leadership, Innovation, and Service. This is part of our #IHPromise to you, and that will never change.

We are in this together.

	In service to our children, Kirk Koennecke
Kirk.Koennecke@indianhillschools.org Superintendent
Indian Hill School District

Please click the below image to see a special video message from Superintendent Kirk Koennecke.

Enduring Excellence in Learning, Leadership, Innovation, and Service

Indian Hill Exempted Village School District | http://indianhillschools.org
6855 Drake Road	Cincinnati, OH 45243