OKCPS Families & Staff,

As 2020 continues to bring us new challenges, I want to take a moment to thank our incredible OKCPS Maintenance teams, as well as the first responders, city crews and other community partners like OG&E, who have worked around the clock in recent days to clear roads, make repairs and ultimately keep us all safe and warm. During weeks like this I am reminded that the Oklahoma Standard is still very much alive and well here in our great city, and we will get through this -- together.

State & County COVID Weekly Reporting

As we turn our minds back to Covid-19, the reporting from the Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) indicates that the cases per 100,000 for Oklahoma County are 28.3 for this week, as compared to 25.2 last week. This means we are still at Orange Level 2 according to the Oklahoma State Department of Education’s (OSDE) Covid Alert Map.

As a reminder, because our state may be faced with a fluctuation between Orange Alert Level 1 and 2 for the foreseeable future, OKCPS believes it is more appropriate and consistent to make any significant instructional changes for our district at the OSDE Red Alert level.  This means that the items below would only halt if Oklahoma County were to transition into OSDE’s Red Alert Level and/or if we were to see a significant change to some of our other data points.

Because Oklahoma County is at Orange Level 2 this week, OKCPS will move forward with the following: 

• Continuation of in-person learning in an A/B setting for our Pre-K, Kindergarten and Alternative Education students, as well as in-person instruction for students with special needs who were in a self-contained classroom
• Move forward with our plan to welcome our remaining 1st - 12th grade students, including our Newcomers (new to the United States), back for in-person learning in an A/B setting on Monday, November 9. 

As a reminder, OKCPS’ A/B schedule operates like this: 

You can find more information about the A/B Schedule here: www.okcps.org/Page/5399 

OKCPS COVID Reporting

Each Friday, OKCPS will report the number of “self-reported” positive COVID-19 cases, along with the number of individuals who have been asked to isolate due to potential exposure to the virus. 

“Close Contact” Exposure refers to the number of cases when a staff member or student was in “close contact” with a person who has tested positive for COVID and has been asked to isolate. “Close contact” as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention occurs when an individual is within 6 feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes starting from 2 days (or 48 hours) before the infected person’s onset of symptoms.

Self-Reported Positive Cases refers to the number of cases when a staff member or student has notified OKCPS of positive results from a COVID-19 test.

COVID-19 Case Count for the Week of: October 23 - October 29*

As we continue to see an elevated number of cases in Oklahoma County, it is extremely important that everyone remain vigilant and follow all safety protocols outlined by the district and other public health agencies. These measures are in place to protect you and the health and safety of those around you and should be followed at all times. Also, for more information on OKCPS Health & Safety Protocols, please visit: www.okcps.org/FAQ

Reminders

As a reminder, next week’s schedule will look a little bit different for OKCPS:

• Monday, November 2
• No school for students. This means students will not attend in-person classes and will not log-in for virtual learning.
• Site Professional Development Day for Certified Staff
• All other district staff should report to work as usual.
• District offices will be open.  School offices will be closed to the public.
• No curbside meal service on Monday.
• Tuesday, November 3
• Asynchronous Virtual Learning Day for all students. This means that teachers will load assignments into Canvas ahead of time and all students will log-in to learn on their own on Tuesday.  By doing this, OKCPS is able to allow our teachers and families plenty of flexibility to vote. 
• Pro-tech staff will report to work as usual on Tuesday but will be given ample opportunity to vote, as is allowed by Oklahoma Law. Pro-tech employees should make arrangements with their supervisors prior to Tuesday. 
• District offices will be open. School offices will be closed to the public.
• Site-based staff will not be required to report to work.
• Wednesday, November 4 - Regular schedule / All offices open
• Group B Pre-K, K and Alternative Educations students will attend in-person classes. 
• Students in our special education program will attend in-person classes following their normal schedule. 
• Thursday, November 5 - Regular schedule / All offices open
• Group A Pre-K, K and Alternative Educations students will attend in-person classes. 
• Students in our special education program will attend in-person classes following their normal schedule. 
• Friday, November 6 - Regular schedule  / All offices open
• Group B Pre-K, K and Alternative Educations students will attend in-person classes. 
• Students in our special education program will participate in remote instruction following their normal schedule.

At this time, OKCPS plans to resume curbside meal service on Tuesday, November 3rd and meals will be available on Tuesday - Friday next week from 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at all school sites. However, if power isn’t completely restored at school sites, food preparation and distribution may be interrupted. District officials will keep you updated as needed related to our curbside meal service. 

Families needing support are still encouraged to 58-STUDY (587-8839) for academic support or 587-HELP (4357) for technical support. Our 587-FEEL (3335) hotline also remains active to provide emotional support and crisis intervention help. 

It has been another unusual week for OKCPS, but our commitment to the health and safety of our students and staff never waivers. Many thanks to each of you for your patience and support. Let’s continue to take care of each other. 

I will update you again next Friday. In the meantime, please stay safe, everyone.

Dr. Sean McDaniel

Superintendent