January 11, 2022
The health and welfare of Prairie Grove students and staff is the number one priority for our school district each of every day. That’s why our school district has been monitoring the ongoing situation with Covid-19 in our schools and community. While this current spike in the number of Covid-related illnesses has not reached unprecedented levels, it has caused high student absenteeism and created shortages in the number of teachers and support staff available. COVID-related absenteeism due to quarantines, etc., are at the point of affecting normal operations for child nutrition, bus transportation, and our school nurse programs. This is especially problematic due to the lack of licensed substitutes. The number of teachers testing positive for Covid has strained the number of paraprofessionals and substitute teachers available to fill those spots.
After much thought and consultation with building and district leaders, we have decided to declare Alternative Means of Instruction (AMI) days for Thursday and Friday (January 13th and 14th) of this week. All Prairie Grove Schools will be closed these two days for regular instruction. These two (2) days will count as regular school days and will not require students to make up these days at the end of the year.
This action, along with us being out on Monday, January 17th, due to the state holiday celebrating the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., allows us to have five days without students in school. This time would also allow us to create separation time to hopefully slow the spread of Covid in our schools and time to clean and disinfect our facilities.
Our teachers will spend tomorrow, Wednesday, with students preparing them for these two (2) days of remote instruction. Students will need to be sure to bring their Chromebooks, tablets, or any instructional materials on paper home for these two days. Teachers will be available by email during regular school hours Thursday and Friday if students have questions about their remote instruction.
At this time, all athletic events are still scheduled as planned. However, any changes to those previously scheduled events will be communicated to our community using our district’s website or social media.
Respectfully,
Reba Holmes
Superintendent