SFASD Messages

Good evening Spring-Ford Community,

Since May 14th, Spring-Ford’s leadership team has focused on reopening schools for the 2020-2021 school year in three phases – Red, Yellow, and Green. The health and wellness of our students, staff, and families continues to be the top priority when considering all reopening plans. Every decision is made through the lens of public health and based on information related to our community.

This evening, the Board of School Directors voted to reopen schools following the Red Plan. While we will share detailed, in-depth information related to the implementation of the Red Plan in the coming days, I feel it is important that you have an overview of the plan this evening.

Understanding the Red Plan - Returning to School in Red: all stakeholders - students, parents, teachers, building administrators, central administration- will be supported in the transition to home learning and feel confident in the use of the tool to provide high-quality education in 2020-2021 and beyond.

What to Expect in the Red Plan

• Increase the opportunity for students to engage in synchronous instruction during school closures while understanding that many families still require the flexibility of an asynchronous schedule
• Maintain flexibility for families and staff
• Provide structure and support with time management for students and families
• Click here to view the full 19-page Red Phase Instructional Continuation Plan including:
  • Teacher-lead instruction
  • FERPA statement
  • Attendance Expectations
  • Sample schedules
  • Emotional supports for families and students

Next Steps - As an administrative team, and school community, we will be:

• Addressing the social and emotional needs of our students and staff
• Addressing IEPs, GIEPs, and the needs of our Special Education students
• Ensuring we have current contact information for our students and families through First Day Verification, which will open on August 1st
• Distributing or refreshing devices for virtual learning as needed
• Assessing the academic readiness of students through the use of assessments, and conducting wellness and social/emotional check-ins with students
• Families who are more comfortable starting the year in Spring-Ford Cyber Learning can click here to learn more or to enroll

Though we now have clear guidance, our work is far from complete, and we need your continued support now and throughout the school year. As individuals, we all have personal feelings regarding what is best for our families, and I encourage you to relay this plan responsibly and respectfully to your child(ren). Please understand that we must do what is in the best interest of our entire school community including more than 1,100 employees, 8,000 students, 5,400 families, and nearly 50,000 residents.

I would like to thank our administrative team, teachers, support staff, and school board for taking on the momentous task of moving our brick-and-mortar school district to a virtual school district in just 136 days. As well, I would like to thank our families for their continued support as we look towards the new school year.

Thank you and be safe.

Dr. David Goodin
Superintendent