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Update from Mr. Barnes 

Good afternoon Stratford Community,

With so much communication coming from various district personnel, I will try to limit my communication to Sundays if possible.  Student and parental emails to and from teachers have grown exponentially since our digital learning started and our district leaders are routinely sharing important information with our community, so I aim to be conscientious of not overloading your inboxes with a plethora of emails.  Instead, if we learn new information throughout the week that can be shared, then I will share that with our PTSA so that it can be placed on their website, https://stratfordhs.membershiptoolkit.com/.  I have asked them to be a conduit of information for our community for many reasons, but especially for a reason you will see below.   So without further delay, let’s get to today’s topics:

Delayed Emails – In case you are not aware, there has been a delay in emails to anyone with an email account setup with Yahoo, AOL, and Rocketmail.  This only applies to any emails sent from a Spring Branch ISD email address.  Several of you have contacted me because you have seen this information on social media and you were concerned that it may not be true.  Unfortunately, this is true and our district has done everything within our power to work with those providers to release emails sent from our domain.  What we do know is that SBISD emails were and possibly still are being screened as SPAM.  This isn’t something that our system is preventing because all other email addresses such as Hotmail, Comcast, and Gmail to name a few, are still receiving emails from our district accounts with no delay.  You will also find a link in this letter that gives you instructions to update any contact information you want changed, including your email address.  We sincerely apologize for the delay in these emails, but it appears people aren’t the only ones being quarantined.  :0)

Transcripts -  Yes, we are still able to process request for transcripts.  This process will continue the same way it has this school year.  Any student needing a transcript for college, scholarships or summer programs must submit this request through Naviance. For any additional questions, please contact Ms. Webb at shsregistrar@springbranchisd.com.  If a student needs help accessing Naviance then he or she may contact their counselor.

VOE’s – Also, our registrar Ms. Webb is still able to process Verification of Enrollment requests for our students and families.  Here is the direct link to access the VOE link that is found under the counseling tab on our Stratford webpage: https://ssh.springbranchisd.com/counseling/enrollmentstudent-records. If you should have additional questions about requesting a VOE you can send them to the same email address shsregistrar@springbranchisd.com.

Updating Contact Information -  The following link is to a district message that can be found at www.springbranchisd.com.  Any parent or guardian who needs to update contact information can follow the link to Skyward Family Access. You can also follow the instructions to enable communications from the district in case you have blocked them from SchoolMessenger.  Campus staff utilize Skyward to email students and families.  My message today and our district communications come through SchoolMessenger.  Please visit https://www.springbranchisd.com/news/how-we-communicate/school-messenger for more information to stay connected.   

Meals – As a district we are constantly assessing our situation and adjusting so that we can continue to provide a service to our families and community.  Starting tomorrow, March 30th, all meal locations will be starting a four-day week pick-up schedule.  While the hours of operation will remain the same, all campuses, including our closest campus Spring Forest Middle, will abide by the following:

• On Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, one (1) full breakfast and one(1) full lunch meal will be provided per student, age 18 and under in the car*.
• On Thursdays, two (2) full breakfasts and (2) full lunch meals will be provided per student, age 18 and under in the car*.
• Meals will be distributed based on the number of students 18 and under in your car.
• Meals will be offered cold to provide safe transport home.
• Meal distribution hours are as noted, or until all meals have been distributed
• Spring Branch ISD Grab and Go Meals are fully managed, produced and distributed by SBISD Child Nutrition Services staff.

There has been an outpouring of support from neighbors asking if they can volunteer in any capacity.  Although it would seem like helping out with the meal distribution is an easy way to volunteer, but out of an abundance of caution for our staff and our families, only SBISD child nutrition services staff members are permitted to serve.  Please feel free to share this updated meal distribution with friends and family.

Digital Backpack and Teacher Lessons – Another reoccurring theme from emails I received this week revolved around the lessons in the Digital Backpack.  Students, parents, and teachers asked the same question: “Do students follow the lessons in the Digital Backpack or do they follow the lessons provided in ItsLearning” from the teacher?  And the answer to that is YES!  Just kidding, but let me explain.  Our teachers spent this past week getting acclimated to life that requires them to teach students from a distance.  Their only expectation this week was to familiarize themselves with the content that was in the Digital Backpack and to make personal contact with their students.  Beginning tomorrow, teachers are expected to move forward with teaching that addresses critical standards and concepts that are a necessity to complete their courses.  However, some teachers have more experience utilizing technology to teach and they were able to move forward with their lessons prior to the expected time.  Yet, some teachers needed this time to acquire necessary skills to be able to teach students utilizing the district approved software and platforms.  Therefore, our district content directors preloaded these same critical standards and concepts into the Digital Backpack so that all students with access to a computer and the internet had the opportunity to learn while teachers onboarded the new processes.  Just like teachers have flexibility and autonomy in their classes in school, teachers also have the option of following their same road map they created for the school year, following the district’s road map created in the Digital Backpack, and/or a combination of both.  So for now, it is probable that you may see a little bit of both, and unfortunately, because this is new to all of us, we can’t say for certain what this should look like.  Attached to this email is a handout I shared with all of our teachers this past week to guide their thinking when it comes to planning lessons and assigning work.  Please take a moment to review it when you get a chance because it should help give perspective to what our priorities should be during this time.

A Message from the Counseling Team – To all of our students and families, all members of our counseling team want you to know that they are here for you during these stressful times.  Each one of them, including our Student Support Counselor Amanda Thompson, are available through email and can reach out to meet your needs.  Although we may be a part during this time, you are not alone.  If you have difficulty connecting with any of them, please let me know and I will facilitate that connection as soon as possible.  They also have a letter entitled TOGETHER attached to this message for your review.

Can my student pickup something they left on campus? – Unfortunately, students are not allowed to enter campus or SBISD property at this time.  I have received requests to pick up instruments and other items, but we are not able nor permitted to accommodate that request at this time.  If we receive guidance from our district officials that dictate otherwise, we will be sure to communicate that information to you as soon as possible.

Until next Sunday, this is all for now, unless you are a Yahoo, AOL, or Rocketmail user and this is all until possibly Tuesday when you receive this message.  I and the rest of the Stratford staff, sincerely appreciate all of the messages of support and appreciation we have received from many of our families.  We don’t take those comments lightly or for granted and we hope you know that we collectively miss you all and wish everyone nothing but the best during this time.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out should you have any questions or concerns.

Thanks again,

Raymorris A. Barnes

Attachments:

Things to Consider PDF

Together

Meal Schedule

Welcome to our new families