12/01/2020
Just so you know
Nov. 30, 2020
Lion Nation,
I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving holiday, and that it was filled with laughter and love spent with family. As I write this letter, the snow flakes are slowly drifting down outside. Tomorrow is the first day of December, and we only have three more weeks until our winter break. With winter comes falling temperatures, snow, and ice...as well as school cancellations.
Earlier this month, we sent out a survey to families, as well as our staff, to gauge the interest in snow days versus alternative methods of instruction, or as we call it, AMI. Basically, it means we have the opportunity to conduct classes virtually or by other means, even if the buildings are physically closed.
Over 1,400 parents and guardians responded to the survey, and we feel that number is a good sample for helping us make informed decisions. One question we asked had to do with having reliable internet access to support online learning. Over 96% of our respondents have reliable access to internet access, which was great for us to hear when considering whether to have snow days or AMI days for inclement weather.
We also asked families their preferred option for inclement weather days. The choices were traditional snow days, AMI days, or a combination of both. The results of the three options were very close. Just over 37% of respondents preferred AMI days. A combination of traditional and AMI days was preferred by almost 35%. Traditional snow days were preferred by nearly 28%. Our staff preferred a combination of traditional snow days and AMI days, with just over 41%. Just under 41% preferred AMI days only, and 17% preferred traditional snow days.
Considering this information, we will most likely use a combination of traditional snow days and AMI days when faced with inclement weather. Obviously, other circumstances such as the timing of the weather event and the forecast will always play into the decision as well.
The AMI plan for Northwest was submitted to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) earlier this year, and has been approved for the 2020-21 school year. However, DESE only allows for 36 hours of AMI instruction per year. This translates into roughly five school days per year. That means that any other inclement weather days would have to be a snow day made up at the end of the year. Therefore, we will be selective in deciding whether to have a traditional snow day or an AMI day. When the call is made, we will include the type of day it will be in our announcement, which will be sent via our communications channels. As a reminder, please make sure your information on file is correct so you can receive these notifications.
Northwest has students on three different schedules in our district: PreK-5 attending five days per week in-person, our grades 6-12 who attend on an A/B hybrid schedule, and our OnLionEdu students, who are all virtual. We know there will be questions about the difference between a traditional snow day and an AMI day, plus how it impacts our students. To help you understand more about this, we have created a FAQ document which is attached to this letter.
If you have any more questions about the differences in snow days and AMI days, please contact your child’s school and they will be happy to answer your questions.
Thank you for trusting us with your children. Together, we’ve got this.
Desi Kirchhofer, Ed. D
Superintendent, Northwest School District
