Friday, April 17, 2020
Hey Raccoons,
I hope everyone is doing as well as possible given the
circumstances. The announcement that school will remain closed for the rest of
the 2019-2020 year is heartbreaking. Now more than ever, we have to remain
united as a school community as we begin to make plans around ending the school
year in a virtual environment.
The purpose of today’s post is to provide you with an update and
as many details as possible about the various events, celebrations, and
operational tasks that come with the end of the year. Please check them out
below.
Academic Updates: Virtual Learning Continues
Virtual learning lessons will continue to be delivered
Tuesday-Friday each week. If your school-issued device breaks or you need any
technical support, please fill out this
form, email helpdesk@oasd.org or
call 262-560-2126. Someone from our tech team will contact you as soon as
possible.
Reclaiming Personal Belongings at OHS
I understand that many students and staff have personal items that
are still at OHS. There is a team working to establish a process that abides by
government guidelines to reclaim items, and I will share those details as soon
as possible.
Down the road, we will also be setting up plans to return any
school materials you may have. This includes any uniforms, Chromebooks, library
books, and classroom materials.
Refunds and Fees
We are working with the business office regarding refunds and
reimbursements for specific events and course fees. More details will be shared
in the next month.
Academic and Extracurricular Events
All in-person academic and extracurricular-related activities
scheduled for the rest of the school year will need to be canceled. This
includes:
- All
curriculum-focused honor society induction ceremonies
- National
Honor Society induction ceremony
- All
band, choir, and orchestra concerts scheduled throughout May
- Grilling
to Give
- All
banquets and end-of-the-year celebrations
Advisors may be in touch regarding possible virtual or alternative
recognition ceremonies. This will be determined by each individual
organization. However, due to the large number of students eligible for
National Honor Society, we will simply be mailing acceptance notifications and
certificates later this Spring. Our hope is to honor these inductees with a
smaller recognition ceremony in the Fall.
Seniors who have earned cords and other academic regalia for their
participation in these various organizations will still receive them prior to
graduation. Details on the distribution of these items is still yet to be
determined.
Spring Athletic Season
The WIAA will issue guidance regarding the spring sports season
after their meeting on Tuesday. We will share details from them as soon as
possible.
Remember, our stadium lights will shine tonight in our honor of
spring athletes from 7:30-9:30pm. You are welcome to stop by, but please stay
in your car and do not congregate in large groups by the fence.
Scholar Athlete Ceremony
The annual Scholar Athlete Ceremony scheduled to occur on Monday,
May 18 will be canceled. Recipients will receive their certificates in the mail
sometime this summer. We will have a special recognition for seniors who are
4-year Scholar Athlete winners sometime during one of the senior celebration
events later this spring.
Since the rosters for most spring sports were not set and cuts
could not occur, we will be waiving the varsity letter requirement for Scholar
Athlete eligibility for any student committed to a spring sport this season. To
be considered committed, you must have your physical on file and have completed
all online waivers and forms that are required by the WIAA. This means
spring-only athletes will be eligible for the Scholar Athlete recognition if
they:
- Have
completed and submitted their required physical
- Completed
all forms required by the school and WIAA
- Attained
a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher
- Have
not had an athletic code violation during the 2019-2020 school year
Please contact Kevin Flegner at FlegnerK@oasd.org if you have any questions or concerns.
Prom
We will need to cancel our Prom that was rescheduled for Saturday,
May 30. While we will not be hosting a formal Prom this year, we will continue
to monitor government guidelines and hope to offer some culminating social
experience later in the summer. Stay tuned!
Class of 2020 Recognition Events and Commencement Ceremony
Our community is committed to recognizing this resilient and
special group of seniors. As I shared the other day, the Class of 2020 is
teaching us all an important lesson in not taking things for granted.
Obviously, everyone wants to have an idea about what we will do
for the Commencement Ceremony scheduled for June 13. Dr. Rindo and I have
talked on almost a daily basis, and have developed several contingency plans
depending on the status and restriction put in place by the state and federal
government after the Stay at Home Order expires on May 26. Any celebration would need to comply with government
guidelines, CDC recommendations, and logistically make sense given our
facilities and equipment. We will continue to monitor the situation and communicate
an update sometime in early May.
This class deserves to be honored and I look forward to many new,
out-of-the-box, and fun celebrations throughout late May and June. I have a
team of parents and teachers meeting next week to help set a plan to celebrate
our Raccoons!
Ocon Pride Live! Virtual Pep Rally
Now more than ever, we need to unite as a Raccoon community and
cheer each other up. Families, students, and community members are invited to
tune in to our Ocon Pride Live! Virtual Pep Rally on Wednesday, April 22 at
7:30pm. You can access the event through this link: https://www.oasd.org/page.cfm?p=9054
The celebration will include musical performances by our students,
a fundraiser for first responders, and recognize many of our Raccoons and
spring athletes.
Well… this wasn’t the most fun letter to write. This is going to
be a weird month, but we will get through this together. Despite the changes
and all the cancellations, now more than ever, I am proud to be a Raccoon!
Please know you can always contact me at CurtisJ@oasd.org if you
need anything. I will be in touch with additional information as it becomes
available.
Hang in there, Raccoons!
Jason
