July 28, 2021
On behalf of the MVESD faculty and staff, and myself, I welcome you to the 2021-2022 school year. We have spent the summer preparing for the return of students to our classrooms, and we eagerly await the first day of school on Monday, August 2, 2021. Strong community support is key to providing a well-rounded education for all of our students. It truly takes a ‘village’ to raise a child. Thank you!
As you know, face-coverings are no longer a requirement by the State of Arizona (HB2898 - Laws 2021, Ch. 404, Sec. 12) when attending school for students or staff members. Schools are also prohibited from requiring vaccines. Although masks will not be required, they will continue to be optional and encouraged for those who choose to wear them. In saying that, over the past few weeks, we have seen dramatic increases in COVID-19 cases, positivity, and transmission across Mohave County and especially in our local areas. Please see our website for specific data trends provided by Mohave County Health Services and the Arizona Department of Health Services (MVESD16.org). Just yesterday, the CDC released mitigation guidance regarding the ‘universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students, and visitors to schools, regardless of vaccination status.’ In response to this, MVESD highly recommends and encourages the use of face coverings and other CDC guidelines as precautionary measures while on campus and riding our busses.
Please know that our number one goal is the health and well-being of your child(ren) and our staff. In saying that, we must all do our part to keep our schools open for in-person learning for the duration of the year. The MVESD Governing Board has approved a ‘2021-2022 Re-Entry Transition Plan’ that focuses on cases, transmission, positivity, and absenteeism rate based on COVID-19 like cases. This can be accessed and reviewed on our website for further details.
If you are not comfortable with your child returning to an in-person learning environment, MVESD does have a K-8 online option (Mohave Valley Connections Academy). Please call our District Office (928-768-2507) if this is something of interest or you would like more information.
As a District, we will continue our commitment to the deep cleaning of our busses and buildings, disinfecting all frequently touched surfaces in work areas, such as door handles, sink handles, desks, and learning tools. We will continue to schedule for increased cleaning of surfaces and bathrooms throughout the day in all of our schools. MVESD will also continue to implement physical distancing to the extent possible. PPEs and hand sanitizing stations will still remain available as mitigation opportunities for all students and staff.
If your child is showing symptoms of illness, we ask that you keep your child home and seek guidance from your healthcare provider for appropriate testing and care. Staying home when sick with COVID-19 is essential to keeping COVID-19 infections out of our schools and preventing spread to others and possible school closure.
On Thursday, July 30th, all of our schools will host an in-person Back-To-School/Meet-the-Teacher night from 3pm-6pm. This is simply an opportunity to walk the campus and familiarize your child with what to expect come Monday, August 2nd, the first day of school. This will be followed up with a more formal Open House during the week of August 9th. More information to follow concerning the specifics.
On behalf of MVESD, we are incredibly excited to return for another school year and are looking forward to welcoming all of your children back on Monday, August 2nd!
Cole Young, MVESD Superintendent