Greetings Parents and Guardians,
We look forward to partnering with you as we approach the start of our school year. In this email, you will find a form to elect your student’s academic delivery option for the 2020-21 school year, as well as two waivers required for all students attending school this year.

We continue to ask for prayers for the Lancaster Mennonite community and grace and patience as we bring you more information in the coming weeks. We look forward to seeing you later this month!

Our learning options for elementary and middle school are as follows:

Updated Plan for Educational Delivery Options

Elementary (PreK-5th Grade) and Middle School (6-8th Grade) students
Due to survey results, feedback and the limited interest in other options, and our ability to maintain smaller class sizes, our Pandemic Response Team has decided to proceed with the In-Person Model as the primary educational delivery option for elementary and middle school students for the start of the school year. The Hybrid Model is also available.

In-Person Model
We are maintaining the option to educate every student, in-person, every day, while taking precautionary measures to provide safe, healthy spaces for learning. We anticipate most students will select this option and so we are continuing to work diligently to have a safe return to the classroom. See more information in the FAQs.

Hybrid Model
In this option, students would attend school in-person three days a week – on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays; and complete school remotely two days a week – Wednesdays and Fridays. When students are completing school remotely, they would access LM instruction through live streaming and/or video recording, and complete assignments, assessments, and communicate with LM teachers via our learning management system, Schoology or Seesaw, and the Google Suite. Note that this is not a two-cohort model which some schools (including the High School) plan to implement, but provides an option for reduced in-school presence. The hybrid model helps to reduce class sizes and is an option for those that aren’t yet comfortable with being at school everyday or want a flexible option in/out of school option. See more information in the FAQs.

However, if you have indicated you are interested in exclusively online/remote instruction for elementary or middle school student(s), please talk directly to your campus Principal.

We also recognize that if during the year a student or faculty/staff member either comes in contact with someone with COVID-19 or themselves gets sick, that will require them to quarantine or stay home. Or the state may require us to close and go to fully remote instruction again. If either occurs, we are prepared to provide remote instruction. In the coming communications we will share more information about contact tracing and when students/employees are required to stay home or quarantine. We will continue to monitor the situation and make updates and changes based on the changing guidelines.

Choosing Your Academic Delivery Option & Required Forms for the School Year:

Please complete the following survey to register for your learning option for the fall. As always, all methods of delivery are subject to change based on infection rates and public health guidance. You’ll have until August 21st to make your choice. If we do not hear back from you by the survey close date on August 21st, we will default to the In-Person model instruction for your student(s).

Education Delivery Option for 20/21 School Year

In addition to indicating your academic delivery model you also need to sign and complete the following waivers that pertain to your student(s). The General Waiver and Recording Waiver are required for all students.

General Waiver
Video Recording Waiver

Updated School Calendar

The 2020/2021 school calendar has been updated. There have also been four additional staff development in-service days added. They are as follows: September 18, October 19, November 13 and December 7.

Stay Tuned!

As school begins, we will continue to evaluate our LM community safety plans and adjust to accommodate necessary changes. We will also re evaluate our academic plan on a regular basis to be sure we are meeting the needs of our students.

Stay informed of notifications as quickly as possible via email, text alert, and via our website’s latest news page. We continue to appreciate your flexibility and patience in this changing environment as we approach the start of school in a few short weeks.

Please let us know if there is anything we can do to help your student or family with a smooth transition back to school.

Thanks again so much for being an important part of our learning community and we can’t wait to see you soon! Please continue to join us in praying for the safety, health and wellbeing of our students, families, faculty and staff, and community. Seeking the wellbeing.

Grace and Peace,
Dr. Pam Tieszen & the Pandemic Response Team

Pandemic Response Team:
CFO: Lorri Hengst
Director of Marketing & Communications: Aubrey Kreider
Director of Enrollment: Christy Horst
Principals: Lindsay Carson, Miles Yoder and Michael Charles
Asst Principal: Kirk Benner
Curriculum Team Member: Jennifer Esbenshade
Athletic Director: Marvin Sanders
Maintenance Director: Troy Hurst
Director of Food Service: Jennifer Strickler
Superintendent: Pam Tieszen