Posted
Dear Parents/Guardians & Students,
I pray this finds you well, and you are experiencing a safe and healthy summer.
Recently we sent an update with basic reopening guidelines and cleaning protocols. These continue to change and more detailed guidelines will be provided as we get closer to the start of the school year.
This summer, Administration has listened to feedback from teachers and families regarding academic delivery, and is crafting plans for elementary, middle school and high school students based on your feedback. As we are in the process of developing more concrete plans and options, we are looking for your feedback to better understand what families are seeking as academic delivery options for the coming school year. You will see survey links below.
Administration is considering three potential options for each academic level, listed below, with in-person instruction as the primary delivery method.
Potential Academic Delivery Options:
- Full time in-person instruction (Primary option)
- Hybrid model: students attend school in-person on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday; and work remotely on Wednesday and Friday
- At-home remote instruction – as an extension of in-person classroom instruction
High School
As our planning currently stands, these options are more concrete for high school students, however, your response will help us make decisions for the elementary and middle school levels.
We ask that you respond to the short survey below indicating your choice for which academic delivery model you prefer, that will help us better plan for instruction delivery this fall. We are not holding you to commit to whichever option you select in this survey, rather it provides us information as we try to adapt and plan for the coming school year.
Your quick response by August 3 will allow us to return a comprehensive academic delivery plan.
Elementary & Middle School
Again, as our planning currently stands, these options are more concrete for high school students, however, your response will help us make decisions for the elementary and middle school levels as we explore these potential options.
Delivery of hybrid or remote educational options to elementary and middle school students presents more challenges than at the high school level, as students cannot complete work at the same level of independence, and would require a greater redundancy of teacher work to extend learning options at home and in-person. Providing all three options is challenging for any grade level and puts added stress on all LM teachers, but can occur somewhat more naturally within the high school framework.
We ask that you respond to the short survey below indicating your preference for which academic delivery model you prefer, that will help us better plan for instruction delivery this fall. We are not holding you to commit to whichever option you select in this survey, rather it provides us information as we try to adapt and plan for the coming school year.
ELEMENTARY & MIDDLE SCHOOL SURVEY
Your quick response by August 3 will allow us to return a comprehensive academic delivery plan.
Looking Ahead
Depending on state guidelines, fluid health directives and changes in the COVID-19 cases, we may be required to migrate to at-home instruction again without much notice. For now we are considering these three options as potential ways families could choose to receive academic instruction from LM, but it is subject to change at any moment. And as we know information changes by the moment, so we are doing the best with the current information we have at hand! If changes are necessary, students and their families will receive 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.
Lancaster Mennonite desires to serve you to the best of our ability during these unusual times. If any of you have concerns about your student returning back to school or other questions, please let me or your campus Principal know, and we’d be happy to discuss and address your specific concerns or questions.
- Locust Grove Campus: Miles Yoder, Principal: yoderme@lancastermennonite.org
- New Danville Campus: Lindsay Carson, Principal: carsonlb@lancastermennonite.org
- Lancaster Campus, Grades 6-12:
- Michael Charles, Principal: charlesmr@lancastermennonite.org
- Kirk Benner, Assistant Principal & Director of Counseling: bennerkr@lancastermennonite.org
- Director of Enrollment: Christy Horst: horstcl@lancastermennonite.org
Finally, we pray for you, asking for peace and wellbeing for each of you. We also ask for prayers for our school community as we prepare plans that serve families and are manageable for teachers. Seek Wellbeing Jeremiah 29.
Sincerely,
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
