March 29, 2021
The Grand Canyon School opened for in-person instruction on March 22 in accordance with the school Board's proclamation 21-02 and Governor Ducey's executive order 2021-04.
On Thursday, March 25, Governor Ducey issued Executie Order 2021-06 which lifted restrictions on organized public events of more than 50 people. The order does however encourage continuing safety precautions, for example mask wearing and physical distancing.
Arizona’s Superintendent of Public Instruction Kathy Hoffman said in an emergency measure 2020-04 through the Arizona Department of Health Services was still in effect, requiring the use of face coverings in K-12 schools.
At the March 24, 2021 Regular School Board Meeting, we heard about the latest recommendations from the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) which has reduced the minimum physical distancing guidelines for students from six feet to three feet in most instances. We also received a report from our Principal, Mr. Yost, on the results of the first days of in-person learning, where he reported good results, but cautioned that the combination of in-person learning and distance learning was proving to be a challenge.
The Coconino County Schools report from March 26, 2021 shows that, for the first time since mid October, our local community spread metrics are in the low category. The vaccination rate for our community population is high, substantially higher than across the rest of Arizona or across the United States.
As you can see from these latest developments, we are clearly moving forward in getting back to normal.
I do however want to recommend caution here. We are all philosophers until we start looking at valid, verifiable data, and just a week earlier, the Coconino County Schools report categorized our community in the high spread zone. I am optimistic, but also cautious that one data point does not make a trend.
For everyone who wants to throw open the doors of the school and resume what we understood to be a traditional model of instruction, I encourage continued patience. We are moving in this direction, but we are moving in this direction in cautious graduated steps. Assuming the community transmission rates remain low, you should expect to see a move from the current hybrid model to a 4 day instructional model over the next few weeks. We will continue with other mitigation strategies such as requiring face coverings, and enhanced hygiene activities until guidance from government health organizations relaxes those precautions.
We remain committed to providing the option of distance learning for any family who chooses. This is proving to be quite challenging in such a small school community. Many schools are approaching this by splitting their teachers into in-person only and distance learning only roles. Unfortunately we don't have the luxury of having more than one teacher per grade level or for high school, subject area expertise, so we continue to experiment with how to do distance and in-person learning simultaneously. Again, I ask for your patience as we work through how best to serve all of our students.
These are challenging times, but I can't tell you how much we all appreciate seeing students back on campus with smiling faces. It appears our students share the sentiment. We still have a ways to go, but with your patience and grace, we will see a continued move towards normal. I will keep this page updated as we adapt to our ever changing environment.
3/5/21
Dear Parents and Guardians of Grand Canyon School Students,
I would like to apologize for the unclear communication from the school about this Friday afternoon’s asynchronous instruction and activities. I will provide better communication in the future about any changes occurring to the regular school day.
While the communication about Friday’s asynchronous afternoon was unfortunate, the activities that we were able to provide for the staff were absolutely necessary. Friday afternoon’s asynchronous day was utilized by the staff of the Grand Canyon School District to learn and practice procedures for our school reopening on March 22, 2021. The staff met in person to go over the procedures for carefully bringing students back to school and moving about the campus.
This Wednesday March 3, 2021 the Governor of Arizona released Executive Order 2021-04 School Open For In-Person Learning, but we want you to know our District has been planning for the exciting reopening of school for a long, long time. Our school board and administration had been developing a proclamation to reopen school and were ready to ratify at our Tuesday March 3, 2021 school board meeting. The Governor’s executive order in a way stole our thunder. We are excited to be having in person teacher led instruction again at the Grand Canyon School. We can’t wait!
Next week we will be reaching out to families to offer in person learning details and to ask families their preferences. Grand Canyon School will continue to provide a Distance Learning option as the Governor stated in executive order 2020-41 and 2020-51 till the end of the 2020-2021 school year. Additional details about school reopening will be provided on the school website throughout this week and next week. We will also be communicating with families of Grand Canyon students who have never had the opportunity to visit our campus and offer a short tour. We feel this will be helpful to have a smooth transition for our youngest of students.
We thank you for your continued support and understanding. We are looking forward to a successful and productive final stretch of the 2020-2021 school year together.
Respectfully,
Principal Matthew Yost
2-18-2021
Dear Parents and Guardians of Grand Canyon Middle School and High School students,
This Spring our school is continuing to use PTCFast.com to make virtual parent-teacher conference signups as convenient as possible. In the past, we have had parents, students and teachers meet in the MPR to conference with each teacher in person. This Spring we will again use a virtual format. This virtual format will have parents, students and teachers participate in virtual parent teacher conferences via Zoom. PTCFast will allow you to choose a time between 1:00pm and 7:00pm on February 24, 2021 to have these Zoom conferences. Please log on this scheduling program and choose a date and time that is more convenient for you.
Please enter the following web address into your browser window:
https://ptcfast.com/schools/Grand_Canyon_School_District
It's fast and easy. Simply follow the instructions below.
How to Schedule a Parent/Teacher Conference Online
and then the teachers with whom you wish to schedule conferences.
Access the following link for more instructions -- https://ptcfast.com/SWP_overview.htm
Teachers will be notified of your appointment(s) automatically via email, and you will receive a reminder email about the conference. If you have more than one student, select the teachers you wish to meet with, and you will be prompted to provide the name for each student. If for some reason you need to cancel, please email the teacher(s) directly.
If you do not have internet access or are having issues with scheduling a virtual meeting please contact us via phone at 928-638-2461 to make alternative arrangements. In order to make conferences as efficient as possible for parents and teachers, we will again this Spring only be accepting scheduled appointments at this time.
Thank you for your support and understanding. We are looking forward to successful and productive parent teacher conferences.
Principal Matthew Yost
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January 21, 2021
Dear Parents and Guardians of Grand Canyon School Students,
Last night we presented the third installment on School Reopening plans at the school board meeting. The first presentation on January 6, 2021 covered multiple options for reopening per state guidance. The second presentation on January 13, 2021 covered details on a hybrid reopening, including what a classroom would look like for an upper elementary classroom. Last night’s presentation was what a Grand Canyon School classroom looks like in a hybrid reopening for a lower elementary and a high school classroom. All presentations have been uploaded on the school website. Please feel free to look at these presentations. Additional classroom videos will be coming out within the next week to show what a middle school classroom could look like.
A link to the presentation by Ms. Fontenot is here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AJbSzbg5aU&feature=youtu.be
A link to the presentation by Mr. Radarian is here
Other important happenings at school are that we are beginning school wide benchmark assessments to measure progress from the first semester. The ending date is January 28th and second semester begins on February 2nd. We thank all our students, parents and teachers for all the hard work they have done. Please keep it up!
in addition, we will be holding Parent-Teacher conferences on February 24th. This day will be a full day, and February 25th will be a half day. We will keep you posted on how to schedule.
Another note I need to mention is that the District has invested in a one-to-one ratio of devices to support learning for students. Many devices have been coming back to school damaged. We only have a limited number of devices and need to make sure District provided devices are cared for appropriately.
Thank you for your support!
Principal Matthew Yost
11-17-2020
Good Morning,
Parents, guardians, students, staff and community members,
On Monday November 2, 2020 the Grand Canyon School Board voted to continue Distance Learning for all enrolled students and further delay In-Person instruction until the end of the first semester on January 28, 2021. Additionally, the Grand Canyon School Board voted to suspend Winter sports for the 2020-2021 school year, both decisions were not made lightly.
Additional supports are being implemented by the school and staff for our students during this continuation of the Grand Canyon Distance Learning instructional model. At the High School level, we are adding after school virtual tutoring for all students Monday through Thursday. Please take advantage of this opportunity to get support from our HS SPED, Math, Science, ELA and History teachers! The schedule of teachers and Zoom links have been shared with all High School students through their school provided email. Middle School teachers have scheduled additional open Zoom meetings in order to encourage students to receive tutoring, direction and instructional support. If you have any questions, please contact the respective HS and MS teacher or school office.
In the last couple of weeks, the High School and Middle School have begun fully implementing the social emotional programs Second Step and Why Try. Mr. Magana is teaching Second Step during Middle School PE twice a week and Ms. Duthie and Ms. Benefield are teaching Why Try to the High School students during scheduled virtual meetings and Career Exploration classes. The Elementary school continues to implement the Second Step social emotional program during morning announcements and continuing throughout the school day.
We have also updated the Grab and Go school lunch and breakfast program as well. We now have two delivery routes to provide free grab and go meals to all children ages 0-18. The updated schedule has been shared via text blast and is on the school website.
We thank you to all of our parents, students and community members for your continued encouragement and understanding during these challenging and changing times. Please reach out to me if you have any questions or if I can be of support in any way.
Respectfully,
Principal Matt Yost
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10/19/20
Dear Parents and Guardians of Grand Canyon Middle School and High School students,
This year our school is using PTCFast.com to make virtual parent-teacher conference signups as convenient as possible. In the past, we have had parents, students and teachers meet in the MPR to conference with each teacher in person. This year we will have a new virtual format. This virtual format will have parents, students and teachers participate in virtual parent teacher conferences via Zoom. PTCFast will allow you chose a time between 1:00pm and 7:00pm on October 21, 2020 to have these Zoom conferences. Please log on this scheduling program and choose a date and time that is more convenient for you.
Please enter the following web address into your browser window:
https://ptcfast.com/schools/Grand_Canyon_School_District
It's fast and easy. Simply follow the instructions below.
How to Schedule a Parent/Teacher Conference Online
1. Select the school link
and then the teachers with whom you wish to schedule conferences.
2. Provide your student's name, your name, and your email address. (An email address is required.)
3. You will receive an email immediately from "Do Not Reply" from your child's school via PTCFast.com.
4. Click on the link in the email to reserve your conference times. You must complete this step in order to reserve an appointment.
5. After selecting your time, scroll to the bottom of the page and click Confirm Selections.
6. Access the following link for more instructions -- https://ptcfast.com/SWP_overview.htm
Teachers will be notified of your appointment(s) automatically via email, and you will receive a reminder email about the conference. If you have more than one student, select the teachers you wish to meet with, and you will be prompted to provide the name for each student. If for some reason you need to cancel, please email the teacher(s) directly.
If you do not have internet access or are having issues with scheduling a virtual meeting please contact us via phone at 928-638-2461.
In order to make conferences as efficient as possible for parents and teachers, we will only be accepting scheduled appointments at this time.
Thank you for your support and understanding. We are looking forward to successful and productive parent teacher conferences.
Principal Matthew Yost,
10-2-2020
Good Afternoon Parents, Guardians, Students and Staff,
This is the end fourth week of the 2020-2021 school year and we continue to adapt and update our Distance Learning Program we are providing to all our students. We are proud of all the hard work that is being accomplished by all to make Distance Learning the best it can be.
Continuing from this last week, teachers will provide paper packets and manipulatives to support student learning. Currently, these items are available at the school office on Monday morning for those students and parents who are able to pick them up. Students and families who are not able to come to school will be able to receive these items during the daily breakfast and lunch delivery drop off locations in Tusayan and Valle. If you have any questions about this process, please call the school office.
Last Sunday September 27, 2020, the Grand Canyon School Board voted to post-pone in person learning until Monday November 16, 2020.
The Grand Canyon Faculty is looking forward to having students back on campus in the future. For those families who are interested the Distance Learning instructional model will be offered for the duration of the 2020-2021 school year. We thank you for your continued understanding and support during these complicated times. As always please reach out to us if you have any questions or if I can be of support in any way.
Respectfully,
Principal Matt Yost
9-23-2020
Parents, Guardians, Students and Staff,
This is the third week of the 2020-2021 school year and we are very excited about the distance learning program we are providing to all of our students. We are immensely proud of all the hard work that students, parents, and teachers have done during these first couple of weeks to make Distance Learning the best it can be. We appreciate your understanding and flexibility as we continue to improve and refine our Distance Learning Program.
Starting this week, many teachers will begin to provide paper packets and manipulatives to support student learning. These items will be provided at the school office on Monday’s for those students and parents who are able to pick them up. Students and families who are not able to come to school will be able to receive these items during the daily breakfast and lunch deliveries drop off locations in Tusayan and Valle. Your patience with the implementation of this system is greatly appreciated.
Last week, the Grand Canyon School Board agreed to meet weekly to assess the current health and safety metrics in order to select the appropriate time for in-person school to begin. The Sunday night meeting details can be found on the school website.
The School Board also requested parent input within a survey located on the school website. Please take a moment to fill out the survey!
While we look forward to having students back on campus in the near future the Distance Learning instructional model will be offered for the duration of the 2020-2021 school year for those parents and students who prefer this offering.
As a reminder many communications will be going home weekly. Please make sure your phone number and email address are up to date with the school office. Additionally, we request that everyone remember that all of us are doing something new. Any time you are growing, there are challenges that require patience and grace to work through together. If you or your student need support, we request that you please contact your teacher first, then the school office. We will do everything we can to help.
Our staff appreciates all of our families for your continued encouragement and understanding during these challenging and changing times. Please reach out to us if you have any questions or if I can be of support in any way.
Respectfully,
Principal Matt Yost
