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Dear Kentfield School District Community,

Today, we received an announcement from our state and local officials that the Regional and Local Stay at Home orders have been lifted in the Bay Area and Marin County. We are reviewing this new information to determine the adjustments needed to our current protocols.

Although this shift is positive, we must recognize we are still in Tier I - Purple of California's Blueprint for a Safer Economy. Safety and well-being are our top priority and we have all made sacrifices to get to this point. Our school environments have been adjusted to offer a controlled setting that mitigates transmission of the virus to the greatest extent possible.

In today’s press release, Marin County Public Health Officer Dr. Matt Willis stated, "As we move back into the purple tier, it’s critical to remember the virus is still very active in our community. We could easily backslide if we let our guard down." He reinforced that "face covering, physical distancing, frequent testing, and avoiding indoor gatherings are the best ways to prevent another surge."

In order to keep all our stakeholders updated as the situation evolves the KSD is developing a Local Dashboard to provide more real time data about exposure and notifications sent within our school settings. This tool will be released by the end of the week.

Thank you for doing your part in being vigilant and helping to decrease the COVID case-rate in our community!

Raquel Rose
Superintendent
rrose@kentfieldschools.org

Tier I - Permissible Activities:

The Bay Area Region and Marin County shift to Tier I - Purple and out of the Stay At Home Order allows for the following businesses and activities to proceed in Marin County.

Allowed to Operate Indoors

• Hair salons and barbershops
• Hotels, motels and short-term lodging
• Retail stores and malls, at 25% capacity
• Libraries, at 25% capacity
• Personal services (nail salons, estheticians, massage studios, tattoo parlors, piercing shops)
• Limited services (carwashes, dry cleaners, electricians, handypersons/general contractors, heating and air conditioning services, landscapers, laundromats, pet groomers, plumbing services, janitorial/cleaning services)

Allowed to Operate Outdoors

• Restaurants (outdoor dining), Farmers markets, Wineries
• Places of worship, Cultural ceremonies
• Gyms and fitness/dance/yoga studios
• Drive-in movie theaters, Family entertainment centers, Card rooms
• Day camps
• Campgrounds and playgrounds
• Youth and adult recreational athletics (outdoor physical conditioning and practice permitted with six feet of physical distancing from others. No scrimmages, games or tournaments)
• Small private gatherings
  • Masks and physical distancing required
  • No more than three separate households attend, including host
  • Gatherings should be two hours or less
  • Those with symptoms must not attend
  • Those at high risk of severe illness strongly encouraged not to attend
  • Singing, shouting, chanting, cheering, or exercising strongly discouraged

*Please see the Marin Recovers website for more information.

Vaccination Update:

The vaccination distribution continues to evolve locally and statewide. Educators are part of the Phase IB - Tier I group, and have been prioritized based on the below outline.

Prioritization for education-based employees is determined by four (4) levels of prioritization:

Priority I: All food service workers; in-person instruction and services in the Special Day Class including teachers and paraprofessionals/1:1 aides; bus drivers; custodial staff working in person and staff 65 years of age or older

Priority II: All other employees working in-person

Priority III: All other employees working remotely/distance learning

Priority IV: Trustees and all other ancillary personnel

Marin County is still in the Priority I phase for educators and will move to Priority II when the time comes. We are in the process of confirming how many of our KSD staff have been vaccinated, and as information is available we will continue to update the community.

Hybrid Adjustments

As shared last week, cohorts that are not currently full, i.e. less than 12, have begun inviting additional students as an intervention strategy to accelerate learning. This means that a student may be in Cohort A and B. Students invited to partake in both cohorts shall count this as two of the three permissible cohorts per public health. The identification of students to be “invited” is based on a very distinct criteria determined by classroom teachers. I ask that we trust the identification process of our staff.

Discover local case rates, trends, demographics, and resources to stay up to date with the status of COVID-19 in Marin at the Marin Recovers and Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Surveillance Update websites.

*For security, Zoom links and passwords for events are not posted on the District website, and are sent through ParentSquare.

Daily: Virtual Crossing Guard with Ms. Stephens, 7:55-8:30 a.m., Zoom

Wednesday, January 27, 2021

• Citizens Oversight Committee meeting, 5-6 p.m., Agenda
  • Zoom Link: kentfieldschools.zoom.us/j/81301123439
  • Meeting ID: 813 0112 3439
  • +16699009128,,81301123439# US (San Jose)

Thursday, January 28, 2021

• Safe Routes to School Family Biking Webinar, 6-7 p.m.

Saturday, January 30, 2021

• KSPTA Kids Closet No-Cost Shop for Families in Need, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., Bacich Courtyard

Monday, February 1, 2021

• 2021-22 Kindergarten Registration Opens

Tuesday, February 2, 2021

• Kent Site Council Meeting, 3:30-4:30 p.m.
• DELAC meeting, 6-7 p.m.

Tuesday, February 9, 2021

• School Board meeting, 5 p.m.

Tuesday, February 10, 2021

• KIK board meeting, 7:30-9 p.m.

February 15-19, 2021: Presidents' Day Recess - No School

2021-2022 District Calendar

Announcing 2021-22 Kindergarten Registration

Kindergarten/New Student Enrollment officially begins February 1st. If you have a current student enrolled in KSD with an incoming new sibling, please contact Lynn Bartha lbartha@kentfieldschools.org so she can guide you through the registration process and gather information about your child. kentfieldschools.org/families/student-registration/.

• Incoming Kindergarten students will need to turn 5 before September 2, 2021.

Homeless and Foster Youth Information

• Our website has been recently updated with information and resources for homeless and foster youth according to the McKinney-Vento Act, which defines homeless children and youths as individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.

• Board Meeting Highlights: January 12, 2021
• Board Meeting Video Archive
• Board Statements and Community Letters
• Next Monthly School Board meeting: Tuesday, Febraury 9, 2020, 5 p.m., Zoom
  • All are welcome and encouraged to attend via Zoom.
  • Addressing the Board

Budget 101 Presentation – Part 1 Recording, December 16, 2020

Citizens Oversight Committee meeting: January 27, 2021, 5-6 p.m., Agenda

• Zoom Link: kentfieldschools.zoom.us/j/81301123439
• Meeting ID: 813 0112 3439
• +16699009128,,81301123439# US (San Jose)

District English Language Learners Advisory Committee meeting: February 2, 2021, 6-7 p.m.

Safety Committee meeting: March 15, 2021, 10-11 a.m.

Family Biking Live!

Want to share the joy and confidence of cycling with your kids?

Students, parents and guardians are invited to learn bike riding skills together at an INTERACTIVE, live webinar on Thursday, January 28, 6-7 p.m.

This free zoom workshop will help prepare students ages 7 through 11 for road riding, giving parents tips for how to ride with their youth. Families will learn bike and helmet fit, navigating the road legally and responsibly, and how to build confident, safe cyclists based on age appropriate development.

Sign up here.. Once you sign up, we’ll send you the zoom link. We look forward to seeing you. Questions? Please contact Matt@marinbike.org.

Learn how to get to school safely with these tips for Hybrid Instruction. (English | Spanish)