We know that many of you still have questions about the return to school in September.  Since we began working on our plan in June, the health, safety and wellness of your child(ren) has been the focus of our #SeptemberReady safe return to school plan.  And we have had the full support of our Medical Officers of Health every step of the way.

Read an Important letter from Lambton and Chatham-Kent Public Health here.

There is a tremendous amount of information for parents/guardians, which we are working to assemble and present.  On Friday, August 14 we will post to the Board website our #SeptemberReady planning framework which will present the draft plan in slide format.  A more reader friendly version will be posted early next week.  Both of these documents will contain the most up to date information from the Board’s safe return to school planning team, including information for elementary and secondary parents and families about what the learn at school and voluntary learn at home models will look like.  Please also refer to the FAQs on the #SeptemberReady web page.

We understand that your decision regarding your child(ren)’s return to school is an important one and may require more time for families to consider.  

• If you have already responded to our survey, thank you.  If you have changed your mind and now wish to switch from in-person classroom learning to teacher-led online learning at home, or vice versa, you will have until August 28 to let us know.  You can do that by re-submitting your preference through the original survey link that was sent to you. 
• If you have not yet responded to our survey, we ask that you please do so by August 28.  You will receive a new survey link by the end of the week.  
• If you have notified us that you have not yet received the survey, thank you for your patience.  You will receive a new survey link by the end of the week.

After August 28, parents/guardians who wish to switch between in-person classroom learning and online teacher-led learning must notify the school in advance.  Specific timelines have been established for students to move from one to the other.   

Elementary schools:

• Nov. 12, 2020 (with advance notification by Oct. 22, 2020)
• Feb. 3, 2021 (with advance notification by Jan. 12, 2021)
• April 20, 2021 (with advance notification by Mar. 30, 2021)

Secondary schools – The timeline for secondary schools was determined to align with the Ontario Secondary School reporting periods.

• Feb. 3, 2021 (with advance notification by Jan. 12, 2021)

If a family/student requests a change of learning models at a time that is different than those stated above, the change will be reviewed on a case by case basis.  If the request can be accommodated, transition time will be required for planning purposes.

The heath, safety and wellness of your children and our staff is our greatest concern.  It has been at the centre of every decision we make regarding our #SeptemberReady safe return to school plan.  There is no question that school will look different when classes resume on September 8, 2020.  However, by working together, with the support of everyone – parents/guardians, students, staff and our public health partners – we are confident that our #SeptemberReady plan will manage risk to the greatest extent possible, in schools where health, safety and wellness for all is the first priority.

Thank you.