FOSTORIA CITY SCHOOLS
Administrative Offices ∙ 1001 Park Ave. ∙ Fostoria, OH 44830
Andrew R. Sprang Sue E. Lehmann
Phone: 419-435-8163
Superintendent Fax: 419-436-4109 Treasurer
[email protected] www.fostoriaschools.org
[email protected] Tera L. Matz Jennifer S. Abell David G. Hossler
Curriculum Director Director of Student Services Dir. Operations/Transportation
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Community Welcome Back and Information
August 21, 2020
Welcome to the 2020-21 school year. Over the past several months the district has been preparing for this time,
when we can welcome all of you back for this school year. Whether you will be attending in a remote online
setting or in the classrooms here on campus, we are excited to get the year started. There are many things to
address, and information will be coming out more and more as the days go by.
Returning to In-Person Learning
One of the first elements to discuss for those that are returning to the physical classrooms is the rolling start
dates that will be utilized this year. This has been something the district has thought about doing in the past,
and with the circumstances this year we believe that this will help us roll out procedures to students and staff in
a smaller scale in order to manage the situation and make sure that the plan is working as effectively as
possible. The schedules for the buildings are listed below.
Elementary
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
August 31 September 1 September 2 September 3 September 4
Teacher Work Day Grades 2 and 6 Grades 1 and 5 Grades PK and 4 Grades K and 3
No Students
*The first day for all elementary students will be Tuesday September 8th.
JSHS
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
August 31 September 1 September 2 September 3 September 4
Teacher Work Day Grades 12 and 9 Grades 11 and 8 Grades 10 and 7 All Students
No Students
** Students at both buildings will only attend the day their grade is scheduled until the first day for all
students in the building.
When in the buildings you will see that things look differently with one-way staircases, divided hallways, less
furniture, sanitizing stations, table dividers, etc. All of this is being done to do our best to keep everyone safe.
Things are still a work in progress, but we are well on our way to being ready for the upcoming school year.
Masks/ Face Coverings
Masks/ Face coverings are going to be an important part to our school year in the classrooms, in performances,
and on the field of competition. In order for us to be able to continue doing these activities we must comply
with the policies put in place. All students must wear a face covering in order to ride the bus to and from school
as well as events. In the buildings during the school day students will need to wear a face covering at all times
if they are moving through the building or classroom, doing small group work, or in a space where social
distancing cannot be maintained. Realistically the only time they will not have to have a face covering on is
when they are eating, working alone at their desk, and at recess for the elementary students. The Ohio
Department of Health, and the Governor have issued very strict guidelines in regards to this process. If there is a
reason that your student will not be able to wear a face covering, we will need a doctor’s note in order to protect
all involved. Students are allowed and encouraged to wear their face covering from home. I do know some
groups- baseball, cheerleading, that have had sales with Fostoria specific face coverings. I am sure these groups
would appreciate your support. If your child forgets their face covering, we do have extras, but we need to stress
the importance of remembering these so that we do not fly through our extra supplies. Another mask piece of
information is the importance of washing the mask frequently. It is recommended to wash them daily.
Policy Updates/ Changes
The district has made the decision to address some policies due to the pandemic for the upcoming school year.
Earlier this month the Board of Education did suspend the collection of school fees and the requirement of
campus wear for the upcoming school year. The dress code has been published on our social media sites and
website to be referenced. It is important to stress that this is for the 2020-21 school year only, and it does not
mean that students cannot wear campus wear if that is what you as the parent or they as the student choose.
This change was made to help with expenses and the idea that we might not be doing in-person learning for the
entire school year and students could outgrow their clothing with limited use.
The district will be offering a $25.00 usage premium, essentially an insurance policy, for Chromebooks. This
year students in grades 3-12 will receive a device as well as younger students who chose the remote learning
option for the start of the school year. What this premium does is protect the families from any damages that
may happen. A screen being replaced could cost over $100 as an example, and if you purchase the premium
then you would be covered. If you do not get the usage premium and your device is damaged you will be
charged the full amount for the repairs. If there becomes extensive or repeated damage to devices, the district
does reserve the right to take away the device from the student. Premiums must be paid by September 30, 2020.
Attendance is another topic that needs to be addressed. We all understand that being in school daily is
important for academic achievement as well as socialization and participation in activities. However, now more
than ever, we are requesting that if your child displays any of the symptoms connected with Covid-19, that they
please remain home. It is important to do this in order to help us prevent the spread of the virus.
Fostoria Elementary Information
We will be holding a curbside open house next Thursday August 27th from 4pm-7pm at the elementary school.
Please have school supplies bundled and labeled with student name for those students attending school in
person to be dropped off to their grade level tent in the parking lot. Preschool, kindergarten, first and second
grades will have a tent in the north side parking lot and 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th grades will have tents on the south
side parking lot. Folders are being given to each student with car tags, bus passes, building information and
grade level details and teacher. Students learning online this year are also invited to attend to pick up a
device and grade level information. We look forward to seeing you all next Thursday from 4pm-7pm for the
Fostoria Elementary Curbside Open House.
Visitors to the building will be extremely limited. We ask that if you need to come into the building, please call
and schedule an appointment. As much as we can take care of via email or phone calls and messages the better.
If you have to come into the buildings you will be required to wear a face covering at all times.
We also ask that families do not send birthday treats into the building at this time. If we are able to change this
at some point during the year the building will communicate this out.
Fostoria JSHS Information
Schedules are being finalized for all students. The building will send out an all call message when these are
ready next week. There will be a curbside pickup option. As a reminder when the all call comes out schedules
would also be able to be viewed under the parent tab on Progressbook.
Visitors to the building will be extremely limited. We ask that if you need to come into the building, please call
and schedule an appointment. As much as we can take care of via email or phone calls and messages the better.
If you have to come into the buildings you will be required to wear a face covering at all times.
Online Learning
This year we will have students participating in an online/ remote learning option. For students in K-6 teachers
will be utilizing our regular classroom curriculum. Students in grades 7-12 will be utilizing an online platform
called Schools PLP. Teachers and administrators for all of these students will be reaching out to all families to
go over more specific expectations. There will be more defined schedules for students when they need to be
completing work and participating in classes with their peers and teachers. If you are having an issue with your
Chromebook please reach out to your building in order to get a repair scheduled or to receive a different device.
Remember to consider the $25 usage premium in order to avoid paying more expensive repair prices. Premiums
must be paid before September 30, 2020.
Athletics
This week the Governor and Ohio Department of Health gave the go ahead for both contact and non-contact
sports for the fall. Our teams have been working all summer for this opportunity and we are excited to see them
on the field of competition. Just like in the buildings we need everyone’s cooperation in order to keep this
season going. This means we must wear a face covering at all times at events. There will be limited fan
admittance this fall and this information and the process for ticketing will be shared with families through the
teams. In order to assist those who want to follow our student athletes we have set up a Fostoria Athletics
YouTube channel. This channel will live stream all home HS volleyball and football games. We are still
working on being able to do this for junior high and away competitions. The channel can be found at
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVa_vHy93T0aiIacZXV9q3g?view_as=subscriber
Transportation
A reminder once again that students who are riding a bus will need to wear a face covering at all times. Failure
to comply with this policy could lead to a loss of riding privileges.
Elementary bus passes will be in the student open house folders which can be picked up at the open house event
held Thursday 8/27/2020 - please see Fostoria Elementary and Fostoria City Schools Facebook page for more
information about the open house.
FJSHS passes will be mailed due to the open house being held after school begins.
Please note:
New requests and changes may not be processed 10 days prior to the first day of school or until 10 days after
the first day of school.
Food Service
In response to Covid-19, the district is moving to a cashless system for paying for school meals. The payment
system is changing to School Pay and more information on this will be available early next week. If you had
funds from before the closure those are still linked to your account. You will be able to add funds by going
through the district website just as you have before. If you choose to pay by check you can still send that in
with your student just make sure their name is in the memo line on the check.
We understand that this is a great deal of information. Please review this information and contact the buildings
or my office with any questions. Together we can make this a successful school year.
Respectfully,
Andrew Sprang
