| July 31, 2020 Dear MUSD Parent and Guardian: Good afternoon. I hope this letter finds you and your family healthy and well. This past week has been a busy and exciting time in the District as we welcomed our teachers back. Senior Leadership, Principals, and I are meeting virtually with over 700 teachers as we engage in additional planning efforts and continued professional development for a successful school year. We have an exceptional team! I am confident that our Remote Learning/Distance Learning plan, aligned to the Arizona Department of Education standards, is truly second to none and your student is going to have a positive learning experience this year. As we prepare to start remote learning on August 5, I wanted to take this opportunity to share some of the action and work taking place as we look ahead when we are safely permitted to return to in-person, classroom learning. MUSD is working closely with several community partners including the Pima County Health Department, MHC Healthcare, and the Arizona Department of Education. In addition to our work with these partners, we are aligning our in-person guidelines and safety processes with the Governor's Open for Learning Executive Order, Arizona Department of Health Services benchmarks, and the guidance issued by the CDC (revised last week). Additionally, early next week you will be receiving a MUSD Parent/Student Resource Guide to assist you during our Remote Learning period.
Governor Executive Order 2020-51 Arizona: Open for Learning
As I shared with you last week, the Governor's Executive Order states that schools are not required to return to in-person, teacher-led, classroom instruction on a specific date. Rather, school districts are to consider the Arizona Department of Health Services public health benchmark recommendations released by August 7, guidance from county health officials, community needs, and available resources to determine when in-person instruction can safely be made available for all students. Also aligned with the Governor's Executive Order, the District is working to establish a reasonable protocol for providing on-site support services to each of our highest need student populations beginning August 17. Pima County COVID-19 Back to School Process
On Tuesday, July 21, Pima County released some specific recommendations related to the reopening of schools. Specifically, they stated that they do not support the reopening of schools on August 17 for traditional face-to-face, in-person learning. This is based on current local County COVID-19 infections being at the highest daily amounts since the pandemic began. Countywide transmission rates remain above 11 percent, with a World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation that rates be below 5 percent prior to opening. For these and many other reasons, it is their professional opinion that the earliest that traditional in-person instruction can be anticipated to resume is after Labor Day (September 7, 2020) or later (e.g. October 5, 2020). We will continue to work closely with the Pima County Health Department as we wait for the additional public health benchmarks to be released from the Arizona Department of Health Service. Where do we go from here
The Pima County COVID-19 Progress Report and Local Recommendations, coupled with guidance from the Arizona Department of Health Services public health benchmarks, will be critical tools in determining when in-person, classroom learning can resume in MUSD. In addition to these benchmarks, the District will follow the guidance issued by the CDC (revised again last week) as well as the State in our development of appropriate in-person guidelines and safety processes. As we continue our work in these areas, we are also in the process of developing specific protocols with MHC Healthcare such as the steps the District would take in the event of a positive COVID test, communications, contact tracing and additional appropriate safety measures. We are also working with experts in developing site specific school campus safety plans to include circulation flows for social distancing, classroom layouts, touch points, high traffic areas, best place for hand sanitizer stations, and more. Please know that I will continue to keep you informed as we move forward. I encourage you to continue to check your emails for detailed communications from your student's teacher and school related to instruction, daily schedules, grades, attendance, and additional academic and social emotional support resources and services. Thank you for your trust in the District. Every employee in this District is dedicated to your student and family and passionate about making a difference in the lives of our students. Stay healthy and we look forward to welcoming your student on August 5. Sincerely, Dan Streeter, Ed.D.
Superintendent | 
