MAAA Superintendent Association
Closure Extension Communication
March 30, 2020
Dear Families and Staff:
As the past week has shown, the COVID-19 pandemic has begun to spread through most of our counties. We have
been diligent in our decision-making process when asking how our school districts can make a difference in slowing
the spread of this disease. At this time, we feel that returning to school next week would be detrimental to the efforts
of our local health authorities and healthcare providers as they work to battle and slow the progress of the virus.
Therefore, we have made the decision to extend school closures for all MAAA schools through Thursday, April 30 .
During this time, all school events, including extracurricular activities, competitions, clubs, field trips, ceremonies,
parent meetings and committee meetings are postponed. This decision was made following President Donald
Trump’s announcement on Sunday that he would extend federal social distancing guidelines to Thursday, April 30,
and after consulting local health authorities. As circumstances continue to fluctuate, it is difficult to predict what our
situation will be a month from now. With that being said, we tentatively plan on welcoming students and staff back
on Friday, May 1.
We know that extending closures will introduce further strain on our families, but we cannot ask our students to
return to school before the spread of this disease has passed. We must safeguard the health of our families by
making decisions that are in the best interest of our community. Over the past few weeks, we have been
encouraged by the spirit and fortitude of our communities. We see you reaching out to help others, configuring meal
services for those in need, continuing student learning in new and innovative ways, and strengthening our bonds by
sharing our experiences. We see you, and we applaud you. We are making history, and this tenuous time will be
remembered by how we respond, adapt, and overcome.
Even though our schools are not in session, our school districts are still here for our families. Reach out with any
questions or concerns that you have, and we will find you the resources and answers that you need. Teachers will
send instructional materials via packets or online classrooms, and are staying in contact with parents and students
via parent emails, student school emails, video calls, phone calls, and third-party apps, such as Thrillshare and
Remind.
We would also like to share with you that last week, Dr. Margie Vandeven, Commissioner of Education for the
Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), announced that Missouri state assessments are
cancelled for this school year. We hope this will alleviate some stress for our students, faculty, and staff as we
navigate the next several weeks.
We know that you have many questions. Please know that we continue to work on our plans and will share them
with our families as we move forward together. Thank you for your patience, your support, and your understanding.
Arcadia Valley R-II School District
North St. Francois County R-I School District
Bismarck R-V School District
Potosi R-III School District
Central R-III School District
Ste. Genevieve County R-II School District
Farmington R-VII School District
Valley R-VI School District
Fredericktown R-I School District
West County R-IV School District
Kingston K-14 School District ...
March 18, 2020
Dear Parent/Guardian:
As mentioned in an earlier notification the Potosi R-3 School District will be providing meals to all students K-12 in the district through the COVID-19 shutdown. The goal for the District is to continue to provide students with nutritious breakfast and lunch meals for the days students are not in attendance. The District will accomplish this goal by initiating its Summer Food Service Plan, through the Department of Health and Senior Services. This is a continued plan the District has utilized previously during Summer School to provide meals to students.
This continued partnership will allow the District to provide free meals (breakfast and lunch) to all Potosi R-3 students and children age 18 years and younger.
Starting on Friday March 20, 2020 - April 3, 2020, the District will be presenting two options for students to receive meals on days school is not in session. To help with ordering for mobile pick-up and bus delivery, the district is asking parents to please call by 9:00 a.m. each day or at the beginning of the week and place an order for meals. Orders will be placed at Potosi Elementary School or Trojan Intermediate School. Both of these buildings are the approved open sites for meals.
Meal Option 1- Mobile Pick-up
Mobile Pick-ups will be made at two locations Trojan Intermediate School by main entrance or Potosi Elementary School by main entrance from 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Students will only receive one meal per day, please specify what building you would like to have your Mobile Pick-up when ordering. The District can only provide meals to students that are present in the car or that have pre-ordered. Each site will have staff delivering meals to vehicles. After meals have been delivered parents can exit the parking lots.
Meal Option 2- Bus Delivery
The District will also begin running regular bus routes on March 20, 2020, delivering meals to R-3 students. We are asking parents to place those orders by 9:00 a.m. each to day or at the beginning of the week depending on the needs of the families to help with deliveries. All Potosi R-3 students and parents/guardians must be present at bus stop to receive a meal. If other arrangements need to be made please contact the office. The delivery times for buses are same time for Mobile pick-ups 11:00a.m. - 12:30p.m. Parents, guardians, students, family members need to prepare to be present at bus stops during this time for delivery. Bus wait times may vary compared to regular bus stop wait times until a scheduled is established. If students or parents miss the meal drop-off time, please contact either TIS or PES office on options for getting your meal. Below is a list of bus numbers that will be staged at each building for meal delivery. For meal ordering and delivery purposes please contact the building office that is associated with your child’s bus number.
Potosi Elementary School Bus Delivery Numbers
19 3 2 35 39 16 6 140
20 25 36 21 40 23 4 38
Potosi Elementary School
(573) 438-2223
TIS Bus Delivery Numbers
10 22 5 13 17 24 43 14
18 1 187 33 41 44 45
Trojan Intermediate School
(573) 436-8108
**When ordering for meals, parents please let the office staff know; how many student meals needed along with students name, and if mobile pick-up include what building or if delivery, include what bus number.
Parents for any other questions or additional information please call the contact numbers listed above or the other office numbers listed below.
Potosi High School- (573) 438-2156
John Evans Middle School- (573) 438-2101
Central Office - (573) 438-5485
Sincerely,
Adam Portell
Assistant Superintendent ...
March 17, 2020
Dear R-3 Parent/Guardian:
As you are aware, our district will be closing March 18 –April 3 for precautionary measures due to the COVID-19. This decision was made after many meetings and conversations with various educational and medical personnel. Even with this temporary closure there is still much uncertainty as to what the future will bring as it relates to the education of children in our district. Truly, we are operating in unchartered and unprecedented times.
Please know that during these times, our district personnel are still very concerned about the health and well-being of our students. Even though school will not be in session, district staff members will still be reporting to work and preparing and implementing plans that can provide immediate assistance to your children, along with additional long-term plans if the closure continues for a longer period of time.
One service the district will be providing immediately is food service; which includes a breakfast and lunch for each child. We sincerely desire to provide a daily lunch and breakfast for your child by providing “meals on wheels” utilizing our district’s transportation department. Please allow us this privilege of serving meals to your child during this time away from school.
To provide this service, our food service personnel will be preparing meals each morning, our faculty and staff will be bagging this food, and our bus drivers will be delivering the meals to your children’s bus stop each day between hours of 11:00-12:30. Also, for students that may have transportation, our cafeterias at the elementary and intermediate schools will be open for any student to stop and receive a grab-n-go lunch and breakfast. It’s that simple!
All we ask is that you call the building that your child attends by 9:00 a.m. each day and inform the district staff member your child’s name, and bus number, along with having your child available at the bus stop during the delivery time. We are planning on starting this food service program on Friday, March 20.
We sincerely appreciate your cooperation, patience, and support during these unprecedented times. Please know, our district staff members are making plans to assist even more if the school closure continues for a lengthy period. The Potosi R-3 School District exists to serve children and we take that responsibility very seriously. We desire to serve our students’ educational needs, along with assisting in the health and well-being of each and every student.
If you have any questions about this food service opportunity, do not hesitate to call your child’s respective buildings for answers or clarification.
Randy Davis
Interim Superintendent
Rhonda Kay Phares, President
James Robart, Jr., Vice President
Jimmy W. Gibson, Treasurer
Tammy Cook-Randall, Secretary
Randy Barron, Member
Rebekah Jones, Member
Bill Short, Member
Love Purple-Live Gold ...
MAAA Superintendent Association
Closure Communication
March 15, 2020
Dear Families and Staff:
The COVID-19 pandemic is presenting unique challenges to the world community. Although our area counties have no known COVID-19 cases, we have made the decision—with the recommendations of local health authorities—to close our schools to safeguard the health and wellness of our students and staff, decrease the burden on the healthcare system, and protect the most vulnerable in our community.
All MAAA schools, as well as our preschool programs, will be closed beginning this Wednesday, March 18. We are in uncharted territory while planning for the spread of COVID-19. It is difficult to predict where we will be in two days, much less two weeks from now. With that being said, we tentatively plan on welcoming students and staff back on April 6. We appreciate your understanding. If that date changes, we will communicate all updates with our families.
Our decision was made after consultation with local officials about the need to practice social distancing, to limit gatherings of large groups in order to decrease the risk to our most vulnerable populations, and to reduce the burden on the healthcare system. Our decision aligns with similar actions being taken to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 by our neighboring school districts, including those in Jefferson and St. Louis counties.
Although we know that this will create a hardship for many of us, we are now at the point where the closure of our schools is the best decision to help limit the spread of COVID-19 and to keep our students, families and employees healthy. During the break, we will be performing cleaning and disinfecting above and beyond our established practices at all schools and district offices.
We are waiting for guidance from MSHSAA related to athletics and activities. We will share information as it becomes available.
We know that you have many questions, and we will do our best to address your concerns. Currently, it seems that there are more unknowns than answers, including questions about kindergarten registration, graduation and summer school, among others. We are working on how to address these and other questions and will continue to keep you informed. We appreciate your patience and support as we move forward together.
Thank you for your patience, your support, and your understanding.
Arcadia Valley R-II School District
Bismarck R-V School District
Central R-III School District Farmington R-VII School District
Fredericktown R-I School District
Kingston K-14 School District
North St. Francois County R-I School District
Potosi R-III School District
Ste. Genevieve County R-II School District Valley R-VI School District
West County R-IV School District
St. Paul Lutheran School ...
Potosi R3 Schools will be closed beginning March 18th and reopening April 6th
Refer to District website for more information
BTYB Belgrade State Bank ...
