Updated information released Friday, March 13, 12:20pm
by Melanie Jongsma
LANSING, Ill. (March 13, 2020) – Principal Jake Gourley hit Send at 12:20pm today, sending the following email to Thornton Fractional 215 families:
Like so many school districts around the nation, we have been working to prepare for the possibility of closing our schools due to COVID-19 (coronavirus). Therefore, on Monday, March 16th, we are cancelling school for our students only. By closing for students, our staff members will have time to briefly go over e-learning days, provide teachers additional time to work on their e-learning plans, and give our maintenance and custodians time to do additional cleaning. An e-learning plan would allow students to continue to receive instruction in an online capacity from home. This plan in its entirety will be made available to you next week.
Your child should have received a survey today to determine how many of our students have Internet access and a tablet, laptop, or PC at home. This will allow us to better plan and prepare for meeting the needs of all students should we need to move to e-learning. Your child should come home today with their textbooks in the event we are closed longer than one day.
As a reminder, no cases of COVID-19 have been reported amongst our staff, students, or families. Unless we hear otherwise from our local and/or state officials, we will plan for students to return to school on Tuesday, March 17th. Please continue to monitor our district and school website for continued updates.
Thank you for your commitment to our students and for your patience and flexibility as we navigate the possibility of an e-learning environment in the near future.
Sincerely,
Dr. Teresa A. Lance, Superintendent
Mr. Jake Gourley, Principal
Principal Gourley’s original plan was to distribute tablets on Monday to students who do not have digital access at home, in case e-learning would become a necessity on Tuesday. With students not attending school on Monday, those plans will change. “We’ll have to iron out all those details over the weekend,” said Gourley.
