monique.jacobs, Author at Fort Plain Central School District

Fort Plain Central School District > Articles by: monique.jacobs

Virtual HS Open House/Meet the Teachers – Part IV

What do you do when you can’t bring families into school for fall open house and meet the teachers night? You bring the event to them!

Presenting Part IV of Fort Plain Jr./Sr. High School’s Fall 2020 Virtual Open House/Meet the Teachers. Our faculty and staff welcome you to virtually visit their classrooms and work spaces and share in their students’ experiences through videos they created just for this event.

We have been highlighting a few departments each week. For this final part of our series, view our videos from our Math, Spanish, Counseling and Academic Coaching Center departments.

Math Department Video (Laurie Capece, Sue Summerfield, Deb Waner, Lucas Santiago)

Spanish Department Video (Melanie Pombrio & Patti Jarabek)

Counseling with Kayla Mahoney

Academic Coaching Center
Denise Smith

View Mrs. Smith’s tour of the Academic Coaching Center
View a video about Apex Learning
Visit the Academic Coaching Center webpage

Academic Coaching Center
Kristy McFee

Superintendent’s message about COVID-19 case

Dear Members of the Fort Plain School Community:

The district learned on Thursday, December 3, that a member of the Fort Plain School community tested positive last week for COVID-19. The infected person has not been on campus since November 10, and the Montgomery County Public Health Department has advised us that there is no impact on students or staff.

Please note that the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and other privacy laws restrict us from disclosing or confirming any personally identifiable information. We cannot identify anyone who has tested positive.

While there is no action that Fort Plain students or staff need to take at this time, we are sending this message to keep you informed, and to reassure you that we continue to work closely with the health department to ensure the safety of our Fort Plain School community.

Please contact my office with any questions. Thank you.

Sincerely,
John Bishop
Superintendent of Schools

Winter sports sign-ups

Attention Fort Plain High School students:

Please complete the Google Form linked below if you are a student in grades 9 thru 12 and are interested in participating in a winter sport. Low and moderate risk sports (bowling and swimming) are scheduled to begin on December 14. High Risk sports are tentatively scheduled to begin on January 4.

Link to Google Form to sign up for a winter sport:
https://forms.gle/vrMoTrymAFtRKKGs7

Superintendent’s message: Staying safe during the spread of COVID-19

Dear Members of the Fort Plain School Community:

I hope you had a safe and happy Thanksgiving. Given the rising number of positive COVID-19 cases in our state and region, it is important that we reconnect about how we can work together to keep our schools open and our students learning and growing.

Schools have been recognized by Governor Cuomo and nationally for successfully taking precautions to help control the spread of the virus, and your partnership in these efforts is most appreciated. Thank you.

State and local guidance
I’d like to share information about new guidance from the state on tracking and slowing COVID-19 infection that could potentially impact our school community.

As part of its Micro-Cluster Initiative and Cluster Action Initiative to slow the spread of the virus, New York State is designating certain geographic areas as Yellow, Orange or Red zones. The zones are based on the prevalence of COVID-19 and take into account multiple factors including numbers of positive tests, hospital capacity, etc. The zones come with certain restrictions and protocols aimed at limiting the spread of the virus, including school-based COVID testing.

While our community is not currently within one of these zones, it is helpful to be aware of this information should it be designated in the future. Our school district continues to work with the Montgomery County Public Health Department and HFM BOCES to stay informed of the guidance and how it affects our students, staff and community.

A proactive partnership
We also continue to work proactively to prevent and limit exposure to the virus in our schools. As I noted earlier, your partnership in this effort is invaluable.

We can all help to promote health and safety in our schools and community by:

Wearing masks, practicing social distancing and frequently washing our hands.
Adhering to guidelines for sizes of family and social gatherings. (In his Nov. 30 news conference, Governor Cuomo noted that 65% of recent COVID-19 cases have been attributed to small gatherings).
Observing updated travel regulations, including quarantine and/or testing requirements.
Staying home when we don’t feel well or are having symptoms, and keeping our children home when they are experiencing the same.

Our number one goal in Fort Plain is to provide the safest possible environment for teaching and learning, in order to keep our schools open.

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,
John Bishop
Superintendent of Schools

Virtual HS Open House/Meet the Teachers – Part III

What do you do when you can’t bring families into school for fall open house and meet the teachers night? You bring the event to them!

Presenting Part III of Fort Plain Jr./Sr. High School’s Fall 2020 Virtual Open House/Meet the Teachers. Our faculty and staff welcome you to virtually visit their classrooms and work spaces and share in their students’ experiences through videos they created just for this event.

We are highlighting a few departments each week. View our videos below from our Social Studies and Fine Arts departments.

Social Studies Videos
Kolbe Gray

Brad Niles

Will Ryan

Katie Sacco

Art with Bob Stemmle

Art with Geoff Snyder

Physical Education & Health (Phil Thibodeau & Casey Russom)

Early release drill rescheduled to Dec. 11

Fort Plain Schools’ annual early release drill, which was originally scheduled for Nov. 24, will be held on Friday, Dec. 11, 2020. This is a change from the printed calendar sent in late summer.

2020-21 Fort Plain winter sports start dates

Fort Plain Schools would like to inform families that low/moderate risk winter sports, including bowling and swimming, will begin December 14. Students may sign up for these sports and are reminded that they must have a sports physical prior to the season if they have not had one in the past 12 months.

The New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) made the announcement about low/moderate risk sports on November 17, noting the decision is in line with guidance from Gov. Cuomo and the New York State Department of Health (DOH). High risk sports, including girls and boys basketball and wrestling, are tentatively scheduled to start January 4, but still require approval from the state DOH.

The winter sports season will run through February 28 and focus on regular season play, primarily with league competition. Reduced and condensed sectional competition will only take place if the NYSPHSAA State Championships are offered. If there are no State Championships, leagues and schools may schedule culminating events, which must conclude by February 28.

Virtual HS Open House/Meet the Teachers – Part II

What do you do when you can’t bring families into school for fall open house and meet the teachers night? You bring the event to them!

Presenting Part II of Fort Plain Jr./Sr. High School’s Fall 2020 Virtual Open House/Meet the Teachers. Our faculty and staff welcome you to virtually visit their classrooms and work spaces and share in their students’ experiences through videos they created just for this event.

We are highlighting a few departments each week. View our videos below from our Science and Practical Arts departments.

Science Department Video (Dale Smith, Patrick Petty, Lance Elliott, Jay Jarabek)

Business with Wendy Stokna

Technology with Kreig Heroth

Family & Consumer Sciences with Cory Cooley

Student physicals are still required

This is a friendly reminder for all Fort Plain parents and guardians that physical health exams are mandated by New York State for all students who are newly enrolled in a school district or who are in grades pre-k or kindergarten, 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11. This includes students who are enrolled as in person, hybrid or remote learners.

Please return completed physicals to the school nurse’s office as soon as possible. More information on physicals is posted on our health services webpage, under Health Screenings.

FPHS Fall Open House/Meet the Teachers event goes virtual

What do you do when you can’t bring families into school for fall open house and meet the teachers night? You bring the event to them!

Presenting Fort Plain Jr./Sr. High School’s Fall 2020 Virtual Open House/Meet the Teachers event. Our faculty and staff welcome you to virtually visit their classrooms and work spaces and share in their students’ experiences through videos they created just for this event.

We are highlighting a few departments each week. View our videos below from our English and Special Education departments.

English/Language Arts Department (Louise Clute, Tracy Yurkewecz, Kevin Bogus, Lisa Trembley, Mary McCall)