HCPS ADMINISTRATION WILL RECOMMEND DELAY TO START OF SCHOOL REOPENING

Good Afternoon Hopewell Families:

The purpose of this correspondence is to share with you that my leadership team and I have just last evening made a formal written recommendation to our school board to consider delaying the opening of our school district for 20/21 until after Labor Day on September 8, 2020. This was a very difficult decision, as I know first-hand, that so many of us are extremelyanxious to get our students back to some extent, in person, in school, safely. We are basing this recommendation upon the following factors, many of which are unfortunately, beyond our control.

1. The rapidly changing guidance coming out from the American Pediatric Association, the World Health Organization, the President, the Governor and the Center for Disease Control.

2. The significantly increasing rates of new cases in our country, as well as the trend in multiple states, including Virginia, scaling back school openings.

3. The voices of our families and many of our staff, whom we know and respect only want the very best for our children and our colleagues.

4. The increasing but inaccurate perception that we would somehow compromise the safety of our staff and students in order to prematurely implement our balanced calendar. Completely untrue…but “out there.”

5. The benefits to “pushing pause” that will allow us to align our start date with the majority of divisions in Region One, providing us additional time for the health and government guidelines to settle out so that we can plan accordingly.

6. Having more time will enable us to involve more of our teachers, staff, parents and community in our ongoing planning and help everyone have a clearer picture of what school will look like as we return.

7. Our belief that there is significantly more change to come, with the Governor potentially moving Virginia into Phase 4 this summer, which could again, impact our planning thus far.

Please understand how and when to open schools has been one of the most difficult decisions we've ever had to make. I am so proud of and grateful to my Instructional Leadership Team. They have worked countless hours this summer trying to “get this right.” I am confident in our reopening plan we will present to the school board at their July board meeting. It was described to me by a respected partner in the Virginia Department of Health this week as “the best one she has seen thus far.” We care deeply for our children and staff and want to have them back with us as soon as possible. However, we want to ensure as safe of an environment as possible, and for families and colleagues to feel comfortable and confident when the timing is right. Another month of listening, planning and considering all possible options for a safe return for all is the responsible leadership choice in this situation. I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, but I trust that you all know that at the heart of this painful decision, is our love, care and concern for the most important people in this difficult equation…our precious students, and the dedicated staff who work with them.

I ended our Facebook Live Panel discussion on Covid-19 planning this week with sharing our team’s commitment to the Golden Rule with our community. I promised our staff, parentsand families that in every major decision, our leadership team applies the Golden Rule of what we would want for our own children and/or loved ones whenever faced with challenges of this magnitude and impact. These are not just words…this is what we do---not just for our students but for our colleagues. We take our responsibility both of these groups very seriously. I will rest in this recommendation to my Board, and accept the potential reactions and responses that are coming. Safety will always be first…We’d rather be wrong and overly cautious, than take risks with the health and safety of those to whom we are accountable and privileged to serve.

I will formally make this recommendation for immediate action to our school board at their meeting on the evening of July 22, 2020. In the interim, we will continue planning for the glorious day when we can all be together again and do what we do best…love our students and each other! Blessings to all. I miss you.

Melody Hackney
Superintendent of Schools