District 88 ready to welcome students to the 2020-21 school year

Pictured is District 88 Superintendent Dr. Scott Helton.

The 2020-21 school year is officially here! The first day of school will be Monday, Aug. 24, and we can’t wait to welcome and connect with our students!

This year will be different because of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, and we will have challenges – but we know our students, staff, parents/guardians and community members will work together to overcome this adverse situation. This is a historic and unprecedented time in public education, and the passion, determination and innovation of our pupils and teachers will ensure we accomplish our mission of working for the continuous improvement of student achievement.

IMPORTANT UPDATES

  • First day of school: As a reminder, the first day of the 2020-21 school year for students will be Monday, Aug. 24. Students – be sure to click the links below for important back-to-school information.

  • District 88 2020-21 Return to School Plan: We will begin the 2020-21 school year with Remote Learning. To see the district’s Return to School Plan – including details about the schedule, special education, student behavior expectations, food/meal service, school calendar, COVID-19 resources and more – go to www.dupage88.net/ReturnToSchoolPlan. On that page, you also will find a video segment with the latest information.

  • Food service: Starting on Aug. 26, we will offer five days’ worth of food each Wednesday for District 88 students. See details at https://www.dupage88.net/site/page/11818. If your child plans to participate in the 2020-21 District 88 food service program to receive meals, please register at https://forms.gle/iT71fpSJXsN8NxWY8. We ask that this information be submitted by Aug. 25.

  • New learning standards: The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) recently released new Illinois Priority Learning Standards. According to State Superintendent of Education Dr. Carmen I. Ayala, “(ISBE) collaborated with a diverse and skilled team of educators from across the state to identify the Illinois Priority Learning Standards. The group focused on identifying learning standards that depict the knowledge, skills and dispositions we want all students to have – the standards that are the most foundational competencies, the most critical for continued success at subsequent grade levels and best suited for interdisciplinary or project-based learning.” CLICK HERE for more information.

  • Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) FAQs: The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) recently published on its webpage a new health-based Frequently Asked Questions document from the IDPH. The document addresses many health-related questions and can be viewed at https://www.isbe.net/Documents/IDPH-School-FAQs.pdf.

  • Athletics: On Aug. 14, we received a letter from Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Executive Director Craig Anderson announcing the organization received approval from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) to begin practicing for fall sports. We started practices for Girls Tennis, Boys and Girls Golf and Boys and Girls Cross-Country on Aug. 17, and Girls Swimming started today, Aug. 21 (we are following IDPH guidelines). For updates on athletics, go to https://il.8to18.com/aths or https://il.8to18.com/willowbrook. To view the IHSA’s intended plans for the 2020-21 school year, go to https://tinyurl.com/IHSAJuly29.

DISTRICT 88 IS READY FOR THE 2020-21 SCHOOL YEAR
This week, staff members engaged in professional development opportunities to prepare for Remote Learning.

  • On Aug. 17, we hosted our annual Institute Day to welcome staff members and to discuss our areas of focus for 2020-21.

  • On Aug. 18, 19 and 20, staff participated in Remote Learning Planning Days, where we shared best practices and instructional strategies, as well as innovative ideas to create engaging lessons in a virtual environment. Today, Aug. 21, was a Work Day for teachers.

  • We will provide a recap of these events (as well as our New Teacher Orientation that took place on Aug. 12 and 13 and the first day of school on Aug. 24) during the Aug. 24 Board of Education meeting.

REGISTRATION AND RESIDENCY VERIFICATION

  • Registration for the 2020-21 school year is open. We are excited to provide a full online registration process for our families. See details at www.dupage88.net/Registration2020-21.

  • We will maintain residency verification to ensure we maximize our resources for families who reside within District 88 boundaries. Residency verification must be completed for all incoming freshmen, new students and transfer students before registering for the 2020-21 school year. To see the residency verification form in various languages, go to www.dupage88.net/residency.

PARENT AND STUDENT MEETINGS

  • We will continue to meet with parents/guardians as part of our Transition/Reopening Committee. The next parent meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 15. If you would like to join the committee, or if you have any questions/concerns, please feel free to contact me at shelton@dupage88.net or 630-530-3980.

  • On Aug. 19, we met virtually with about 65 students as part of our Return to School Student Advisory Committee. It was a tremendous opportunity to speak with our pupils and get their feedback, as well as address their questions and concerns. We will continue to meet with this group throughout the school year. Students who would like to join the committee should fill out the form at http://www.dupage88.net/StudentAdvisoryCommittee.

DISTRICT 88 BOARD OF EDUCATION MEETING
The next District 88 Board of Education meeting is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. on Aug. 24. See details below.

OTHER AREAS OF FOCUS

  • Resources: District 88 will continue to support the social and emotional well-being of students, staff, families and community members. See a list of available resources (including resources in Spanish) at www.dupage88.net/Coronavirus.

  • Equity work: We have been committed to creating and sustaining an equitable and inclusive environment for all students through Deep Equity and Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Youth Equity Stewardship (YES!) series for more than half a decade, and we have put in place many programs to support these initiatives. We know equity is a journey and won’t be reached quickly or easily. However, we need to be relentless in our pursuit of equity, inclusion and the elimination of racism in District 88 and our communities. We are continuing our work with Deep Equity, YES!, Trauma-Informed Practices and Restorative Practices, and we also have implemented the District 88 C.A.R.E. Team (Committed to Academics, Resiliency and Equity) for students and staff to expand and deepen our work in these areas.

  • Updates from the Illinois State Board of Education: https://www.isbe.net/Pages/covid19.aspx and https://tinyurl.com/ISBEMessages 

We know this year will be difficult as we continue to face this unprecedented situation, but we look forward to working together with all of our stakeholders to build futures for our students. Thank you for your continued support of District 88.

Respectfully,
Scott J. Helton, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools, DuPage High School District 88