Dr. Thurman's Update: April 22 - AMI, Yearbooks, Graduation

Dear Panther Families,

It's hard to believe we've been out of school for more than a month now. Please know that we miss our students, staff, and teachers very much.  

But I have to say considering the circumstances, everyone is doing an amazing job. Parents, we are so proud to be working with you through this challenge.  

Please remember, if you have any questions, just ask.  Ask your teacher, ask your principal, or ask me. We are all happy to help.

To our staff….I'm hearing so many positive stories about you. Your compassion, love, understanding and commitment are helping our families through this difficult time. Thank you for your hard work.

To our parents….you are doing a good job! This is not easy and I appreciate how you are reaching out to our teachers and administrators for feedback, additional support, and encouragement.  

AMI

Please stay in contact with your child's teacher or building principal regarding AMI work.  This is a totally new experience for all of us and we are going to make the very best of this challenging situation.

Pre-K through 6th grade will now continue with Arkansas PBS through the remainder of the school year, May 21st. The district will post new AMI work every Friday for the following week on our district social media pages, as well as our district website, cabotschools.org. Just look for the yellow announcement section. This section can also be found on your child's school website. If you need the worksheets printed, packets can be found at any of the meal distribution sites (Magness, Ward Central, and CJHN). Elementary and middle schools also have packets ready for pick up at the front of their schools. 

Grades 7-11th will continue to work on long-term portfolios through google classroom or the method your child's teacher is currently using.

Seniors still working on coursework should remain in close contact with their teachers.  My message to our seniors that are not on track to graduate....you are too close to give up now.  Stay in contact with your teachers and continue to work hard!  

Yearbooks, Library Books, Pictures, Personal Belongings, Medication

We are still receiving many questions regarding yearbooks, library books, pictures, belongings and medications left at school.

Drive-thru medication pick-ups have been taking place for the last two weeks at several schools. If your school is having one, we are notifying parents through our automated messaging system. Many schools have also been posting information on their social media pages.

As for yearbooks, library books, pictures, and belongings left at schools… schools are working on distribution days. Once plans are finalized, we will begin releasing information. Please be patient. Some of these items are still arriving. You should be hearing more information about distribution days in the coming weeks if not sooner.

Once again, if you have a question, please message your child's teacher or building principal. Contact information for all building administrators can be found on the main page of our website.  

Refunds

We are working very hard to process refunds for pre-paid activities.  Parents will receive specific information from building principals or sponsors.  

Graduation

Let's talk about something that I know is on the minds of at least 756 Cabot High School seniors and their parents and that would be graduation for the Class of 2020. What we do know is that May 15th at Simmons Bank Arena is unfortunately not going to happen. We have been in regular contact with officials at Simmons Bank Arena and the facility is currently closed and they do not anticipate being able to open by that date.  

Now, we know that a few school districts are beginning to announce alternative plans like virtual graduations. As a side note to the trend for virtual graduations, school districts have been reminded via guidelines from state officials that all social distancing requirements and group size limitations must be adhered to at all times during these virtual graduations. So, there are no perfect answers at this time.   

With that being said, it is too early to make a final decision today. We want…and I know you want…for us to try our very best to have some type of traditional ceremony for the Class of 2020 and that's exactly what we want to do.  

Let me reiterate that again the news on graduation as of today is that we are going to stay the course just the same as many of the other large high schools in Arkansas and are still planning for some type of traditional ceremony as soon as possible.  

If, after all options are exhausted and we are not allowed to make a traditional ceremony happen, we have a plan for some type of alternative such as a virtual graduation, but this will be our last option.

I'd also like to add that though we will not be able to gather on May 15th as planned, we plan to partner with the City of Cabot and Cabot Chamber of Commerce to make this a special day for our seniors.  More details on how we will be celebrating the Class of 2020 on May 15th will be shared very soon!  

Finally, all we can ask is for you to please be patient. We do not want to rush into a final decision in April. This is a huge milestone for our students and a lot can happen in a couple of weeks. We want to not only make the best decision… but the right decision for our students. 

Closing 

Last, but certainly not least….

It is imperative for parents to stay connected with us since updated information is posted on a regular basis.  Please always remember to check our website, cabotschools.org, and our district social media pages, Facebook and twitter for official school information. 

Plus, don't forget to follow your own school's social media pages. Many of our schools have Facebook, twitter, or both.

To our students…stay focused on completing your assignments...we will be back together very soon….and we miss you very much! 

Go Panthers!