Westside Story Newspaper – Online The News of The Empire – Sharing the Quest for Excellence
Monday, August 3 is the first day of the 2020–2021 school year for San Bernardino City Unified School District (SBCUSD) students.
Due to COVID-19 concerns, SBCUSD made the decision back in June to start the school year in a distance learning model. In a recent video address, Interim Superintendent Dr. Harold Vollkommer explained some of the changes facing families as the school year starts and what to expect from the District moving forward.
New SBCUSD students who do not have an electronic device should contact their school directly. If a District-provided device is not working, call the CyberTech technical support hotline daily from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. at (866) 223-8685 or email studenttechhelp@sbcusd.com so students are ready for the new school year.
Students will be expected to participate in distance learning classes every day. Teachers will be taking attendance and grading both classwork and homework. Distance learning will be a factor in each student’s final grade for the year. Parents who have not already been contacted about the specific hours of their child’s distance learning class should contact their child’s school directly.
The majority of District staff are working from home, but parents and guardians can still connect with their child’s school by leaving a phone message or emailing staff using the link on the school’s webpage. Staff will return phone calls and emails as quickly as possible. Families of Special Education students are also encouraged to reach out via email if they have any questions or concerns. Email address links are available on the Special Education Department’s webpage. The District has also set up an Enrollment Hotline, (909) 891-1010, specifically to address questions about online student enrollment.
Families can check their child’s class schedule and more via the Aeries platform. Parents are strongly encouraged to create an Aeries Parent Portal account by visiting sbcusd.com and selecting Aeries Parent/Student Portal under Parent Resources. The Parent Portal allows parents and guardians to keep track of student attendance and academic progress. The District is aware that the unprecedented need to access the system has caused some technical issues, and it is working to improve access.
Recognizing that families are dealing with much more than just a change in school, the District continues to offer additional support for students and parents, sometimes in partnership with community organizations. Hazel Health provides District students with no-cost, non-emergency telehealth services, including assistance with cold and flu, asthma, prescription medications, and long-term health issues. Families can access medical care for children from a laptop, phone and other devices. Hazel Health does not provide emergency services. Check out the Peachjar flyer for more information or sign up for Hazel Health at http://my.hazel.co/patient/signup.
SBCUSD will continue to provide free breakfast and lunch to every student during the school year as part of the Grab and Go Meal program. The to-go meals are available for pick up Mondays and Wednesdays only from 9 to 11 a.m. Families will need to provide the student’s name and ID number, also known as the lunch number, when picking up meals. Beginning August 3, Chavez Middle School will no longer be a Grab and Go Meal distribution site, but meals will continue to be distributed at 15 other school sites. Questions and concerns about the Grab and Go Meals can be directed to (909) 381-1224.
