Sunday, September 5, 2021, WDHS Family Update Hello Everyone, Happy Labor Day Weekend! After the rain on Friday and Saturday morning’s drizzly and dreary start, it was nice to see the sun appear in the afternoon and brighten up things a bit. Even with the mix of clouds and sunshine today, conditions are nearly ideal for Labor Day festivities. In a town like ours that caters to those on vacation, we sometimes do not get the chance to partake in the holiday quite the same way as our visitors but hopefully folks are able to enjoy some time in the outdoors and/or with family and friends. Turning our sights ahead to the week, we add another day of school this week as we ramp up the start of the year. Something that was immediately noticed and felt by staff and students last week was the number of people in the building as compared to when we finished school in June. Our population at the end of the school year was about 550 and roughly 25 students were still in the virtual setting. As of Friday, we are officially hovering around 610 students although there is still some expected fluctuation that typically occurs at the start of every school year. As I shared with the staff Friday morning, I expect we will end up with just under 600 students but that is still 25 more than we were predicting. This underlies how fortunate we are to have the space provided by our still very new high school and how grateful we are to be here. Have a wonderful week, Hugh Covid, Masks, Contact Tracing… At last Monday’s Regular School Board Meeting, the SDWD Board of Education adopted Covid protocols and strategies that the district will use to start the year. The short version is that Masks within SDWD buildings are optional. Please note, however, that masks will remain mandatory on school buses as they fall under the federal mask mandate as a form of public transportation. Schools will also be operating under mostly pre-pandemic operating procedures. However, in the event of a substantive increase in illnesses, close contacts, and transmission within the school, additional layers of precaution may be implemented. The entire document is available in the link below for one’s review. Please take the time to read it carefully. 2021-22 SDWD Covid Return to School Protocols and Strategies I also want to share a concern voiced by one of the board members at the meeting with regards to the potential for targeted harassment of those who are masked by non-mask wearers and vice versa. The high school will not tolerate any form of harassment towards others under any circumstances and that includes one’s personal choice to wear a mask or not. One’s decision is based on individual circumstances that need to be respected. I really don’t anticipate much in the way of this being a concern but believed that preempting the point here is prudent. Before, During and After School Pick-up/Drop-Off Procedures I will leave this section in the update for one more week for those students and families who joined us last week. As we were getting ready to start school last year, we were faced with the unknown of how traffic patterns might work during the busy times of Drop-Off and Pick-Up. During the planning phase of the project, we were excited about the ability to finally separate student driving traffic from the bus loading zones that were a daily source of congestion. To be clear, congestion has not been eliminated at the new location. It is still very busy from 7:40-7:50 AM and from 3:30-3:40 PM. That is simply the nature of many vehicles converging on a single location. Nevertheless, we did settle into a pattern and for the most part this has worked well. As we move into Year 2, I want to inform all our new families, and remind our returning ones, about traffic flow and parking at WDHS. To do that, I have retooled the following sections from last year’s back to school FAQ. I ’t had a chance to update the photos and while the site is unquestionably a lot greener one year later (not to mention that the Athletic Complex is now finished) the “old” photos still serve adequately. What to before school procedures look like at WDHS?

• WDHS opens at 7:15 am. Students arriving prior to this time will need to wait outside. • All students will remain in the commons upon arrival until doors to the classroom wings open at 7:35. • Students may remain in the Commons and hallway soft-seating areas before school but should make there ay to the classes when the warning bell sounds at 7:50 am. What entrances can I use when I come to WDHS?

• There are three entrances to the new WDHS Campus (Click for Photo): o The main entrance is located closest to Highway 12/16 (Bottom of the photo) o The middle entrance is only for authorized staff or shipping/receiving. At no time should unauthorized vehicles use this driveway for drop-off, pick-up, parking, or just passing through. o The entrance closest to the railroad tracks is exclusively for buses from 7:15 am until 4:00 PM. o This entrance may be used by spectators attending school activities after 4:00 pm. • Students driving to school and parents dropping off students should all use the main entrance before and after school. Where do students park their cars?

• When facing the building, students will use the front parking lot to the left. Staff parking is on the right (Click for Photo). • The parking lot between the school and the athletic fields may be used only by those students attending Zero-Hour Strength and Conditioning. Where do I drop off my student(s) if they are not riding the bus?

• The student drop off is directly in front of the main entrance (Click for Photo). • Please use the ‘boulevard’ by pulling up to the entrance in the right lane (when facing the school) and depart using the left lane (Click for Photo). What will after school procedures look like at WDHS?

• Students are permitted to congregate/visit in the Commons after school until 3:45 pm, at which pint all students should either exit the building if not part of an authorized after school activity. • Students with cars should immediately exit the building and depart the campus using the main entrance • Under no circumstances is anyone to use the Bus Entrance until after 4:00 pm. • Students being picked up or riding the bus should wait in their respective loading/unloading locations: o Car riders will wait for their ride in front of the building o Bus riders will wait for their buses to arrive outside the north entrance at the bus loading zone. Buses will arrive at the high school beginning around 3:40 pm. Where do I pick my student(s) up after school? (Updated 8/28)

• As noted in the section above, the pick-up and drop off location is the same - in front of the main doors (Click for Photo). • Students are dismissed from school at 3:30 PM. 2020-21 Yearbook (Update) There are still many yearbooks that have yet to be picked up by students and I have included reminders in the morning announcements. We reviewed the list last Friday and will start calling down the students and contacting he families of last year’s seniors. We still have several additional copies available for purchase. The price is $50. At the same time, work is already beginning on the 2022 edition and online orders have begun. Yearbooks that are purchased by Sep 17 receive a few “freebies” and a discounted price of $45. Click here for more information. Fall Sports Season (Update) The WDHS Varsity Football team moved to 3-0 last Friday night, soundly defeating Wautoma by a score of 40-6. This is the program’s first 3-0 start since 2013. Congrats to the players and coaches. On Tuesday night, Soccer will host their first game on the new field when they welcome Wautoma. Game time is 6:45 pm. Here’s hoping they can also start their tenure on the home field with a win. Volleyball opens conference play and their first home game of the season on Thursday against Mauston and Golf has a home invitational at Christmas Mountain Resort on Wednesday. Plenty of opportunities to catch WDHS home events this week. As always, one can see all our sports schedules on SDWD Activities Calendar hosted by rSchool.