Decatur Township Families,

As we reach the Labor Day Weekend, I want to thank all of you for your cooperation in supporting a safe school environment for our children. In spite of the pandemic, we have started the school year while maintaining a full in-person elementary, a hybrid secondary and a remote K-12 instructional model. Offering this entire array of options, I want to express my gratitude to all of our teachers and staff for their hard work and dedication, working with our students and families during these challenging times.

Please note that we made some minor changes to our district calendar since we started the school year several days later. October 7th, December 18th, and May 28th have all become student days of instruction. These changes keep the rest of the calendar in place for the rest of the school year. The remainder of the newsletter provides valuable information on a variety of levels to help with the overall school experience. As an entire school community, we value our relationship with everyone involved. We will work through the challenges that the pandemic brings as, together, we will prepare our children to be Tomorrow Ready! Collectively, wearing our masks, washing our hands and maintaining social distancing are essential for our ability to provide school for MSD Decatur Township. Thank you for working with us as a school community!

As always, Together, We are Decatur Proud!

Sincerely,

Dr. Prusiecki

Superintendent

The new ParentSquare app is up and running. This app makes communication with your student's school(s) quick and easy! To join, just follow the steps below:

- Go to www.decaturproud.org

- Click the ParentSquare icon at the top of the screen (grey square with green, blue, orange, and purple dots)

- Under 'Sign Up', enter your email address or telephone number

- You will then be asked to create a password

- Once registered, be sure to change your notifications to email, text message, or both

Daily attendance is important for all of our scholars - even for our Remote / Hybrid / Virtual Learners. Please see the expectations below for your student's school when it comes to virtual attendance. Please contact your student's teacher directly if you have any questions.

ELEMENTARY:

Scholars are expected to log into their virtual sessions daily. If the scholar does not attend the virtual session, they will be counted as absent.

DMS:

Remote Learners: Students who attend the live sessions and complete their work for the day will be counted present.

Hybrid Learners: When working virtually, students must attempt the school work in order to be counted present.

DCHS:

Remote and Hybrid (virtual days): Students are expected to be in class at 8:45 daily via Canvas/Zoom/Webex. Students must log-in and fill out their daily Google form during CCR (3rd period). Your student's attendance rate and grades depend on daily virtual participation (for remote learners), and rotating virtual days for hybrid students.

DTSE:

Attendance is taken for Hybrid and Remote students at the beginning and end of each day through a cohort check. There is a CCR check at the end of the day for produced work or interaction. Teacher monitor attendance through communication with students via Canvas, email, or WebEx.

Health Hero will be back to offer free flu shots to staff and students. Consent forms must be turned in to your school by Monday, September 28th. The consent form will request insurance information; however, individuals will not be billed. If you do not have insurance, please check the box provided.

Flu shot schedule:

Thursday, 10/8: DMS, Liberty, Gold Academy, Blue Academy, DCHS, DTSE, E-learning students from 4-5pm at DTSE

Friday, 10/9: DMS, Valley Mills, Stephen Decatur, West Newton, DTSE, DCHS

We would like to extend a warm welcome to the following new staff members:

DECATUR CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL:

Stacy Roose - Fine Arts Secretary (Innovation Academy)

DECATUR MIDDLE SCHOOL:

Rachael Crawford - Secretary

Teresa Kurrasch - Child Nutrition

Hope Lachmann - Child Nutrition

Brandy Riley - Intervention Assistant (APEX)

GOLD ACADEMY:

Megan Sanders - Intervention Assistant

STEPHEN DECATUR ELEMENTARY:

David Tillberry - Custodian

The August 11, 2020 meeting of the Decatur Township Board of Education was a history making event for the Decatur Township School Police Department and the staff and students of Decatur Township. The school board and Superintendent, Dr. Matthew Prusiecki recognized the newly formed K9 unit of the Decatur Township School Police Department, consisting of K9 Officer Talon and his handler Officer Paul Tutsie for their completion of 240 hours of basic ballistic and explosive training.

Also recognized were Indiana University Bloomington Police Chief Jill Lees, IUPD Sergeant Ryan Skaggs, and Retired ATF Agent Dudley Salmon. Utilizing Decatur Township school facilities, the Indiana University Police Department Explosive Unit provided the training for K9 Officer Talon and Officer Tutsie.

Reflecting on the training Officer Tutsie stated, “We have always had an educational partnership with Indiana University, but to now have a law enforcement training partnership with them is really something special. IUPD Sergeant Skaggs and retired ATF Agent Salmon did a phenomenal job training Talon and me, and the great thing is that we will be able to continue training every week with the IUPD Explosive K9 Units to further hone our skills as a K9 team.”

The final presentation of the night included Officer Tutsie certifying to Dr. Prusiecki that K9 Officer Talon had received 240 hours of basic ballistic and explosive training and that K9 Officer Talon was ready for duty. Dr. Prusiecki then awarded K9 Officer Talon his duty vest complete with the official Decatur Township School Police patch and badge.

Decatur Township is pleased to offer Virtual Care through Community Health Network to our students. How does it work? This offering is available for all secondary level students who have signed a waiver for the 2020-2021 school year. The visit is free of charge. Students can virtually visit a nurse practitioner while at school. The health services staff will assess the student and determine if a virtual visit can be offered as there are some restrictions due to Covid-19. If you would like to have this offering available to your student, please fill out a waiver form for the 2020-2021 school year.

Decatur Township has entered into a partnership with the Indianapolis Public Library. Through this partnership, every year we provide the library with a list of our students, and they match the list with their database of patrons. If a student does not currently have a library card, they will be issued one. This program has been very successful in our schools and in other districts in Indianapolis.

The special card students receive will give them access to all of the library’s digital materials, such as databases of magazine and journal articles, downloadable ebooks, emagazines and audio books. In addition, it will give them very limited access to physical items, such as regular books. Of course, you can change this to a full access card by visiting your library. This is an outstanding opportunity for your student. If for any reason you do not wish for your child to participate, please contact your student's school office for paperwork to opt out. Any questions or concerns about the program can be directed to Lynn Hodgkin, Elementary Media Coordinator, at 317-856-2221.

Indiana’s statewide community resource referral agency, Indiana 211, is now part of the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA). This change was part of Governor Holcomb’s 2020 Next Level Agenda and will make it easier for Hoosiers to navigate the significant amount of state and community services available to support their overall health and well-being. Indiana 211 is a free service 24 hours a day, seven days a week that connects Hoosiers with assistance and answers from thousands of health and human service resources - quickly, easily, and confidentially.

When Hoosiers dial 2 - 1 - 1, they are connected to an experienced, responsive and compassionate team of community navigators who are skilled at identifying needs and providing referrals that best meet those needs.

1. Gleaners Community Cupboard at 3737 Waldemere Avenue

• Tuesday/Wednesday from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

• Thursday from 2:00 - 7:00 p.m.

2. Gleaners SNAP Application Assistance

• (317) 644-1280

3. Community Compass App (download from the App store or Google Play)

• Information on food pantries, meal assistance, and more

4. Home delivery of family meal boxes and fresh produce from Gleaners or prepared

meals from Second Helpings

• Text Gleaners to 55433 (English Only)

• Call (317) 742-9111 (English and Spanish)

5. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1- (800) 273-TALK (8255) or text 741741

6. Indiana Child Abuse and Neglext Hotline: 1 - (800) 800-5556

Decatur Township Families,

Your 2020/21 school fees have been uploaded into Skyward. You may now view the bills online, and payments can be made through your child's school Treasurer or electronically via e-Funds.

Our Culture is the heart and soul of our School District. Our vision is to "Prepare Students to be Tomorrow Ready." We do that through our Mission Pillars of Learning, Safety, and Customer Service. Our Culture makes MSD of Decatur Township a special place to learn, work, and grow. We take pride in our past, where we stand today, and our plans for the future. Building and sustaining Decatur Township Schools' culture requires intentional effort from everyone in the organization. Our Culture Guide is part of that effort.

In observation of Labor Day, school will not be in session on Monday, September 7th.

Website: decaturproud.org
Location: 5275 Kentucky Avenue, Indianapolis, IN, USA
Phone: 317-856-5265
Facebook: facebook.com/msddecaturtownship
Twitter: @MSDDecatur