Midwest Central CUSD #191 - Home of the Raiders

June 30, 2020 Hello Raider Parents, As my previous email stated we do plan to start school in person this fall. This is the time of year that we would normally inform you of school registration details. To that end, we’d like to provide you with registration information so you can mark dates on your calendars. This year we’re transitioning to an online registration format. Midwest Central will roll out the online registration format on August 3rd in the afternoon. For those individuals that have poor internet access or have other technical issues we will hold an in person registration on August 11th at Midwest Central Primary School. During the August 11th registration we will have you use one of the school computers to complete the online registration for your student. We will have onsite help available from 7am to 7pm that day. If you are able to complete the online registration in advance of the 11th you will not need to attend the in person registration. If you choose to attend the in person registration, we ask that only one person per household attend in order to limit the number of people. Please do not bring your children to the in person registration. Although registration is being completed online we will still need to have physical copies of your student’s health documents. Attached to the email is a list of the documents that are needed for individual grade levels. You can drop off necessary documents at any school in the district for your student and they will be routed to the appropriate building. Health records may be dropped off between 8am and 3pm August 3rd through August 11th. Also, if you prefer paying for registration by cash or check, you will be able to drop a check or cash by any building to pay for registration costs. Finally, in order to prepare for the online registration format I have attached a couple guidance documents with some helpful tips of items that can be done in advance of registration. Please take a moment and review the documents attached. We will send out additional registration instructions August 3rd. Thank you for your continued patience and support as we navigate the ever changing state mandates. Our goal is to give you and your students the best possible experience we can this fall. Sincerely, Todd Hellrigel, Ed.D.

June 30, 2020 Dear Raiders, Last week the Illinois State Board of Education released guidance for schools on the 2020-21 school year. This 63-page document has been much anticipated and will go a long way toward answering critical questions all of us share about what the 2020-21 school year will look like in terms of in-person learning, scheduling, transportation, wearing masks, social distancing and other measures intended to keep everyone safe and healthy, while also re-engaging students in the learning process. Several area schools have already released statements about what the 2020-21 school year will look like; however, we believe this may be premature and anticipate changes between now and the time school starts. Right now we don’t have all the answers to provide you, but we’d like to communicate to you what we know now. We plan to return to school this fall for in person instruction 5 days a week following our current published calendar. There will be a couple of calendar changes coming out later this month and we’ll be sure to communicate those changes. Naturally, our instruction days may look different and we’ll most likely have several safety guidelines in place for students, faculty, and staff. Midwest Central is aware of the urgent need to communicate to families about what to expect next school year and anticipate sharing a more detailed plan later this summer. We plan to release our full transition plan the week of July 27th. We will be releasing a survey later this week to collect some information to help us plan for this coming year. It will be short and sweet, and we would appreciate your participation. I’m confident our district can put forth a plan that prioritizes the health and safety of our students while maintaining a dynamic learning environment. Sincerely, Todd Hellrigel, Ed.D.

Preschool Screening Info

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The kitchen renovation at the High School continues! Concrete floor pour happening today!

Forman Valley Library is now taking sign-ups for their Summer Reading Program from now to June 5, 2020. It is for ages preschool to adults and starts June 10 - July 8, 2020. Please call the library (10 am -3 pm) for more information at 309-968-6093 or email them at formanvalleylibrary@yahoo.com.

Once again we encourage everyone in our school district to please complete your 2020 Census. The future of our district funding and programs depends on you taking the time to fill this out. Thank you for your help!

We're just started our high school graduation ceremony! Feel free to watch live here: https://youtu.be/wbO3bsgvFSM

Our faculty and staff are in route for our end of the school year town drive by!! We have rows of cars and smiles! Step outside and wave hello!

Congratulations to Ms. Sarff for winning the $5,000 Century Link grant. The money will be used for the PE heart rate monitor project! Thank you CenturyLink!!

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Happy National Nurses Day! To all the nurses out there on the front line, we appreciate you! Nurse Denise and Nurse Shyla, you ladies are top notch and we are blessed to have you as part of our Raider family!

Midwest Central High School will hold a modified graduation ceremony on Sunday, May 17th, between 11 AM and 5 PM. We worked with local health officials to determine a method that would meet social distancing guidelines while providing an opportunity to recognize this great accomplishment. Participating seniors will be assigned a time slot where they'll be able to walk the stage and receive their diploma, in the presence of up to 6 family members of the same household. We will also live stream the event on YouTube (details to follow). Details can be read in the pictures below. It will also be distributed by email and mail. Seniors expecting to participate should contact the school to confirm attendance.

Hello Raiders, We have received the following correspondence from the State Board of Education that they are releasing additional food benefits for all Midwest Central families. Since Midwest Central is a Community Eligible school every student enrolled in Midwest Central is eligible for this benefit whether they qualify for free lunches or not. In order to receive the additional benefit you must apply (information is below) unless you are currently a SNAP recipient. We have been asked to communicate this to our parents. I have also attached a flyer for more assistance. Thank you, Todd Hellrigel, Ed.D. Pandemic EBT Application Available The Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) launched the Pandemic EBT application for families on May 1 at https://abe.illinois.gov/abe/access/. P-EBT is a new special benefit that can help families buy food for their school age children who would normally receive National School Lunch Program (NSLP) free or reduced-priced meals when schools are in session. All families with school age children who attend schools approved for Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) are eligible for the benefits as they receive NSLP meals at no charge. Families that currently receive SNAP benefits do not need to apply for P-EBT benefits. These additional P-EBT benefits will be loaded into Illinois LINK EBT accounts along with regular SNAP benefits. Families who do not currently receive SNAP benefits but do have children who receive NSLP free or reduced-priced meals will need to apply directly with IDHS. The fastest way for families to receive benefits is to complete the application for P-EBT available online (Click “Apply for Benefits” at the link.) A paper application in English and Spanish is also available and can be submitted by email to DHS.FCS.PEBT@illinois.gov. IDHS created a flyer to help families with the application process. We are asking NSLP sponsors to share this flyer with their families. ISBE is working in partnership with IDHS to ensure that this validation is available for all NSLP sponsors, both public and non-public. Thank you to all the schools that participate in the NSLP for submitting data by the April 17 deadline. We are asking that you please continue to verify that count, so that all families who are eligible can access the additional financial support provided by P-EBT. Instructions for this crucial verification can be found online. If NSLP sponsors need assistance with the data submission/update, please email the ISBE Nutrition Department at cnp@isbe.net. If families need technical assistance with the application, please direct them to email IDHS at DHS.FCS.PEBT@illinois.gov. Nutrition Department, Illinois State Board of Education 100 N. First St., Springfield, IL 62777 cnp@isbe.net, www.isbe.net/nutrition

Haven't switched over to Midwest Central's new app yet? Get the most current information and notifications by downloading our updated app. For ANDROID: http://bit.ly/3005X4y or iPHONE: https://apple.co/35BmKfD.

Hello Raider Parents, We have been diligently working on high school graduation and 8th grade transition plans for the past couple of weeks. We were trying to develop alternate plans while also staying in the guidelines of social distancing. We received approval yesterday from the Mason County Health Department to move forward with our plans, and we had planned to email out tomorrow what those plans were going to be. However, as of last night the State Board has banned any kind of graduation ceremony except virtual (online). They have banned any in person type of ceremony including drive up or drive by ceremonies. This is incredibly disheartening for Midwest Central, our seniors, and our 8th grade students. We do not feel a virtual ceremony is appropriate to commemorate these events. We've had this happen to us multiple times already where we've made plans only to have them taken out of our control by the State Board of Education or the Governor. Midwest Central has the desire to do something special for our seniors and 8th grade students; therefore, we're again putting high school graduation and 8th grade transition on hold until we have some better guidance. Our hope is that by waiting we'll be able to do something in June or July although we can't anticipate to what extent at this point. We realize none of this is ideal, and we're also frustrated with the Chicago machine dictating downstate plans. Unfortunately our hands are legally tied right now. As we receive more information, rest assured we'll update you on how we can honor our senior and 8th grade students. I've attached the State Board's email for your information. I'm sorry I have to keep sending you unfortunate news. This will eventually pass, and we'll eventually go back to normal. Sunny days are ahead. Sincerely, Todd Hellrigel, Ed.D.

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Happy Administrative Professional's Day! MC is lucky to have an amazing group ladies in this category! Thank you all for your hard work, allowing the students to have a better educational experience and making the day to day operations of the the District run as smoothly as possible. You are truly the best! Raider Nation - If you get a chance, make sure to thank an Administrative Professional today.