Thank you for everything you did to ensure we had a safe and successful 2020-2021 school year. There were a lot of challenges throughout the year, but our students, parents/guardians, teachers and staff worked together to achieve many exceptional accomplishments, culminating with the celebration of the Class of 2021.

I hope you have been enjoying a relaxing, fun and safe summer. We are excited to welcome back all of our students later this month, from the youngest learners at Beach Preschool to our graduating Class of 2022 at Rocky River High School. The first day of school for students in grades 1-12 is Tuesday, August 24 and the first day for students in preschool and kindergarten is Wednesday, August 25.

As we prepare for the start of the 2021-2022 school year, please review the district’s Back to School plan, including COVID protocols, important upcoming dates and other information found here.

The district’s primary goal is to keep schools open for in-person learning. All policies and mitigation practices developed will support this mission. The protocols shared here are based on current guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) and the Cuyahoga County Board of Health (CCBH). We have taken into consideration local COVID-19 data, our staff vaccination levels and the district’s multi-layered protection efforts, including updated HVAC systems throughout the district.

For the start of the 2021-2022 school year, the following protocols will be in place:

• Grades Pre-K-5 (Beach Preschool, Goldwood Primary School, Kensington Intermediate School): Students and staff in these grades will be required to wear masks indoors through the end of the first quarter (October 29th) at which time we will revisit this requirement. Masks may be removed at lunch and during all outdoor activities, including recess. For our students in Pre-K-5, we believe that mandatory masking will allow the district to operate in-person learning with the least amount of impact from COVID-19.
• Grades 6-12 (Rocky River Middle School, Rocky River High School): The use of masks indoors is strongly recommended for students and staff in these grades. 
• All grades (Pre-K-12): Masks are required on all public transportation, including school buses. This is required by the CDC and includes transportation to/from athletics and extracurriculars on school-sponsored vehicles. 

 Quarantine protocols will be in place this year. According to the ODH and CCBH:

• Vaccinated or masked individuals who are identified as a close contact will not be required to quarantine.
• Unmasked and unvaccinated individuals who are identified as a close contact will be required to quarantine for at least seven (7) days from the classroom and extracurricular activities. The contact should have a negative viral (PCR or antigen) test collected on or after day five and should watch for any signs or symptoms of COVID-19 for 14 days.
• Individuals who test positive for COVID-19 regardless of vaccination status must isolate out of school for a minimum of 10 days from the onset of symptoms or the date of the positive test.

We are fortunate to have multiple mitigation strategies in place in all buildings, including hand washing stations and hand sanitizer dispensers, high staff vaccination rates, updated HVAC systems utilizing MERV 8-15A filters and UV-C technology to sanitize air.

We will continue to monitor current conditions and case data. Protocols may be revised at any time as warranted.

Thank you for your patience and collaboration as we navigate the beginning of the school year and we look forward to a successful 2021-2022. 

Sincerely,

Michael Shoaf

Superintendent