Greenback Family,
We have big news regarding our school lunch program. The USDA has extended its program that provided free lunches for all students—this is for schools that ran a summer lunch program. Yes, this applies to all students regardless of free/reduced/full-pay lunch status. The USDA anticipates this program will run through December 31st, when the funding is expected to expire. This requires no action on your part—student accounts will simply not be charged for the first lunch and/or breakfast. Any a la carte items, a stand-alone milk, or a second lunch/breakfast would be charged to the student’s account. We will post a list of Frequently Asked Questions on our website and Facebook page for review if you have questions.
The free lunch pricing began on Monday, September 14th. Again, this is expected to expire in December. Auto-debit fees for lunch/breakfast will be suspended during this time. If you have questions, please email heather.vanslyke@usd382.com.
Respectfully,
Tony Helfrich
Superintendent
Pratt Schools USD 382
USDA Free Meal Program Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How long will the meals be offered for free?
A: USDA has stated that this program will run until December 31, 2020 or when funds run out, whichever comes first. When we know of any changes in the program that would cause a charge to your child’s account, the district will inform parents immediately so that you can plan accordingly.
Q: What if my child just gets a milk?
A: This is not considered a complete meal according to the USDA and we must charge $.40 to cover our cost. You could, however, get a complete meal with a milk for free.
Q: Will this change what food is served to my children? We saw a lot of sandwiches during the summer.
A: Each day, all students will have three meal choices for lunch - hot entree, sandwich, or a specialty salad. Breakfast is either a hot entree or cereal, both with milk and juice. All meals follow the USDA nutritional guidelines for students.
Q: My family did not qualify for free or reduced meals when I completed an application, can my children still get a free lunch?
A: YES! ANY child enrolled in USD 382 can receive a free breakfast and a free lunch each school day.
Q: What about my auto debit? I signed up to have meal costs deducted from my bank account each month.
A: Auto Debit for meals has been suspended at this time. Any funds in your student’s meal account will remain there until they are needed next semester.
Q: What about the debit for my child’s school fees?
A: We will continue to debit for fees on the first of each month. If you have any questions, please contact heather.vanslyke@usd382.com.
Q: Can I get a refund for the balance in my student’s meal account?
A: We have frozen these accounts at this time. The USDA has advised that this program will run through December 31, 2020. Those funds will be needed again in January, so we are advising parents to leave the money there for now.
Q: What if my child is doing remote learning or is quarantined?
A: Free meals are available for everyone! You must register to pick up meals by calling Heather Van Slyke at 620-672-4500 or email heather.vanslyke@usd382.com. Meals will be available to pick up each school day from 11:00 - 11:30. A lunch for the current day and breakfast for the following day will be in each bag. You must be enrolled as a student in USD 382 to utilize this service.
Greenback Family,
We were informed by the Health Department of our first student testing positive for COVID-19. I want to take this opportunity to explain our process. Under our COVID tab, we have a “COVID flowchart for student” document, which goes through our decision making and communication process.
We will send a text message to all parents (make sure you are opted in to receiving text messages) who have a child in the same school that has been informed it has a COVID positive student. For those students with more direct contact, we will communicate in more depth.
At the elementary school level, we will call parents individually and explain our modified quarantine option since we would need to quarantine a stable grouping (a class) for 14 days and parents may choose our modified quarantine option.
At the secondary level (5th-12th) we would individually call the parents of students in the same stable lunch group (students have stable lunch seating so we can more readily do contact tracing and limit who must quarantine) as the student who has tested positive for COVID-19. Again, we have a modified quarantine option that can be chosen or the student can participate in school remotely for the duration of the quarantine period. For students who sit 4-6 feet from the COVID positive student per our classroom seating charts, we would do a specific school message call to give that heads up so parents can be especially watchful for symptoms. Those students are not required to be quarantined—this is one advantage of masking--but if a parent chooses remote learning for that time period, we will certainly accommodate that request.
With the numbers in the country and state, we understand that this will not be the last time a student or staff member tests positive for COVID-19. Our goal is to reduce the risk of a community outbreak while still providing opportunities for children to grow in a healthy manner. I do not want us to live in fear. Yes, there is understandable anxiety and we will work to keep our schools safe. Cleaning is always a priority and we will do a deep cleaning where appropriate to mitigate any contact spread.
We appreciate your patience. Our smiles might be hidden a bit by the masks, but we are very happy to have our students back with us. Have a great Labor Day weekend.
Respectfully,
Tony Helfrich
Superintendent
Pratt Schools USD 382
Friday, October 16 - End of 1st 9 weeks (dismiss at 11:30)
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Friday, October 23 - No school
November 25-27 - No school - Thanksgiving break
Friday, December 18 - End of 2nd 9 weeks/1st semester (dismiss at 11:30)
December 21 - January 3 - No school - Christmas break
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Monday, January 18 - No school (Teacher professional learning)
Thursday, March 11 - End of 3rd 9 weeks (dismiss at 11:30)
March 12-19 - No school - Spring break
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April 2 & 5 - No school - Easter
Wednesday, May 26 - Last day of school
On behalf of our teachers, staff, and school board I welcome you to our district webpage. We are proud of the important work we do with kids to set them up for success and personal well-being this day, this year, and in their future.
We are small-town schools where strong relationships are an integral part of what we do—our principals know every student. Our high school students pair with elementary students (Greenback Match), providing positive leadership and building connections within our student family. Elementary and middle school students hold daily “family” meetings to foster our sense of teamwork and togetherness. Developing our students’ social-emotional strengths is an important goal because we recognize its connection to personal well-being and success both now and in the future.
Because of our size, we are still able to provide a wide variety of opportunities for our students. We have first-class arts programs (band, vocal, theater, debate, forensics, and art), a model elementary MTSS program, an enrichment program for all students, multiple career pathways with instructors in the specialties, and internship and apprenticeship programs. With our connection to Pratt Community College, our college-bound students often leave with 15-30 hours or more of college credit.
In athletics and activities, we compete at a high level—4A for most activities (3A in football). This level allows our entire student body to participate and be successful in multiple activities if they are willing to commit and work hard. But, make no mistake, you must compete with grit to be successful at our level. We have Greenback alumni on scholarship at D1 and D2 programs as well as smaller colleges, community colleges, and technical schools—both for athletics and academics. Regardless of the educational path they choose to take when they leave us, we are proud of our Greenback graduates who are positive contributors to our community and others.
We are small schools with big opportunities. We are a Greenback family. If you would like a tour, please feel free to contact our principals or myself.
Tony Helfrich, Superintendent
Pratt Schools USD 382
