A Letter for NFA Scholars

August 2020

Dear NFA Goldbacks Students and Families:

We are excited to welcome you to a new school year.  We are proud to work with you and the NFA community to continue our strong tradition of excellence.

This year will be a year of new challenges and unprecedented times. Many of the challenges will come with high expectations focused on health and safety, virtual learning, academic excellence and attendance requirements.  You will be expected to attend school regularly, whether you are attending classes in person or virtually, complete all assignments, and comport yourself appropriately as we focus on our district vision, mission and core values:

We want to challenge you in meeting high expectations and not be afraid to embrace learning, as it will shape your future.  We encourage you to take advantage of every opportunity here at NFA.  

Please note the following important information:

• First day of virtual learning: Tuesday, September 8, 2020
• Student schedules will be available in the student/parent portal as of Tuesday, September 1^st. If you do not have a portal or have not accessed your portal, school staff will be contacting you to facilitate this process.  If you have forgotten your user name and/or password, use the “Forgot my password” link on the parent portal website to have your password reset.
• Start time during virtual learning is 9:00 AM
• Information on portal access is available on our new NFA google site at newburghschools.org/nfahub and updated information can always be found on the district website NewburghSchools.org
• Google classroom codes and Google meet invites will be emailed to you by your teachers
• Please follow the virtual period 1 -9 bell schedule for Main and North Campuses and period 1-8 schedule for West Campus and attend Google Meets at the assigned times (see schedules below):

• Daily Schedule/Routine: Your child should login to the Google Classroom or Seesaw site developed by their teacher each morning by 9:00 a.m. Students will experience a combination of synchronous and asynchronous lessons and activities. During the remote learning phase (Phase I), all school days begin with a synchronous (live) lesson beginning at 9:00 a.m. Live lessons will be videotaped by teachers and posted on the Google Classroom for students who may be unable to participate at the scheduled time of synchronous instruction. Additionally, teachers will send asynchronous assignments via email, SMS/Texting Tools, SeeSaw (PreK-2), Google Classroom or other approved platforms determined by the educator to support daily instruction.
  • Attendance: Attendance will be taken daily. Students are expected to attend all virtual classes and participate in all aspects of learning. Attendance and engagement in the synchronous and asynchronous learning portion of a student’s schedule will be monitored. Grades will be assigned for virtual learning and the academic progress of our students will be monitored by their teachers. Virtual attendance will be recorded based on:  A student being in the LIVE synchronous Google Classroom OR watching the asynchronous recorded video of the teacher’s posted lesson AND completing the activity associated with the day’s lesson.

❏ Secondary students must follow their remote schedule and attendance will be taken for each period of the day.

❏ Students who cannot participate in the synchronous portion may watch recorded lessons created by the teacher posted in the Google Classroom and submit the assignment by 11:59 p.m. in order to be marked present for the day.

• Digital Etiquette: Students are expected to maintain appropriate behavior when meeting with teachers remotely. Students must respect the privacy of other participants for remote learning. Audio or video of live recording of lessons or the taking of screenshots of you or peers is a violation of our acceptable use agreement and the code of conduct.

We want to wish you the very best for a successful school year.  Please feel free to contact us or our staff with any questions or concerns.

Go Goldbacks!

Sincerely,

Matteo Doddo                                                                                    Edgar Glascott

Co-Principal                                                                                       Acting Co-Principal

NFA North/West Campus                                                                  Main Campus

ATTENTION: Are your scholars or colleagues doing something great? Please contact the district Communications Team at communications@necsd.net. We’d love to visit your class or event and/or post your pictures and recap to highlight the amazing accomplishments throughout our district!