Districtwide School Facility Closures to Stay in Affect for Remainder of Academic School Year; Schools Distribute Tech Resources to Students This Week

NEW ORLEANS – (April 15, 2020) - Per Gov. John Bel Edwards’ recent announcement, all NOLA Public Schools (NOLA-PS) facilities will remain closed for the rest of the 2019-2020 school year. This necessary action is an effective way to slow the spread of COVID-19 across our city and state. The District will issue updates to the public with developments every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Please note what is new and what has previously been shared below.
 
WHAT’S NEW: 

SCHOOL FACILITY CLOSURES TO STAY IN AFFECT FOR REMAINDER OF SCHOOL YEAR
NOLA Public Schools respects Gov. John Bel Edwards’ proclamation extending school facility closures across the state through the end of this school year due to the COVID-19 public health crisis.

As a district, we have been committed to supporting the whole child throughout this crisis and will remain committed through the last day of school, even though that last day of school this year will be at home. In collaboration with schools, we are leading the way, locally and nationally, by providing students with the technology, meals, health services and remote learning they need to grow and succeed for the remainder of this school year. These services will continue as we complete this school year and we applaud the countless staff members, teachers and administrators who have consistently pulled together to make these efforts happen for our families.
The state has already waived the need for LEAP testing this year as well as the requirements that students be in school a certain number of days to move to the next level. We will get through this together. We are actively working with school leaders to ensure parents receive updates on requirements for the remainder of the school year, graduations and potential summer school options as they are finalized. We appreciate the public’s understanding as we work to ensure our students are served across the district, even in this trying and often quickly changing time.

CONTINUOUS LEARNING – SCHOOLS DISTRIBUTE TECH RESOURCES TO STUDENTS
NOLA-PS procured 10,000 Chromebooks and nearly 8,000 Wi-Fi hotspots in an effort to improve distanced learning for NOLA-PS students in need. Schools have begun distributing Chromebooks and Wi-Fi hotspots to students. Distribution schedules vary from school to school. Each Chromebook underwent configuration to be compliant with the appropriate licenses as well as receiving email domains specific to the schools utilizing them. The T-Mobile Hotspots also had to be configured with internet filters in compliance with the Children’s Information Protection Act.

CHILD NUTRITION
Since Monday, March 16, approximately 541,880 meals and counting have been served to students in Orleans Parish.

Citywide Feeding Program Schedule:
• Every Monday, meals will be provided for two days.
• Every Wednesday, meals will be provided for three days.
• Community Feeding sites will NOT be open on Tuesday, Thursday or Friday.
• Service Hours: 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.

• Families wishing to access information on child nutrition resources should visit the District’s webpage at https://nolapublicschools.com/covid19/nutrition. This webpage has the most up-to-date listing of where food services are available.

Students over 18 that are enrolled in public K-12 schools, including students with disabilities through age 22, are also eligible for free meals at open sites.

• • Students do not need to be present to receive meals. Parents or caregivers may pick up meals on behalf of the students within their household.
• • Child nutrition resources are available to those under 18 years of age and those who currently attend a public school.
• • Students who are over 18 years of age and are currently enrolled in public schools will also be allowed to access the community feeding programming. Schools will be contacting those families directly to ensure they are aware of the services available to them.

Families in need of a ride to the feeding sites can use a free ride code from Lyft. The following code will be valid during Citywide Feeding Program service hours on Mondays and Wednesdays.
To enter a promo code in the Lyft app:

1. Open the Lyft app
2. Tap the menu icon in the top left corner
3. Tap ‘Promos’ in the menu that appears
4. Tap ‘Enter promo code’ to add the code CV19NOLAPS20
5. Tap ‘Apply’ to finish

For more information on entering promo codes, please see this page.

As a precaution, the District has reissued reminders to all officials at school child nutrition sites to follow the health screening protocols provided by the District for feeding sites. Screening methods include, but are not limited to, daily temperature checks of staff before meals are prepared. Those guidelines apply to all sites operating in the Citywide Coordinated Feeding Effort. NOLA-PS, in coordination with the New Orleans Health Department, will make decisions regarding the operation of individual Community Feeding sites as a result of this screening method.

PLEASE REMEMBER THE FOLLOWING:

ONEAPP:
Round 2 of OneApp is currently open. K-12 families still seeking a new school for next year who did not receive a match may participate in the second round of OneApp. As always, the application process is online-only and available at www.EnrollNOLA.org. Families are strongly encouraged to apply to schools with remaining availability in their child’s grade. Projected availability will also be available at www.EnrollNOLA.org prior to Round 2 opening. Round 2 will close Wednesday, May 6, 2020.

COMMUNITY RESOURCE CENTER WEBPAGE:
The NOLA-PS website has been updated to share important information and resources related to COVID-19 for community members. The community resource center includes distance learning resources for families, as well as links to local agencies and non-profits that are providing critical services and updates on the coronavirus. There are also mental and behavioral health resources to support students, educators and community members through this difficult time. We will continue to update this page as we learn of resources that may be valuable to community members.

The page also serves as a way to connect with community members that are looking for ways to support students and schools. The District is coordinating the collection of resources for schools such as sanitation supplies, educational materials, and various technology needs. If you are looking for information on giving donations, please email donations@nolapublicschools.com or contact 504-430-5311.

To access the NOLA-PS community webpage, visit https://nolapublicschools.com/community
To access distance learning resources webpage, visit https://www.nolapublicschools.com/distance-learning-resources

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ABOUT NOLA PUBLIC SCHOOLS: NOLA Public Schools is the public school district for Orleans Parish, which includes the district’s elected school board, known as the Orleans Parish School Board and the district’s administration led by NOLA Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Henderson Lewis Jr. NOLA Public Schools currently oversees 78 public schools. For more information, visit www.nolapublicschools.com. For updates, follow NOLA Public Schools on Facebook @NOLAPublicSchools, Instagram @nolaps and Twitter @NOLAPSchools