Best wishes for safety and health for all ECS students and families during this unprecedented time.  I am writing to provide a bit of clarity and to hopefully calm some nerves for students who do not know what to do, what is happening, or where to turn for information.  Please remain calm and patient as we let not only our ECS teachers, but every facet of this organization get their bearings and design a worthwhile response to an extended break from school.

 

For starters, the vast majority of classes PK-12 will be providing educational resources and opportunities to keep you academically engaged in your curriculum WITHOUT PENALTY FOR DUE DATES, COMPLETION, or PERFORMANCE and will be comprised of either review materials or supplemental content that might not usually be taught in your courses.  In other words, your teachers are not simply moving on and expecting everyone to be on the same page with new material that will be on the final exam.  We are, however, doing our best to provide you with intellectually engaging content to work on from home.

 

Our teachers have been asked to do something very difficult:  design a plan for developing supplemental and review materials and assignments without access to their classrooms or the school.  Ellicottville Central School has taken a highly vigilant approach to the COVID-19 crisis, minimizing teacher and student traffic on campus.  We are working on a plan to get each 7-12 student their laptop, while also providing high quality educational resources to those students without internet access.  While this might take ECS a few more days to iron out, we believe the educational end product will be of greater value than simply trying to get something in everyone's hands quickly.

 

Students: I am sure some of your teachers have already reached out to you.  Please don't panic if you don't have a laptop yet, don't have internet at home, or don't have the correct resources to tackle assignments that are coming your way.  Please remain available for communication from your teachers, and keep an open mind about how this might go for the next unknown period of time.  While you are waiting for more specific direction, please monitor this website and our new Facebook page generated during this crisis to increase visibilty of school information.  We will also be using the "robo-call" system to update everyone via telephone.  

 

We are known for our caring environent at ECS, and you can expect our teachers, administration and support staff to continue to check in on you via telephone and other means.  We will take this one step at a time.  Meanwhile, I encourage you to get back to a simpler way of life while we fall into new school habits, such as reading for pleasure, taking up a new hobby like dusting off the guitar in the attic, and contributing to cooking meals for the family.  The weather has been pleasant, and getting some fresh air in the early Springtime is a joy all in itself.

 

THANK YOU for your patience while we design an educational plan for all students at ECS.  Our focus is on responding appropriately to the health and safety needs of our school community, and we are working around the clock to develop a remote edcuational system moving forward.

 

I miss you all, as do your teachers.  Stay safe!!

Sincerely,

Mr. Ploetz