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Letter from the Director

RE: ISLA Safe Learning Plan/ COVID 19 case rate rise in Hennepin County

Queridas familias, 

As  the COVID 19 case rates in the country, state, and county continue to spike, we are making plans to pivot to another learning model--full distance for all grades.   According to the information that we are given from the Minnesota Department of Health, we reached 51 per 10,000 as of October 31st, and the cases have been rising daily since then.  As I indicated last week, the official data from the state is “stale” data, as it is the rate per 10,000 from two weeks ago. For that reason, we have been monitoring individual cities and communities throughout the county from which we draw students, and the data is alarming.  According to some sources, we are currently at over 85 cases per 10,000 in Hennepin County as of today.   

As a reminder, Governor Walz and the Dept. of Health have recommended that at over 50 cases per 10,000, all schools should go to full distance models, and our school board has indicated that they would like to follow this guidance.  

Therefore,  we are working with our regional support planning committee and on Tuesday,  November 17th, the ISLA School Board will discuss if and when we will go to full distance learning for all grades.  

One probable date for us to pivot to the full distance model would be on November 30th, after the Thanksgiving holiday.  If that is the case, I will be asking the board to make the decision for a return to presencial learning based on case numbers and weekly trends at our January 19th meeting, aiming for a January 25th return, with the idea that we would go to the planned 3B model at that time.  That date also coincides with the dates of our new semester, and would be the first week of a new Unit of Inquiry. 

As I am sure you have seen, the Department of Health put out some guidelines for prudence and caution at our holiday gatherings, and is encouraging everyone to get tested before seeing loved ones at Thanksgiving.  They have also released the information that all Minnesotans can get tested at home (with or without symptoms) by ordering your free saliva kit here:  Covid-19 Test.

Please take good care and stay safe in these trying times. 

Thank you for everything you are doing to help us on this journey. 

Atentamente,     

Jeremy

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Are you excited about ISLA's new building? Join the ISLA Affiliated Building Company's Board of Directors!

ISLA ABC, the related entity that owns ISLA's school building and is working to acquire our new building in Edina, has an opening on its Board of Directors. Board members serve one-year terms and will work in tandem with the ISLA Board to oversee the anticipated real estate transactions and the renovation of the new school building. Expertise in real estate/property management would be an asset, but is not required, as ABC's contractors will be doing the on-the-ground work.

If you are interested in learning more about this opportunity, please contact Tom Schmidt (tschmidt@isla.school) or Liz Crouse (lcrouse@isla.school). Thank you!

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Fundraising Committee

Hola ISLA community!  The Fundraising Committee is actively looking for 2 volunteers to serve on the committee.  As we surge forward with our exciting new school this committee will be engaged and vital in the upcoming months!  For details or questions, please contact Justin Elder at jelder@isla.school.

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Employment Opportunity

Do you have project management/marketing experience?  Do you have any openings in your schedule?  

The building working group is looking for a part-time Building Relocation Project Manager.  This position will require a time commitment of approximately 10 hours per week, and the Manager will be compensated  with an hourly stipend.

If interested, please send an email to info@isla.school.

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Support the PTO!

Looking for easy ways to help support the great work that the PTO does for our kids and their school?  Here are three great options!‍

Mabel’s Labels: You can find your child’s things easily in the lost and found by marking them with bright, durable, Mabel’s Labels. Go to https://mabelslabels.com/en_US/fundraising/support/
‍Type International Spanish Language Academy into the search bar on the screen

A portion of your purchase will support the PTO.

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Amazon Smile: Shop at Amazon?  You can have a portion of your purchase donated to the PTO!  Go to https://smile.amazon.com/ and search for International Spanish Language Academy.  Then just make sure to bookmark AmazonSmile and use it for all your Amazon shopping needs.

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Box Tops: Download this app to scan in your receipts to make easy money for our school!

Go to: Home - Box Tops for Education

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