Adena Local Schools

Quick Update: Adena School Reopening

We received some more information, guidelines and directions from the Ohio Department of Education this morning. We will process this information, continue our work and refine our requirement list for opening in the fall. Expect the survey by July 20th at the latest. Many are interested in the start date of school. We intend to begin with a staggered start on the original calendar in order to complete required tasks that have been strongly encouraged by ODE, prepare the students to understand and get ready for new ways of doing things as well as become comfortable with the new practices and procedures of school, and give our very young students the chance to have closure for their previous class and teacher. All students will be attending regularly by Labor Day. We know we won’t start early or insert long breaks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. We know we will respect the Ross County Fair schedule. We will give you plenty of advance notice on the staggered start schedules and any other important information. Please rest assured we are looking at many things and will prepare you to ease into the 2021 school year with as little stress as possible. We know it is hard to wait for information, but our intent is to not get in a hurry and get it done correctly. We appreciate your patience and understanding. Have a great weekend!

Adena Local Schools

District Update from Superintendent John Balzer

These are definitely “trying times” for all of us as we try to find our way through the COVID 19 pandemic. We want to give you a general update on what we are doing as we prepare to have school in August.

First, we have to put aside all politics, social media myths, debates (and occasional rants) to examine the real science of this virus and determine what we need to do in order to provide a safe environment for our students and our staff while they are at school. Safety always has to be the first priority. Remember, we also have to think about students’ families- many caregivers are grandparents who are in a high-risk category. We have to remember that some student’s parents or siblings may be undergoing cancer treatments or have pre-existing health conditions that place them in high risk groups. We must remember that when we bring all the kids to school, we also set up a situation where viruses can be distributed throughout the community in a highly efficient manner. It’s up to us to see to it that if we have school all are protected and we do all we can to prevent the spread of COVID.

We are working with the Ohio Department of Education guidelines established by the Governor’s office. We have the guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics. We are working with the Ross County Health Department as well. It is our goal to provide five days per week instruction for all students who wish to attend. We are developing an online school program for students who wish to learn from home until there is a sanctioned vaccine available. At this point in time, we believe that students need the opportunity to attend school for the social benefit and to receive the needed instruction along with the benefits of participating in the extra-curricular activities that balance out the overall educational program in order to create a well-rounded student. The focus each day should easily be learning and socialization with safety practices quietly in place in the background of day to day operations.

In order for the district to provide the opportunities our students should receive, we will need the support and cooperation of parents, caregivers and the community. The politics removed, we have to create a safe environment that is practical, manageable, and doesn’t cause unnecessary stress to, or frighten our children- especially our little ones. If we can work together to accomplish the necessary safeguards that would enable us to bring all 1200 students back to the building, we can offer our students something very close to schooling they experienced prior to the arrival of COVID.

Now that we finally have the Ohio guidelines, our next steps are to establish the needed plans for operations in large congregate settings like lunch, transportation, hallway traffic, playground and extracurriculars. We have to implement extra sanitation practices with the custodial staff. There will be stricter limitations on access to the building from the public. We believe we can accomplish this if we can get all stakeholders to cooperate and support our efforts to reopen. We need to hear your voices. We will be sending an important survey out in the coming days to get your input. Please help us by taking the time to sit down and participate in the process. Remember, nobody is going to be completely happy about how things will look going forward. It is complicated, it is frustrating and it is sometimes very tense. We owe it to our children to leave them out of all of the politics and turmoil that only create fear and unrest in their minds.

I think we as a community can come together and establish common ground over what are appropriate and acceptable precautionary measures that will allow us to safely resume school- the one thing that keeps our children feeling like things are pretty “normal.” The Village has always come through for the children in the past, and I have no doubt we can do that in this situation as well. Together, we will find a way to work through what might be the most important issue of the pandemic. When our kids look back at this part of our history and tell their children about it, let’s hope their response will be that, “We were Warrior Strong and worked to make sure we all got through it together.”

As the district leader, I sincerely appreciate your interest and support in the school system. I look forward to working with the community to accomplish this very important work. Stay well and do your part in helping keep the community safe!

Adena Local Schools

This message is for parents of current students enrolled at Adena Local Schools. Tomorrow, July 1, you will receive an account confirmation email from Final Forms. If you do not receive it please check your junk mail. Please click the link in the email and follow the steps to login and access your student(s). Final Forms allows you to complete and sign enrollment, back-to-school and athletic participation forms for your students. You may review your data at any time to verify it is current. Documentation can also be found at https://tinyurl.com/yacczquk

This process will replace the majority of back to school paperwork you normally fill out at the beginning of the school year.

Josh Jones

Prom will be Saturday, July 18th at the Sunroom at the Brick.
Dinner will start at 7 p.m. with the dance immediately following until 11 p.m. Tickets are $5 for MADE members that can show their card and $10 for non MADE members. Tickets are presale only and can be purchased Monday, July 6, Tuesday, July 7, and Wednesday, July 8 from noon to 2 p.m. and from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in front of the school.
There was a dance waiver and a Southern Ohio Axe Throwing waiver sent to the juniors and seniors through their school email. Both forms must be signed by a parent and turned in at the time of ticket purchase. Please print those and bring them with you when you come to purchase your ticket or bring a parent with you to sign the forms. No exceptions!
Thanks and I can't wait to see you all when you purchase your tickets.

Ms. Tara Mess

Adena Local Schools

The Adena Local Schools would like thank Mr. Carvel Simmons for generously volunteering to pay off all outstanding lunch charges for all students. The generosity and kindness of the local community makes Adena a great place to live, learn and grow. Thank you Mr. Simmons for your care and concern. Thank you for your civic leadership, Mr. Simmons. Together, we are Warrior Strong!