Greetings. I pray that you and your family have been able to have a safe, healthy, and relaxing summer. As we have opened our campus, ever so slowly, to athletic teams and their coaches, we continue to prepare for the start of school. Our Freshman/New Student Orientation will be Tuesday, August 4. Students whose last name begins with A-L will meet in the auditorium at 8:30 a.m. and students whose last name begins with M-Z will meet in the auditorium at 1:00 p.m. Different from years past, there will be no parent meeting as this day is for students only. Social distancing will be observed. Students and staff are strongly recommended to wear masks. Each meeting should last approximately 2 hours. The first day of school for students is August 10.

SCSC administrators have been working together this summer to assemble a plan for starting school in the fall. Principals are working on school plans that work best, but the corporation's plan may be found at http://www.scsc.k12.in.us/document-library/district-information/928-re-entry-plan-for-2020-21-school-year/file. It goes without saying that just about everyone I've talked to wants us to be back to normal in the fall. The ultimate goal is to have us return as soon as possible, but paramount to that is the health and safety of all of our students, staff, parents, and community members. We are working in conjunction with guidelines that have been established by national, state, and local health and government agencies. Ultimately, each one of us will have to continue to practice safe, healthy habits. Washing hands, using hand sanitizer, covering coughs and sneezes, practicing social distancing, staying home when we really are sick, and wearing masks when appropriate needs to be part of our daily actions in order to help keep us all healthy. Parents, we are counting on you to make sure that your children are healthy every morning when you send them to school. We certainly do not want to be in the same situation as we were last spring.

Electronic learning is an option this year. However, it will not be conducted in the same manner as it was in the spring. Students will need to use their chromebooks and log into the class into which they are scheduled at the same time as if they were physically in the building. No sleeping in. Attendance and participation in class are mandatory. Homework and tests are still required.

There are students who have not yet returned their chromebooks to the school corporation. Regardless of which school the student attends, all chromebooks may be returned to Seymour High School. Enter Door 1 (by the flagpole) and we will make sure they get returned to the correct school so that parents are not charged for a $300 chromebook. The school office is open from 7:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. daily. Chromebooks are cleaned and repaired each summer so that they may be reissued in excellent, working condition next fall.

An updated school calendar was approved at the July school board meeting. Highlights are as follows:

Aug 10

First student day

Oct 2

We ARE in school since Oktoberfest is canceled

Oct 14-16

THREE day fall break

Nov 23-27

Thanksgiving break is ALL WEEK

Dec 21-Jan 8

Christmas break

Jan 11

Students return

Jan 18

MLK, Jr. Day--no school

Mar 22-26

SPRING BREAK no school

May 28

Last student day

June 6

Graduation

As we look toward the start of school, we anticipate that more parents will be bringing their children to school rather than relying on bus transportation. Therefore it is even more important, for the safety of our students, that parents observe the procedures that have been previously established for Seymour High School. That information is available on the SHS Facebook page and web page.....down at the bottom of the first page.

We have started our transition from I NOW to Harmony. We can not make changes in I NOW that would be visible to parents in the Home Portal. Please keep this in mind if you are looking for changes in grades or any other matter. If you do have a change in phone number, email, or address, please call the office (812-522-4384) and share these changes with us and we will make the appropriate changes in Harmony when we get access.

Thank you for all of your support. Take care and stay safe.

Greg Prange
Principal