School District Plan for 2021-2022

Welcome back! I am excited to welcome in this new year.

While challenges with the pandemic are still present, lessons learned in the area of technology, communication, instructional strategies, and basic teamwork of all stakeholders will allow us to start this year stronger than ever.

San Juan School District’s (SJSD) plan for the 2021-2022 school year is based on current stakeholder input and recent directives from the state/tribal lawmakers and health departments.

Please be aware that changes in future laws and/or decisions could require changes to this plan. The plan is designed to be responsive to the different circumstances in our two different regions.

Last year was the most difficult year I can recall, but this year is the most important year. I thank all stakeholders for your continued input and support. Let’s make 2021-2022 a most successful year.

Mountain & River regions
In-person learning: Students benefit from in-person learning, and safely returning to inperson instruction is a priority.

The first day of school is Thursday, August 19. School registration information has been emailed through Aspire. Please complete all student registration documents. Contact your child’s school if you have not received registration information via email.

All secondary schools will be transitioning to a new A/B schedule. Secondary schools will start at 8:25 a.m. Monday thru Friday.

Elementary schools have modified their bell schedule to align more closely with secondary schools.

Late start Tuesday has been discontinued in all schools. Layered Prevention in all K-12 SJSD Schools: SJSD will continue to strive to keep our students and staff safe and healthy by following State Health Department recommendations and working closely with our local health departments.

SJSD STRONGLY encourages parents to keep any student who is sick (fever, non-allergy related runny nose or cough, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhea, etc.) at home. Likewise, staff members who are experiencing any physical symptoms should utilize sick/personal leave.

Possible school closure: Current state law has set the threshold for schools less than 1,500 students at 30 active COVID-19 cases at any one time. If any school in SJSD exceeds 30 total staff and student cases at any one time, a Test-to-Stay process will be implemented. If this happens, all students must be tested to remain at the school for their learning and extra-curricular activities.

If a parent chooses to not have his/her child participate in the Test-to-Stay process, then the child will be required to be quarantined for 10-14 days.

Testing for athletic/activity participation: Testing for extracurricular activities will not be required. According to state law, testing will only be required if a school has more than 30 positive COVID-19 cases.

Virtual option: Yes, virtual options will be available to students this coming year. However, due to the high number of students who last year experienced little or no success, parents will need to work directly with their school administration or counseling department to request these services.

Parents must demonstrate that their student has sufficient support to be successful before this option can be utilized. If parents feel a virtual delivery method is the best option for their child, they should request a meeting with school administration to facilitate the process.

Volunteers in the classroom: Parents will be allowed to volunteer in classrooms and/or be in the schools.  In the event that there are positive COVID-19 cases in a classroom or school, parents may be asked to not come to school for a specified period of time. 

To seek more information or answers to questions, please feel encouraged to reach out to school administration. Principals and staff are the first line of support for all stakeholders. If you need further assistance, feel encouraged to reach out to either San Juan School District staff at 435-678-1211 or the San Juan Health Department at 435-587-3838.

River Region
Complying with the Navajo Nation current school reopening guidelines, all schools in the Montezuma Creek, Bluff, Monument Valley, and Navajo Mountain area (River Region), will begin the school year with a face-covering mandate.

Some exemptions from this mandate would be eating lunch, adequately-spaced play on the playground, and athletic participation.

All students and staff members will be required to wear a face-covering. If needed, face-coverings will be provided by your child’s school.

Student/staff quarantine and/or isolation will be the discretion of Utah Navajo Health System (UNHS) under the direction of the San Juan Health Department.

SJSD will be as transparent as possible with data regarding active COVID-19 cases in all schools. Contact tracing will be conducted by UNHS under the direction of the San Juan Health Department. If a student is possibly exposed, parents will receive a letter via email to inform them of a possible exposure.

Mountain Region
Schools in the La Sal, Monticello, and Blanding area (Mountain Region), will not have a face-covering mandate. In fact, current state law removes the option for any school district to enforce a mandatory face-covering mandate in schools.

Still, face-coverings are optional and SJSD encourages all parents and staff to make their decision regarding face-coverings based on his/her level of comfortableness with current pandemic data.

School administration and staff will be proactive in fostering a climate supportive of either wearing a face-covering or not wearing a face-covering.

Students and staff members who test positive for the COVID-19 virus will be isolated according to guidelines set by the San Juan Health Department.

SJSD will be as transparent as possible with data regarding active COVID-19 cases in all schools. There will be no official contact tracing done.

If a student is possibly exposed, parents will receive an email to inform them of a possible exposure. Parents can self-elect to quarantine their child(ren) at home for ten days and receive instruction virtually.