
The Jay School Corporation will be testing our new mass notification phone and texting system this coming Friday, September 25, 2020. This system will send important school information via text or automated phone calls. In order to receive these school text messages or phone calls you must have a valid phone number in Skyward. The texts and phone calls will be sent to "Guardian 1" and "Guardian 2" (if applicable) as was entered by parents during the registration process. If you need to update your information in Skyward, go to the following link: https://www.jayschoolcorp.org/skyward Parents who need help with their Skyward username or password should complete this form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScrMg-7b-xwlcx8RB5JtahlA7fdZmOYl9ZdG2zdnTGxjLA6CA/viewform?usp=sf_link The incoming phone number should show up in your caller ID as 260-726-9341 and the text will say "From Jay School Corp".

Chartwells, our food service company, has informed us that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has approved our district to offer free breakfast and lunch to our students effective September 10, 2020. Our students will be offered FREE breakfast and lunch regardless of free, reduced or paid lunch status.
Chartwells will be refunding all meal charges that may have happened from the first day of school until today (9/16/20) back to the student lunch account (except second meals and a la carte sales). Meals will be FREE until December 31st, 2020. This waiver will expire and on January 1st, 2021 meals will be charged based on status again.
No forms or application is required for a student to receive FREE meals during this waiver period. We will continue to charge for second meals and a la carte items such as chips, drinks, cookies, etc. Make sure you are still filling out Free/Reduced applications due to textbook fee benefits.
Any questions please feel free to email foodservice@jayschools.k12.in.us or call (260) 726-9306 ext. 2262.

We are good to go after this 2 hour delay. Conditions are much improved. Welcome back!

A reminder to everyone that a 3 hour delay is an option we consider when poor weather conditions are present in our county. This option has been helpful in the past, particularly on days with morning fog.
We chose not to use this option today in the hope that tomorrow will permit a full school day for students and staff to implement COVID-19 safety procedures and other changes at the schools to start a new school year.
However, if we experience fog again tomorrow morning like we did today, we will go from a 2 hour delay to a 3 hour delay, if necessary, to allow conditions to improve and preserve the school day. We have new bus routes, new bus stops, and new traffic patterns at some of our schools. We want to avoid everyone having to adjust to this while contending with fog.
When 3 hour delays occur, school ends one hour later than normal.
Bus drivers begin their routes at 6:00 AM, so if we delay or cancel we make the decision by that time. Likewise, after a 2 hour delay, we make the decision to delay further or cancel by 8:00 AM.
In a school district as large as ours, road or weather conditions in one part of the county may be different than in another part. As has been our past practice, we will support parents who feel conditions in their location are not safe to send their student(s) to school. Absences in these situations are excused as long as the parent communicates with the school.
While not all risks in life can be eliminated, ultimately, the safety of our students and employees is the only thing on our minds as we make weather-related decisions.

Kindergarten will have a delayed start of 9:00 AM tomorrow, Sept. 10th, for the first day of school.

In accordance with the JSC eLearning plan, there is no eLearning when school is cancelled on the first day of a grading period. We will review options that may avoid the need to add a day at the end of the school year. Details on this will be announced.

Jay Schools are cancelled due to fog, September 9, 2020.

Due to the 2 hour delay, Kindergarten will have a 10:30 AM start time today. First and Second grade students will report at the normal 2 hour delay time, with the tardy bell ringing at 9:55 AM. We look forward to seeing you on our first day of school!

Jay Schools are on a 2 hour delay, September 9, 2020, due to fog.

We are extending the hours of our Transportation Office to 9:00 PM this evening for anyone needing assistance with bus information.
Please contact Director of Transportation, Melissa Stephen at 260-726-9605 until 6:00 PM then at 260-726-5272 between 6:00 PM and 9:00 PM this evening.
2020-2021 bus information is at the link below.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OzQlMkTweZ4jrGyygxbZnIyX3xG3s490/view?usp=sharing

We are thrilled to welcome your children back to East Elementary tomorrow. Here are a few reminders to help us with our first day:
Our tardy bell rings at 7:55 AM. First and second grade students will report on time. Kindergarten students will have a delayed start time of 9:00 AM.
One student mask will be given to each child. Masks are not required for students in grades K-2 but we would encourage their use during arrival/dismissal, transition times, etc. Your child can bring his/her own mask tomorrow as well. Masks will need to be cleaned at home.
Please send a water bottle labeled with your child’s name. They can refill it throughout the day, as needed. Public drinking fountains will be turned off in the building.
Please remember to have send your child’s chrome book and charger back to school tomorrow. They will need their device for technology class and other activities.
Arrival and Dismissal procedures take a little longer the first week or two of school. We greatly appreciate your patience and understanding, as safety is our number one priority. Please note that if you are picking up your child tomorrow, you should not arrive on campus until AFTER 2:40 to allow for buses to get in and out of our parking lot. This will be essential to making sure traffic can flow properly.
We look forward to seeing your children tomorrow!

For parents who may have missed it earlier, 2020-2021 transportation information is at the link below. For anyone needing assistance, please contact Director of Transportation, Melissa Stephen at 260-726-5272 or by email at mstephen@jayschools.k12.in.us
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OzQlMkTweZ4jrGyygxbZnIyX3xG3s490/view?usp=sharing

URGENT PARENT MESSAGE: We need your help! Our Transportation Department was unable to pull information properly from our student management system, at registration. They are relying on our SchoolPass Data. We need your child's dismissal information in our SchoolPass system by Tuesday September 8th at 2:00 PM. (SchoolPass is not just for car riders. We need ALL dismissal plans up-to-date in SchoolPass). Defaults (normal daily dismissal) must be updated on the website. https://jayschools.school-pass.net
Bus Information is located here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XRFYoGAzyZK45GBOCFNuLdiQzhlwsrRJ/view?usp=sharing You will need to locate your child’s bus, and put this information in SchoolPass. If your child is a walker or latchkey, this is listed under activity. Please complete Dismissal Plans, in SchoolPass, by September 8th at 2:00 PM. You cannot use the app, for defaults (your child's normal dismissal). The app is for CHANGES, after normal dismissal is scheduled. Once you have completed the updates on the website, download the NEW app: SchoolPass Parent. This is a BLUE app. If you are having difficulty, please see this troubleshooting page: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YkzaeH0kpiVnhNVDXH3DxDKsR5QJyF7Dpz0V_0HHqMc/edit?usp=sharing If you are NEW to East Elementary or East Jay, the Welcome Emails have now been sent by SchoolPass to set up your account. If you are having difficulty, put in your email and request a new password. If that does not work, please see the Troubleshooting page listed in the previous paragraph.
(Do not comment or send a message on Facebook regarding your child's dismissal plans. We cannot answer your questions, in this manner. If you are having difficulty, please see our troubleshooting document.)
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Ray Cooney, Editor and Publisher of The Commercial Review, interviewed Jay Schools Superintendent, Jeremy Gulley, Jay County Health Department Administrator, Heath Butz, and others, about the reopening of the schools.
https://youtu.be/7AVSB8XlO5E

This is a reminder for parents of kindergarten students:
The first student day, Sept. 9th, will be a delayed start. Kindergarten students should be dropped off at 9:00 am. Please feel free to park and walk your child up to the front door where staff will be waiting to greet you. You may also use the drop off car line if that is more convenient or if you prefer not to get out of your vehicle while dropping off you child. First and Second Grade students will start at the normal time on the first day of school. We look forward to seeing you all on Sept. 9th!

This is a reminder about the East Jay Elementary Orientation scheduled for August 24th and August 26th. Please click the link for detailed information.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FEDADHb6Qtu-lyUGcLe6xp_O1JS_uqivy8rgogWbXKE/edit?usp=sharing

Kindergarten Orientation will be held on Thursday, August 27th from 5:00-7:00 PM. Incoming kindergarten students and their parents are welcome to come meet the teacher, drop off school supplies and visit the classroom. We can't wait to see you there!

Click here for reopening information! https://tinyurl.com/yd4ru38r