Superintendent's Message: March 15, 2021
JP Schools Family,
Thank you for everything you are doing to push for the best for all our students. This past weekend marked one year that we have been educating through the pandemic, and I am proud of all that we have accomplished given unprecedented challenges. To keep everyone updated on some of the important initiatives we’re working on currently, I want to share a few updates.
Dr. James Gray
Vaccine Update
We are proud to have secured more than 2,200 COVID-19 vaccinations for our employees and hosted seven JPS exclusive vaccination events with three different healthcare partners. According to our data, more than 2,500 employees have had at least their first dose to date. We encourage all employees who still wish to be vaccinated to seek every opportunity to do so. See here for a list of participating vaccination sites.
Regular School End Times Resume March 29
As a reminder, regular school end times will resume Monday, March 29. Please note that March 26 is the last day for the additional 30 minutes that were added to the school day. The additional 30 minutes were added in order to make up for missed instructional time due to the multiple inclement weather events this year.
Parent Computer Workshops
We are committed to providing technology resources and support to our families. In partnership with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and United Way, JP Schools continues to offer free, in-person Parent Computer Skills Workshops in both English and Spanish throughout the month of March. Please click here for more information to share with families.
Encouraging Reading with Rocky the Rooster
Through our work with the Dawnbusters Kiwanis and our multiple community partners, we are excited to introduce Rocky the Rooster. Rocky will encourage our youngest learners to read through the Rewards for Reading program. In honor of the program, the School Board decided to make Rocky the official JP Schools mascot. We’ll soon be introducing and piloting Rocky the Rooster resources to some of our elementary schools. Thank you to all of our community partners who continue to support childhood literacy and reading programs.
School Choice Program Open Through March 19
The window for eighth grade families to participate in JP Schools’ Ninth Grade High School Choice program will close Friday, March 19 at 5 p.m. This is an opportunity for families to attend a school outside of their attendance zone. Students who wish to attend their attendance zone school need not apply. Participating high schools include Bonnabel Magnet Academy, Fisher Middle-High, Grace King, Helen Cox, Grand Isle, West Jefferson, East Jefferson and L.W. Higgins.
Pre-K Registration Open Now Through April 16
Registration for publicly-funded early childhood education for the 2021-22 school year, including pre-K at Jefferson Parish Schools, is open now through Friday, April 16. Early childhood education is essential to preparing students to enter kindergarten ready to learn and helps to close achievement gaps. We encourage all families with young children to apply through this link.