Dear SDMA Families and Staff,

Happy Thanksgiving!  Despite some of the challenges the pandemic has continued to cause this school year, there is much to be thankful for in the School District of the Menomonie Area (SDMA). I am grateful for the wonderful learning opportunities that our children continue to receive in our schools each day. Thank you to all families, teachers, support staff, and community members who have worked so hard to provide our children with the best experiences possible.

While schools in the SDMA will be closed for Thanksgiving break, the school district will continue to monitor cases of COVID-19 for students and staff. The school nurses will be getting a much deserved break during the next few days, but we want to be as prepared as possible for when school resumes on Monday, November 29. Positive COVID-19 cases over the break for any SDMA students or staff should be reported to SDMA Student Health Assistant Sarah Hirsch at 715-279-7557.

Hopefully current trends related to the pandemic will improve similar to last year, but the district continues to plan for a number of possible scenarios. We plan to do everything we can to keep our schools open, but some of the more dire predictions include the possibility of a large spike in COVID-19 cases across the country after the Thanksgiving break. Despite the inaccurate way the media portrayed staffing shortages in the SDMA as the reason why classes were cancelled this week, not having school provided SDMA teachers and staff some much needed planning time to get ready for the rest of the semester. We expect that the Thanksgiving break will also allow the transportation company to recover a bit from the current shortage of bus drivers.

In planning ahead for the next several weeks, both the SDMA and Menomonie Transportation continue to have a need for more substitute teachers, drivers, and support staff members, especially if COVID-19 case counts continue to rise. Please contact HR Director Samantha Hoyt ([email protected]) or Tom Krueger (tom@menomonietransportation.com) if you would be interested in any employment opportunities to help our schools.

Best wishes for an enjoyable and healthy Thanksgiving.

Joe Zydowsky