Paoli Community School Corporation

Hello Ram Families, this is Superintendent Greg Walker with a Friday update. As you probably have heard, the number of Covid-19 cases and large number of quarantine students at Paoli Jr/Sr High School has forced me to make the decision to switch from in-person to virtual learning next week, August 23 -27. We currently have 25 active positive students at PHS and 265 students in quarantine, which is 44% of our student body. We are starting to see cases at Throop Elementary with 6 active positive students and 103 students in quarantine. We are hopeful that by separating the students for a week we can slow the spread at PHS and mitigate the spread at Throop. ECA activities and practices will continue as normal at this time. Grab-and-Go lunches will be available to students between 10:00 am and 1:00 pm daily in the cafeteria of each school. We will assess things next Friday and hopefully return to in-person instruction on Monday, August 30th. This is not the way we had envisioned the school year starting, but it is the hand we have been dealt and we will continue to move forward. I apologize for any inconvenience this causes and appreciate everyone’s support as we work our way through this issue I also want to address some false information that was posted on social media yesterday that the school was not following the directions from Dr. Lopez and the health department. This is ABSOLUTELY FALSE. After speaking with Dr. Lopez last evening, he assured me that he had not relayed anything even close to that to anyone. Have a great weekend, God Bless, and Go Rams!

Hello Ram Families! This is Superintendent Greg Walker with a Friday update. This has been a challenging week for our students, staff, and families as positive Covid cases led to many having to quarantine. Our junior high was hit especially hard. Trust me when I say the last thing we want to do is to send kids home from school. However, we are bound to follow Indiana Communicable Disease laws which state “Asymptomatic individuals, unless fully vaccinated or recovered from a COVID-19 infection within the last 90 days, who are identified as a close contact of a COVID-19 case shall quarantine, including exclusion from schools, preschools, daycare settings, employment, and public places.” . You can assist us by keeping your child home from school if they are displaying ANY symptoms of Covid-19. If you have questions you may contact the school nurse. Please understand that we are behind on cleaning up unexcused absences and are working diligently to get caught up. Thank you for your patience and understanding. Have a great weekend and GO RAMS!

Good day Ram Families, this is Transportation Director Darek Newkirk with a transportation update. Today Friday, August 13, 2021, we will have two bus routes running a delayed schedule. Bus P1 will start its route between 3:50-3:55. Bus P22 will start its route between 3:55-4:00. We apologize for any inconveniences that this may cause. Thank you and GO RAMS

Hello Ram Families, this is Superintendent Greg Walker with a Covid update. With the current increase in Covid cases in the county, Dr. Lopez, our county health doctor, is strongly recommending that students and staff wear masks during the school day. Employees, parents, and students still can make the personal choice to not wear them, but they are strongly recommended to help curb the spread of Covid. As with last year, this is a very fluid situation and can change at a moment's notice. I will keep you informed as we move forward. Thank you, God Bless, and go Rams.

A message from Superintendent Greg Walker on Monday, August 2, 2021

Hello Ram Families! This is Superintendent Greg Walker with a Covid-19 update. While we have had a lot of Throop students in quarantine this week due to contact tracing, we have had no new Covid cases among students in attendance. Thanks to everyone for adhering to the quarantine guidelines. Due to the number of students in quarantine, our number of students absent at Throop has been high. However the good news is the attendance rate has improved slightly each day and we will be welcoming those quarantine students back next week. Thanks to everyone for your patience and understanding as we attempt to safely complete what has been a challenging school year for all stakeholders. As we head into the last 10 days of school, I would like to wish all the mom’s a very Happy Mother’s Day. Thank you, God Bless, and Go Rams!

Hello Ram Families! This is Superintendent Greg Walker with an update. We will be welcoming Throop Elementary students back to school tomorrow. In order for us to stay in-person for the final 14 days of school, we need everyone to help. If your student is displaying any Covid-19 symptoms or has been in contact with someone who has tested positive or displayed Covid-19 symptoms, please do not send them to school and contact the school office. The same goes for staff members. We all agree that our kids need to be in school and by following these guidelines we can ensure they can do that safely. Thank you and Go Rams!

Hello Ram Families, this is Superintendent Greg Walker with an important message. We currently have 9 positive COVID-19 cases at Throop Elementary, 3 staff members and 6 students.. After consulting with our county health officials, I have made the decision that Throop Elementary students will do E-Learning tomorrow, Friday, April 30th and Monday, May 3rd. This will allow our custodial staff an opportunity to deep clean the building and the students to be apart. The plan is for Throop students to return on Tuesday and grades 3 through 6 to resume state testing. This decision does not affect Paoli Jr.-Sr. High School students, they will continue to come to school both days. Thank you and Go Rams.

Hello Ram Families! This is Superintendent Greg Walker with a Covid-19 update. We have had a staff member and a student test positive for Covid-19 in the past few days. Through contact tracing, an additional 4 staff members and approximately 22 students have had to self-quarantine. As we enter these last four weeks of school, it is important to continue to follow safety protocols to ensure a smooth finish to the year. Students and staff who are experiencing any Covid-19 symptoms should stay home and contact their health provider. Thanks to everyone for their assistance in completing what has been a very challenging year for all involved. God Bless and Go Rams!

Hello Ram families! This is superintendent Greg Walker with a brief weekly update. We had our best Covid related week at school that we have had in a long time. The county numbers have improved drastically and are back to the numbers we had in mid-November. The school numbers reflect that trend as well. So keep up the good work and keep practicing the Covid safety protocols. Go Rams!

A Message from Superintendent Greg Walker: Hello Ram Families! This is Superintendent Greg Walker. Due to county road conditions, Paoli Community Schools will be closed today, Monday, February 1st. This will be a traditional snow day and will be made up on one of our built in snow days in April. Thank you and stay safe.

A message from Superintendent Greg Walker: Greetings Ram Families! This is Superintendent Greg Walker with the school schedule for this week. After reviewing all the information available, I have decided on the following schedule: Tuesday, January 19th and Wednesday, January 20th, Paoli schools will be 100% virtual and follow the same procedures that were used prior to Christmas break. Thursday, January 21st and Friday, January 22nd, Paoli schools will transition to our Hybrid model with Thursday being a Purple day and Friday being a Gold day. Bus routes will run on Tuesday and Wednesday to deliver food. We will use the same list we had before Christmas break. If you were not on that list and would like to be, please call your school office to be added. Food will be available for pickup at school on Thursday and Friday for students on the day that they are not at school. Again, contact your school if you wish to take advantage of this opportunity. Our county positivity numbers really improved over the weekend and let’s hope that trend continues and we can return to in-person instruction next week. That decision will be made on Friday. Thank you for understanding as we try to navigate through this pandemic. God Bless and Go Rams!

A Message from Superintendent Greg Walker After reviewing many factors, the schedule for Paoli schools for the week of January 19 - 22 will be as follows: Tuesday, January 19 - Virtual Wednesday, January 20 - Virtual Thursday, January 21 - Hybrid (Purple Day) Friday, January 22 - Hybrid (Gold Day)

Hello Ram Families! This is Superintendent Greg Walker with my weekly update. The good news is our county positivity rate has steadily dropped this week from 19.5 on Monday to 15.3 today. Let's hope that trend continues. We have had some staff members at Throop test positive this week and others who are self quarantined. This may affect how we have school next week. I will continue to monitor over the weekend and will make a decision on Monday morning as to whether we will be in-person, hybrid, or virtual next week.. I just want to make sure you are prepared either way. A reminder that school will not be in session on Monday due to a scheduled professional development day. Please continue to stay safe and Go Rams!

Information about the Hybrid Model is located under our "Students & Parents" tab on the Corporation website. This specific document is designed for elementary students, but the high school will follow similar guidelines. For more information please contact your student's school. Throop Office: (812) 723-3537 High School Office: (812) 723-3905

Hello Ram families! This is Superintendent Greg Walker with a mid-week update. This message is to inform you that last night the School Board approved the use of our Hybrid school attendance model this Thursday and Friday. Your child’s school will inform you as to which day they are to attend. We will return to in-person instruction next Tuesday, January 19. This will provide us an opportunity to troubleshoot our Hybrid model for any unforeseen issues and correct them in the event we need to use the Hybrid model in the future. Reminder there will be no school on Monday, January 18 as that is a scheduled day off for teacher professional development. Please continue to be safe and Go Rams!

Last night the School Board approved our school to use our Hybrid Model on Thursday, January 14, and Friday, January 15, this week to allow us to troubleshoot any unforeseen issues we may have. We will return to full in-person instruction next week. Please refer to your student's Harmony account to find out how this impacts their virtual and in-person instruction. If you have questions please contact your student's teacher or the school directly.

Hello Ram families, this is Superintendent Greg Walker with a Covid-19 and school update. It was great to welcome our students back this week and I think it is good for them to get back into a routine. I saw a lot of smiling faces and positive things going on this week. We do have several students out due to quarantine from exposure to Covid-19 during the holiday break. Fortunately these numbers are not near what they were back in November when we had over 110 students out and needed to switch to virtual. We also have a handful of staff out that are positive from out of school exposure, but also fortunately not at the level we were in December when we had to switch to virtual due to staffing issues. We did send 12 students home on Wednesday due to contact tracing. While our county returned to the RED category, the recommendation from health officials is to continue in-person instruction, so we will continue on that path. Please continue to keep your child home if they are symptomatic and follow those safety precautions. God Bless and Go Rams.

Hello Ram Families! This is Superintendent Greg Walker with a return to school update. Following the recommendation of county health officials, Paoli Community Schools will return to in-person instruction tomorrow, Monday, January 4th. We are looking forward to seeing our students back in school as we begin the second semester. As our county continues to be in the RED category, we need everyone to continue to follow Covid-19 safety guidelines. Anyone displaying symptoms should stay home and consult with their family doctor and/or the school nurse. It is going to take all of us working together to ensure that our students can experience the in-person instruction that they need and participate in extracurricular activities. Please continue to wear masks when in public, practice social distancing, and wash your hands. Happy New Year, God Bless, and Go Rams!

Hello Ram families, this is Superintendent Greg Walker. COVID has not been good to us this week. By the end of the day we had over 100 students out due to contact tracing. After consulting with Dr. Lopez, I have made the decision to switch to Virtual E-Learning on Monday, November 16th. School will be in session tomorrow (Friday, November 13th) to allow students and staff a day to prepare. We plan to return to in-person instruction on Monday, November 30th. All athletic practices and contests will continue as scheduled at this time. Mr. Newkirk will provide updates on Rocky Ram, the school website, and on our Facebook page. I will announce our food service plan tomorrow. As positive cases spike and we continue to set daily records of new positives in the state, I urge everyone to follow safety protocols so we can slow down this virus and our kids can return to school. Wear face masks when in public and when you can’t social distance. It will take everyone working together to slow down the spread of this virus. I would like to wish everyone an early Happy Thanksgiving. Stay safe and God Bless!