CIBOLA COUNTY, N.M. – The Grants/Cibola County School District began the hybrid 50-percent instructional program on Monday. Parents and families continue to have the option to keep their student at home and continue to receive virtual instruction and/or work packets, according to district officials. Option B is 50 percent instruction in the classroom and the remainder of the time utilizing distance-learning. This phase of the re-entry plan applies to Pre-K through sixth grade students and will continue until the end of this semester.
The five-member school board held lengthy discussions at the Oct. 6 session that focused on positive and negative results of online instruction. The disadvantages include: low academic achievement, gaps in mastering grade-appropriate academic skills, lack of socialization opportunities along with concerns about students’ feelings of anxiety and depression, some home settings lack adequate adult supervision, and distancelearning is not the most effective instructional mode.
Challenges posed by Option B include the higher risks of exposure to the coronavirus with the potential for spreading COVID-19, the complexity of teaching strategies and classroom management along with maintaining proper social distancing plus ensuring that maintenance, transportation and food services infrastructures are prepared for the new format along with problems some families will face in accessing childcare.
Policy Advisory 209
Dwayne Toivanen, director of personnel, presented the first reading of Policy Advisory 209, which involves eligibility considering remote instruction and includes dealing with extracurricular eligibility; this proposed policy is a result of the Attendance for Success Act. Minor revisions included that a student must have a 2.0 on a 4.0 grade scale to be eligible for participation in extracurricular activities; attendance standards include not being absent for more than 15 days per semester; this does not apply to students with level C or D of Special Education Services.
Early College High School
The district offers students the option of earning a high school diploma along with acquiring a college associate degree. The five staff members acknowledged that current enrollment includes 14 freshmen along with 25 high school sophomores who have attained college freshmen status this year.
The facility is housed in McClure Hall, New Mexico State University-Grants campus, and ECHS is a collaborative initiative between G/CCSD and NMSU-Grants.
Curriculum options include associate degrees in Automotive Technology, Welding Technology, Computer Technology, Early Childhood Education, Education, Science with a Health Careers Certificate along with a Nurse Assistant Certificate, Engineering, Visual Arts, Criminal Justice, and Social Work. Enrollment at ECHS is available, by application, to all incoming ninth-grade student in the district. Special consideration is offered to families of “First Generation” college hopefuls, according to staff members.
Freshmen curriculum includes Pre-Advanced Placement courses, accelerated curriculum delivery, along with life, college, and career readiness. Second year students begin “Dual-Credit” enrollment and students identify career pathways. Third- and fourth-year students select college and high school courses that meet high school diploma and college associate degree requirements.
NMSU-G, the ECHS exclusive higher education partner, offers college-level courses and degree programs, at no cost to ECHS students. NMSU-G teams with G/CCSD in providing students and their families with academic counseling and provides advisors to guide coursework choices explained ECHS staff members.
Upcoming meetings
The G/CCSD board meets the first and third Tuesday of each month at 5:30 p.m. Agendas are posted on the district website under the Board of Education tab.
(The G/CCSD board met last night for their regularly scheduled meeting.)
Visit gccs.k12.nm.us or call 505-285-2603 for more information.