By Matt Clevenger
For Miami Valley Today
CASSTOWN — Miami East Local Schools will offer student lunches for pick-up or delivery throughout the state-mandated school closing.
Bagged lunches will be available for pick-up through April 3 at the following locations:
Miami East K-8 (11 a.m. to noon in the back parking lot)
Miami East High School (11am-noon in the back parking lot)
Casstown Gazebo (11:30 a.m. to noon in the church parking lot)
Fletcher Methodist Church (11:30 a.m. to noon in the church parking lot)
The district is also making arrangements to deliver lunches using school vans and a bus, if needed. To set up a provided bagged lunch, parents and/or students can contact the school office at (937) 335-7505, Ext. 1124, or via email at [email protected] Those seeking delivery should be prepared to provide name, address and the number of meals needed. Calling is not required to pick-up a lunch at one of the four designated locations.
Miami East board of education members announced the lunch plan during their regularly scheduled meeting on Monday, March 16. “It’s something we’ve really never tried before on this kind of scale,” district superintendent Dr. Todd Rappold said. “It will be bagged lunches to begin with.”
“We’re going to run lunches up to Casstown and Fletcher,” he said. “We’re going to reach out to parents. If none of the four locations work for them, if they give us an address we’re going to work beginning on Thursday to get the lunches out directly to their homes.”
The lunches will be prepared by staff members, cooks, bus drivers and aides.
“They’re excited about coming in and working on the lunches, and getting them out to the kids,” Dr. Rappold said.
Board members also discussed the district’s E-Day calendar for the shutdown, which is available online at the district’s website. All athletic practices and contests are currently postponed; the high school spring musical has been tentatively rescheduled for April 24-25. Field trips, OMEA band/choir performance and the after-prom quarter auction have all been cancelled; junior high parent teacher conferences have been postponed.
“Over the last few days, we have seen some real innovative lessons,” Dr. Rappold said. “It has been an opportunity for us to try some different kinds of lessons. Next year, if we do some E-Days they’re going to try some different types of engaging lessons that we’ve never tried before.”
“We’re going to allow staff to come in on Fridays,” he said. “For a staff that’s here 365 days a year, it’s tough for me to tell them they can’t be here, but we’re trying to do the right thing.”
“We think we’ve covered everything, but every single day has been a new challenge,” Dr. Rappold said. “Staff has been very good just being flexible, and understanding that some things are just completely out of our control.”
“Everybody will just have to be flexible,” he said. “I have no concern whatsoever with our seniors doing their work and awarding credit during this time that they’re out. The graduation date may be changed. We’ll make sure that our seniors get all of those activities, it will just be at a different time.”
In other business, board members went on to approve a policy for inter district open enrollment during the 2020-2021 school year. The board approved open enrollment for students in districts that border Miami East; applications will be available in April and May only. Grad level enrollment numbers will prohibit new open enrollment requests that have not been submitted/approved during the 2018-2019 school year.
Board members also approved the employment of Lori Smith as high school head custodian, and voted to accept a letter of retirement from K-8 head custodian Robert Chance.
Board members also announced that Miami East common scholarship applications are now available. The deadline for applications is March 31; an electronic version of the application can be found on the high school’s main web page.
The board of education tour scheduled for Tuesday, March 24 has been postponed. Board members’ next regular meeting will be held at 7 p.m. April 20 at Miami East High School.
