THE NEWSPAPER THAT SERVES ALL DECATUR COUNTY
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USPS 310-140
LEON, IOWA 50144, WEDNESDAY, JULY 1, 2020
P.O. Box 580, 111 NW. 2nd, Leon, IA 50144 E-mail: JRNEWS@GRM.NET
R2L Plan in the Works for CD Students
VOLUME 91 - NUMBER 22 If an X appears here your subscription expires
3 Different Models Looked At by Superitendent Chris Coffelt A Central Decatur Community School District Task Force consisting of 23 staff members was assembled and met during the month of June with the goal of developing a Return to Learn (R2L) plan to submit to the Iowa Department of Education by July 1. The R2L Task Force identified five significant considerations as a result of this work, including: ● Central Decatur intends to begin school on August 26 with students and staff in person - even if the structure and the schedule may look different at the start of or at different times throughout the school year. ● Central Decatur believes there will be a need to provide online and differently structured learning options and resources for individual students that may not be able to be on campus due to health concerns. ● Central Decatur
will develop learning options and resources for all students and staff should we not be able to learn in person and on campus as a result of increasing COVID-19 cases in the community. ● Central Decatur will share an actionable plan with specific details for returning to learn in late July/ early August when the District can evaluate current conditions and make decisions that best serve the needs of students, families and staff at that time. ● Education has never experienced an event like this in modern history. For any plan to be successful, students, families, staff, and the community will need to work together and be willing to accept that what we do moving forward will be different than what we have always done. As the District R2L Task Force met in June, the group ultimately determined it was critical to create a plan that allowed for
Petty to Fill School Board Vacancy With the resignation of Jane Chaillie from the school board due to the family moving from the district, the Central Decatur School Board had the task of filling her position. It was decided by the board to appoint a person to fill the remainder of Chaillie’s term. Two individuals
came forward to the board showing interest in fulfilling the term. During the course of the regular school meeting on June 17, Shaun Schaff who was a previous board member and Jolene Petty were present to introduce themselves to the board and each highlighted their interest in serving. According to the board minutes, af-
Parade and Fireworks in Lamoni Saturday
ing, and no items being thrown out to spectators. At sunset that evening, around 9:00 p.m., a fireworks display will be held at North Park by the Lamoni Fire Department. The public is encouraged to watch the fireworks from their home or around town. This year the annual Freedom Run will be held virtually July 3-5. There will be no fees. Run a 5K or 10K and share pictures and time on the Facebook page: Virtual Lamoni 4th of July Freedom Run. The events are presented by the Lamoni Area Chamber of Commerce. In addition, an Awareness Foundraiser
Lamoni is planning several activities to help celebrate the 4th of July. A parade will be held at 1:00 p.m. on the 4th. This year, the route has been extended in hopes of allowing for six foot social distancing by the spectators. The lineup will start at the Sale Barn parking lot and the parade will end in the Community of Christ parking lot. The following guidelines will be adhered to: no registration, judging, announc-
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Central Decatur Schools are planning on resuming school August 26 with students and staff in person. However, with the effects of the COVID19 Pandemic, the learning environment may not exactly look like the above photo as it has in the past. A specific plan will be announced later on this month or around the first of August. (file photo)
continuous learning to ensure all students could actively engage in meaningful learning, regardless of what the health climate was and ensure the District could transition seamlessly from one model of learning to another as circumstances may dictate. As such, the
District R2L Task Force identified three learning models, including: ● On Site - Learning in person on campus ● Remote - Learning online from home ● Hybrid - A combination of the two models that would include learning in person and
ter consideration, the board appointed Petty to fill the vacancy as Director for the AtLarge seat until the next school election in November 2021. The vote by the board was as follows: Cayle Buckingham, Amber Swartz and Andrew Sullivan for Petty and Cassy Allen for Schaff. Petty was administered the Oath of Office. Also during the course of the meeting,
Celebrate the 4th in Leon Saturday
(continued on page 3) for Lamoni Fairground improvements will be held from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the Lamoni Community Center Parking Lot. You can drive up for a free hamburger and bottled water and get more information about planned improvements. The Lamoni Fair and Horse Show, Inc., Graceland University Rodeo and Lamoni Community are joining forces for the rundraiser event. Needed upgrades to the grounds include: new stall barn with removeable stalls, upgraded utilities, new wash rack, new bathrooms with showers, new paint for existing buildings and arena.
online. Seven areas of critical consideration were also identified as the District R2L Task Force developed each of the learning models. These critical considerations, along with distinguishing elements, include: ● Leadership
The annual Leon 4th of July parade will be held Saturday, July 4 beginning 4:00 p.m. Leon Chamber has chosen this year’s theme as "United We Stand" and the parade route will be altered, "taking the parade to the people". The Main Parade (except horses and kids) will begin at the CD High School and go west along 14th Street towards the Hospital. Then, the parade will turn south on Highway 69 and horses may join at this point. The Children’s parade will join in as the parade turns east on 5th Street by Helton Law office, taking the lead. The parade will then turn south on Main Street with the children ending at 1st Street near the Elephant. The main parade will continue along South Main Street ending at the swimming pool. Registration begins at 2:00 p.m., followed by judging at 3:00 p.m. before the parade gets underway at 4:00 p.m. Lineup will be at the high school student parking lot. Horses will be asked to line up at the fairgrounds and the kids parade will line up at Helton Law Office. Guidelines include: must register (the day of) to be eligible; candy must be individually wrapped and if thrown, the candy must be thrown into the crowd, not on the street. Also, candy throwers must wear mask and gloves. Entry numbers must be placed on the right side in plain sight and passengers should be in or on the float, not hanging out or off the sides. See ad on page 10 for Categories and Prizes.
Governor Reports 94% of COVID Tests are Negative
In the month of June, Governor Kim Reynolds reported 117,000 COVID tests have been completed, stressing how 94% of them have been negative. Governor Kim Reynolds reported last Size of the Stock Must have been Enormous week that Iowa's Public Health Distaster Emergency Proclamation has been extended for an additional 30 days from June 25. Effective July 1, Governor Reynolds stated that all team school athletic activities can resume. Governor Reynolds was proud to announce the goal of 3,000 tests per day was shattered last week, recording 3,790 tests on Monday, June 22, 3,597 Tuesday and 3,586 on Wednesday. In addition, the There’s always something to do on the farm, especially during the lazy, positivity rate was rehazy, crazy days of summer. While looking on Pinterest, Maggie Lindsey ported for the first came across a repurposing idea for an unused propane tank. So the old time to be under 10% tank on the Lindsey farm became a colorful ear of corn with a ladybug as at 9.9% on Tuesday a friend. Maggie and daughter Breegan completed the project this past and 9.8% on Thursday. In addition, the overall weekend.
positive rate for June is 5.6%. As Iowa continues to re-open and the first day of school is approaching, Governor Reynolds acknowledges the fear of the unknowns. She re-iterated how, there is also a cost in locking everyone down, .... domestic and child abuse cases are going up, there is an increase in mental illnesses, and more and more Iowans are experiencing food insecurities. She also highlighted how as of June 1, the highest positivity cases have been in the 18-40 age group with 55%. The other groups are ages 41-60 with 25%,ages 61-80 with 10% and over 80 is 2%. Governor continues to stress for Iowans to be responsible and safe. During the Live News Conference, State Epidemiologist Dr. Caitlyn Pedati spoke on the value of the local public health offices stressing how
● Develop and implement a plan that meets the District mission and goals, regardless of learning model. ● Ensure communication with staff, students, families and the community while implementing the plan in August and throughout the school year. ● Infrastructure ● Evaluate the capacity and needs of departments (Transportation, Nutrition, Athletics/Activities) to support students and families in each of the learning models. ● Ensure coordination among the various departments, buildings and groups as students, staff and families transitioned through phases of continuous learning. ● Academics and Data ● Develop plans to ensure students and (continued on page 10) important they are. Dr. Pedati commented how the local Public Health offices are helping manage COVID, translate the information to Iowans as well as the state department and when needed for the case investigations are the people who are contacting the circle of close contacts to help stop the trasmission chain.
0 Active Cases in County As of Monday June 29, The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) and Decatur County Public Health reported having identified 10 total confirmed cases in Decatur County (same as a week ago). All 10 have fully recovered and are no longer in isolation. As things begin to open: Iowans are still asked to continue to practice social distancing as the virus is still spreading as people gather.
4th of July Family Fun in Leon
*4th of July annual Parade at 4:00 p.m., sponsored by Leon Chamber (NOTE different route) *July 4th at dusk, Fireworks Display provided by the Leon Rodeo Committee *Leon Country Club hosting a Glow Golf tournament July 4 *July 5, "Little River Full Moon Float," on the Little River Lake, beginning at 8:00 p.m., sponsored by the Little River Conservation crew.