Year End Update – May 29, 2020

USEP Members,

Thank you, thank you, thank you for all you have done this year. What an amazing group of educators we have in Pasco County. We have transitioned from “real” to “virtual” in our classrooms and barely skipped a beat. Many of you had the technology expertise to make this happen smoothly, others had to work hard to learn this new teaching method. Many had to develop an online curriculum because eSchool had no comparative course. We adapted to being counselors, cheerleaders and psychologists to better help our students grow and deal with the distance learning system. We developed new-found relationships with family members in order to meet academic concerns and confusion.

We fed thousands and thousands of children through the school feeding program. This was accomplished by volunteers who put others first, and selflessly put their own health in potential peril to meet student needs.

Many of our SRP adapted to new roles to accomplish desired student achievement. Some were separated from the classroom and teacher they had worked with for most of the year, making things a little tougher to get done.

Parents, grandparents and guardians became the new first line of information to now home-bound students. All our teachers and SRP worked tirelessly to ease the strain on families as they, too, learned a new educational style.

Meanwhile, as restrictions have eased somewhat, we have begun using custodial and maintenance employees to clean and repair our worksites for whatever lies ahead. Kudos to all of you for the work being done to prepare for next year. Resource staff are now returning to buildings to complete year-end tasks.

All of you deserve recognition for powering through what could have been a complete shut-down for students. Many states did just that. Florida and Pasco County provided the best opportunity available for students to continue to grow in their educational experiences. Kudos to our District leaders for having a plan ready to put in place so quickly and to all of you for implementing that plan for our students benefit.

The District invited USEP to participate in 3 focus groups (SRP, elementary and secondary) to discuss the positives and concerns for the opening of schools next year. Please understand that at this time, the expectation is we will start the year on the current calendar schedule at all our schools. This, of course, is dependent upon federal, state, CDC and DOE guidelines. We have already come a long way these past months and no one can predict what will happen throughout the summer. Know that USEP will be involved in discussions with the District as we move forward and will continue to communicate with our members throughout the summer.

Thank you again for finishing strong this year! Have an enjoyable but safe summer knowing that USEP will be advocating for you as we move forward to next year.

In Solidarity,

Don Peace, USEP President