Warren County schools shut down until April 14; free meals available

Warren County Public Schools (WCPS) Interim Superintendent Melody Sheppard announced that schools will be shut down until April 14 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Families will receive a letter dated March 18 notifying them of the extended closure.

“The situation with COVID-19 is dynamic and changing rapidly. Over the past several days, the continued spread of COVID-19 has resulted in additional steps being taken to limit the spread of the virus. In order to continue the effort to protect our community, we are extending our school closure through Monday, April 13, 2020. We are hopeful that students will return to school on Tuesday, April 14, 2020,” according to a copy of Sheppard’s letter emailed to the Royal Examiner on Wednesday night.

Melody Sheppard revealed the planned closure extension during the Warren County School Board’s work session portion of its Wednesday, March 18 regular meeting.

“The latest news is that the governor is going to issue additional school closures. We have talked with our neighboring counties and we know what they’re going to do. Our recommendation is going to be that we close schools through April 14,” Sheppard told board members.

Sheppard told the Royal Examiner that she “made the recommendation to the School Board; the School Board does not have to vote to close schools as that is a superintendent’s responsibility.”

Sheppard also said that WCPS wanted to give families a heads-up as soon as possible, a move commended by School Board Vice Chairwoman Catherine Bower, who said it was a good idea so that families can proactively make childcare arrangements.

“We understand that it is a hardship on parents as far as finding care for their children, but we think it’s in our best interest and in the families’ best interest to try and … keep our students and our staff safe,” Sheppard said during the work session.

Closing Warren County Public Schools until April 14 means “that … we have missed 14 days of school due to the coronavirus,” said Sheppard.

But WCPS has four built-in weather days, she added, “so that means we actually would miss 10 days, which we could use bank time to cover those days,” meaning that the school district wouldn’t have to make up those missed days at the end of the official school year.

But for any amount of days missed after April 14, Sheppard said the School Board would have to consider how to make up those lost days.

In other coronavirus-related news, Sheppard said all WCPS staff aged 65 and older have been asked to work from home starting on March 19 as they are in a higher-risk group for contracting the coronavirus disease. And the information will be forthcoming about Comcast providing WCPS students with free WiFi for 60 days, she said.

“Today we had 145 students. I expect there will be more again tomorrow,” WCPS Food Service Coordinator SueAnn Fox told the School Board members on Wednesday.

Additionally, during the School Board’s regular meeting, WCPS Food Service Coordinator SueAnn Fox told School Board members that the school system this week started making free breakfasts and lunches available to students during the statewide school shutdown.

Phase 1 of the plan thus far has been “very successful,” Fox said, with 61 students receiving free meals on the first day.

Currently, free meals for children 18 years of age or younger are being handed out in the drive-through area next to the cafeteria at E.W. Morrison Elementary School. Walk-up service is also available. Children must be present to receive the meals, Fox said.

Both breakfast and lunch are provided per visit Monday through Friday to each child present from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. A breakfast consists of a breakfast entrée, a juice, and a fruit; lunch consists of a sandwich, fruit, juice, vegetable, and bottle of water.

“To lessen the burden, we’re including both meals so that people don’t have to come twice,” Fox explained.

“The meals are planned to avoid most known allergies we are aware our students have, should a child receiving meals have an allergy, please let the person providing your meals know and we will provide you an alternate item,” according to the WCPS website.

Phase 2 of the free meals plan, which begins on Tuesday, March 24, will add six additional sites, including Ressie Jeffries Elementary School, Royal Arms Apartments, Skyline Vista Apartments, and the Front Royal Church of the Nazarene, among others.

“More information regarding the satellite locations will be posted on the Warren County Public Schools website and through phone calls home. If you have questions regarding the meal program or for location information, please call (540) 631-0040,” according to Sheppard’s letter.

Fox told School Board members that if the meals program is extended, the plan is to add another phase in which WCPS travels to locations outside of the County and delivers two-days-worth of free meals so people don’t have to drive to any locations.

The WCPS food service department is working now with the transportation division on how to help those who may have even greater difficulty accessing these free meals, she said.

“You and your staff have done a tremendous job putting this together,” School Board Chairman Arnold Williams, Jr. told Fox. “I know it’s all new to everybody. Thank you for feeding our children.”

Fox said the staff really has gone above and beyond. And the community also has been so gracious in helping to spread the word. “We really appreciate it,” she said.

In responding to a question from School Board member James Wells, Fox said WCPS also hopes to deliver backpacks on Fridays and is now coordinating with local churches. The backpacks would continue to be handed out at E.W. Morrison Elementary School. “We just haven’t heard if that’s a definite yet because It’s going to be significantly more than what they currently do,” said Fox.

In action during the School Board’s regular meeting, members Williams, Wells, Bower, Kristen Pence, and Ralph Rinaldi voted unanimously to:

• Appoint Rinaldi to a two-year term as the Warren County School Board representative on the Fauquier-Rappahannock-Warren Regional Special Education Program Board for calendar years 2020 and 2021;

• Authorize the superintendent to request from the Warren County Board of Supervisors that the fiscal year 2020 operating budget appropriation be increased by $534,370 to purchase replacement reading textbooks for kindergarten through fifth grade;

• Approve the change order guidelines for the A.S. Rhodes Elementary School renovation project to be established at $25,000 or less requires the superintendent’s approval; change orders in the amount of $25,000 to $50,000 require both the superintendent’s approval and the School Board chairman’s approval, and change orders $50,000 or more require full School Board approval; and

• Permit the interim superintendent to sign Change Order Number 001 in the amount of $719,800 to authorize Lantz Construction Company of Winchester Inc. to purchase and install HVAC units at A.S. Rhodes Elementary School.

The Warren County School Board’s next regular meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, April 1.

Watch on this exclusive Royal Examiner video: