Updates as of March 18, 2020
| Dear Students and Families of Unity,
Our full staff and faculty were back in action today as we prepare to launch remote learning at Unity. While it felt different to be engaging with each other 100% virtually, it was comforting and inspirational to reconnect with our dedicated team, roll up our sleeves, and wholeheartedly prepare to engage your child in their learning in a new way. I anticipate the same comfort and inspiration during the first days of remote learning, when we resume our important work alongside you in providing an excellent education to your child. We thank our families who picked up materials at our middle school or high school today. We look forward to disseminating materials to more families tomorrow. See the important updates below. In addition to a number of reminders from prior Scoop editions, an update of note concerns student and family orientation. It is critical that all of our families are fully prepared and equipped to engage in remote school work in the coming days. Participating in a one-on-one remote orientation by phone will accomplish this. Details for how orientations will work are included below. As a reminder, The Daily Scoop will also be posted on our homepage at unityprep.org. If you have questions, concerns, and/or ideas in response to any update, don’t hesitate to respond to this note by email. A Unity staff member will then be in touch at their earliest convenience. Thank you to those who offered responses to updates yesterday.
Updates as of March 18, 2020 1. Pick-up of Materials to Engage in Remote Learning on Wednesday and Thursday: Thank you to our families who picked up materials today. See the time slots for picking up materials tomorrow below:
2. Remote Orientation Sessions for Students and Families: See the details below for these important meetings.
3. Checkout Hard Copies of Books from Unity Middle School’s Library Tomorrow, March 19th, from 12pm to 3pm – Open to Unity High School Students Too: Details about how to support reading at home (including creating a Brooklyn Public Library account and accessing e-books) will be forthcoming. Until then, the last chance for students to checkout hard copies of books from the Unity library (until further notice) will be tomorrow, March 19th, from 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM by appointment only. Contact Ms. Conner at lconner@unityprep.org to schedule an appointment.
4. Reminder – Supplemental Resources to Continue Your Child’s Learning at Home: Between now and the launch of remoting learning, we encourage you to support your child at home in keeping their academic skills fresh. The NYCDOE’s Learn at Home site provides learning resources to students to complete while they are receiving instruction. It is important that students continue to read, write, complete social studies and science activities, and work on math problems. The materials are organized by grade level and include the following:
5. Reminder – Extension of Remote Learning through April 20th: Unity will extend its suspension of all onsite educational programming, including extra-curricular events, through April 20th. This timeline and plan aligns with the NYC Department of Education’s plan, as announced yesterday for all of its schools. Students will not report to our middle and high school sites for instruction during this time.
6. Reminder – Free Internet at Home: Charter will offer free Spectrum broadband and Wi-Fi access for 60 days to households with K-12 and/or college students who do not already have a Spectrum broadband subscription and at any service level up to 100 Mbps. Internet access at home will be critical for students to complete their remote learning assignments To enroll, call 1-844-488-8395. Installation fees will be waived for new student households.
7. Reminder – Breakfast and Lunch Grab-and-Go Meals are available at all NYCDOE Public Schools: Unity students may go to any NYCDOE school building (including PS44) between 7:30am – 1:30pm today and until further notice to pick up a bagged breakfast and bagged lunch for free. Meals will be in the lobby or cafeteria of each building.
8. Reminder – Mental Health Counseling and Social Work Services Available to Unity Students who Receive Counseling: If your child receives counseling, you will hear from their counselor in the coming days to coordinate services and identify needs. If your child or family member is experiencing a mental health crisis, NYC Well is available 24 hours a day and can be accessed by phone (1888-NYC-WELL) or text (text WELL to 65173) or by internet chat via their website: https://nycwell.cityofnewyork.us/en/ Please reach out to Ms. Del Purgatorio via phone or text (347-688-9107) or email (tdelpurgatorio@unityprep.org) if you have any questions about continuation of counseling services or are concerned about your child’s mental health. Unity social workers can also be of assistance in providing information regarding social services (for example: housing, access to food, access to community mental health services, referrals to mental health providers, crisis intervention, etc.).
9. Updated – We encourage families to check NYSDOH’s website and the CDC’s website regularly for updates: Here are the last recommendations as posted on the NYCDOE’s website as of March 17th, include the following:
Precautions:
If You Feel Sick:
For More Information:
In unity, Josh Beauregard Head of School / Co-founder |