River Bend School Closing Update 4-18-20
Dear River Bend Families,
I hope this message finds you and your families safe and well. yesterday, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker announced that remote learning in Illinois will be extended through the end of the 2019-20 school year.
Although in-person learning has been suspended for the remainder of the year, at River Bend, I assure you our entire staff remains committed to learning and engaging with all students through remote learning, as well as continuing with our food distribution program.
It took me a little time today, to get this message together because I was mourning the loss of our year and all that it means for seniors and our families. This is not the way anyone of us expected the year to end. However, I thought about last night’s 2020 Light the Night and seeing our students and families out supporting each other and was rejuvenated and ready to take on our quarantine head-on with true STEAMER STRENGTH.
So many of you have worked so hard to learn and grow in both the classroom and in extracurricular activities that yesterday’s announcement may feel like a step back. However, the final chapter of this school year hasn’t been written yet. These past few weeks have proven our STEAMER community is more resilient, more capable and more compassionate than maybe what we previously realized. I’m confident our collective strength will shine through during the remainder of the school year, and we will emerge even stronger.
Having said that, today’s announcement will result in significant and multiple scheduling changes in our district. As this announcement about the end of the school year was just made by Governor Pritzker yesterday, it will take us a few days to sort out the many schedule details that are on the books, including spring concerts, promotion, graduation, etc. Please be patient as we work as a district to get information to you in the next several weeks. Our staff will begin planning our closing and celebrations and principals will share those details.
I know this is not the school year that any of us imagined, but I want to thank you for your patience and understanding as we have dealt with this unprecedented situation together. This period of Remote Learning offers us new ways to learn and grow, and out of this Pandemic, we will emerge stronger. Plans will be underway soon for the return to in-person learning next school year.
It’s important we continue to work together and support our students. I can't thank you enough for all that you are doing as we all work together through this.
Grateful for the many STEAMER efforts and the STEAMER pride,
Darryl Hogue