School re-opening planned for October 23rd.

The following information has been provided by the School District:

Dear Sonoma Valley Unified Families,

Precautions for opening schools after fires was shared at a meeting of the Sonoma County school districts’ superintendents today, Friday, October 13.

After considering this information, Sonoma Valley Unified School District plans to resume school for students on Monday, October 23.

Classes will follow a regular schedule with normal school hours at that time. This return date is based on the presumption that the fire situation and air quality will continue to improve and that the school buildings and staff are ready to serve students. If that is not the case, we will inform you of any changes to the plan.

Some of the criteria that guides our decision to reopen our schools includes:

1. Containment of the fires that are threatening our neighborhoods and communities. We need to have enough staff members present to receive our students.

2. Roads that are open and permit us to safely transport our students.

3. Power that is fully functional at all school sites.

4. Air quality is a continuing concern. We need to clean our schools and check our ventilation systems.

5. As of today, SVHS continues to serve as an evacuation center for the City of Sonoma. Once it is determined that the high school will no longer serve as an evacuation shelter, time will be needed to prepare the school site for students and staff.

6. A developed and thoughtful plan regarding student instruction (including loss of 10 instructional days) and student social-emotional well being.

We will review the possibility of rescheduling parent conferences and provide additional information at a later time. The Sonoma Valley High School Homecoming week activities including game and dance will be rescheduled. We hope to reschedule for the last home game and will provide additional info once confirmed. While we know that having school closed is inconvenient for some families, we need to be able to ensure the safety of everyone. Please continue to share this information with your friends, family and neighbors. We will continue to provide updates as the situation develops.

Thank you and stay safe.
Karen Strong, Assoc. Superintendent