Lincoln Parish Schools

Special Called Session for the Lincoln Parish School Board. The meeting will be held Thursday, August 20, 2020 at 10:00am at the STEM Center, 525 Tarbutton Road, Ruston, LA 71270. Use the following Link for the Agenda: https://5il.co/jw7u

Good afternoon Lincoln Parish Parents, The plan for meal distribution for students in the Virtual Program or on the A/B schedule has been released. This plan is for students who are not at school to eat breakfast and lunch. Please review the attachment which gives specific instructions. The following information can be found on the attachment: 1. Parents must call the school cafeteria between 7:30 am – 9:00 am where he or she intends to pick up meals, which includes one breakfast and one lunch each day. 2. Meals may be picked up from one of six designated schools between 12:45 pm and 1:30 pm each day. Be sure to pick up from the school you contacted that morning. 3. The parent consent form must be completed each day and submitted to the school to verify meals which are distributed. 4. Your child qualifies for a free breakfast and lunch each day if he or she eats free at his or her normal school location and is not at school that day. 5. The six school pickup location options include Dubach School, Choudrant High School, IA Lewis School, Ruston Elementary, Ruston Junior High School, and Simsboro High School. Parents from any Lincoln Parish School may pick up at the most convenient location of the six options. 6. Meals will be distributed in car lines. No one will need to get out of their vehicle. 7. Meals will only be prepared for those families contacting the school cafeteria before 9:00 am each morning. Link for Parent Consent for meal pick ups: https://5il.co/jk60

In the link below, you will find the 20/21 back to school schedule! This includes dates and times for prep days and the start of school! https://5il.co/jehw

August School Board Meeting DATE: Tuesday, August 4, 2020 TIME: 6:00 p.m. PLACE: LPSB STEM Center 525 Tarbutton Road, Ruston, Louisiana Due to the Governor’s Phase 2 Order, 50% of the total occupancy, 75 people, will be allowed to attend. Please practice social distancing and the use of a mask is encouraged. The meeting may also be accessed by Facebook live, questions or comments may be emailed before the meeting to kmccorma@lincolnschools.org Lincoln Parish Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/lincolnparishschools/

Hope you will join us tomorrow, July 28 at 6:30 p.m. for our second Strong Start Town Hall. We want to answer as many of your questions as possible. Please send your questions to communications@lincolnschools.org. We look forward to seeing you there! If you missed our last Town Hall meeting you can find it at the link below! https://www.facebook.com/lincolnparishschools/videos/503279383804949/

Good afternoon, Please view the link below to find the updated Strong Start Plan. We have included an FAQ section to help answer some of your questions. We are also looking forward to our 2nd Facebook Live Town Hall meeting Tuesday, July 28 at 6:30pm. Feel free to email your questions to communications@lincolnschools.org. https://5il.co/ibco

The Regular Session School Board Meeting scheduled for August 4, 2020, 6:00 p.m., has been moved to the STEM Center. Use the following link for the official notice: The Regular Session School Board Meeting scheduled for August 4, 2020, 6:00 p.m., has been moved to the STEM Center. Use the following link for the official notice: https://5il.co/ig5u

There will be a Facebook Live Town Hall Meeting on Monday, July 20, 2020 at 6:30PM. The meeting can be viewed on Facebook Live broadcasted from the Lincoln Parish Facebook page at the following link: https://www.facebook.com/lincolnparishschools/ You can ask questions for the Town Hall Meeting by emailing the following account: communications@lincolnschools.org

Please use the following link to see the most up to date Lincoln Parish Schools Strong Start Plan https://5il.co/ibco

There is still time to come in and sign up for our Summer Reading Program! Children ages birth through grade 2 can earn a prize for every ten books read to them or by them. Children in grades 3-6 can earn a prize for every 500 pages they read. We are getting in new picture books, chapter books, EZ readers, non-fiction books and graphic novels weekly, so please try to get some summer reading in before school starts! After school begins, we have a large selection of the EZ readers and beginning chapter books that are recommended by the IRLA Home updates! We look forward to serving you the rest of the summer and this school year! From your friends at the Lincoln Parish Library.

Lauren Dixon has been awarded State Art Teacher of the Year by the Louisiana Art Education Association! This is the second year in a row that Lauren has been awarded Art Teacher of the Year. Last year she represented Louisiana as the Teacher of the Year for the Southeast Region of the National Art Education Association. Congratulations Lauren Dixon!

Summer Reading Program at the Lincoln Parish Library Who: Birth thru high school When: May28-July 28 What: All children in Lincoln Parish are encouraged to participate to keep reading through the summer Online read-a-louds and weekly craft demos are available on the Lincoln Parish Library's Facebook page(under the video tab) To-go crafts are available each week to go with the Fairy Tale theme of the week We can get a bag of books together for you if you call and talk to someone in the Children's or Teen's department and deliver it curbside if you do not wish to come in call 251-5531. This week there are two "Science Tellers" videos and a magic show "Tommy Terrific" that will be available all summer to watch.

The Regular Session School Board Meeting scheduled for June 2, 2020 at 6:00pm, has been moved to the Ruston High Auditorium. For more information click on the following link: https://5il.co/gbfx

PANDEMIC-EBT AVAILABLE FOR STUDENTS RECEIVING FREE OR REDUCED-PRICE SCHOOL MEALS Amid the ongoing public health crisis, Louisiana has been approved for the new Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) program. This program will provide extra help buying groceries for the families of the more than 600,000 children who normally receive free and reduced-price meals at school. Eligible families who complete an online application will be issued a P-EBT debit card by the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) to access benefits. The P-EBT card will function like a standard EBT card, and the same guidelines will apply. Families will receive $285 in total P-EBT benefits per child. Unused benefits will roll over month to month and must be used within 365 days. Use the following link to access the Information and Application: https://www.louisianabelieves.com/docs/default-source/covid-19-resources/louisiana-p-ebt-information-and-application.pdf

Camp Invention that was scheduled for June 8-12 has been cancelled. For those who have registered, Camp Invention will contact you about your options.

The Regular Session School Board Meeting scheduled for May 5, 2020 has been postponed until May 12, 2020, at 6:00 p.m. Due to the Governor’s “Stay-At-Home” order. The meeting will not be open to the public at the Central Office but may be assessed by Facebook live. If you have a question or comment please email to kmccorma@lincolnschools.org before or during the meeting. THE LINCOLN PARISH SCHOOL BOARD RESERVES THE RIGHT TO ENTER INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION, IF NEEDED, IN ACCORDANCE WITH La.R.S. 42:17

To: Parents/Guardians From: Mike Milstead Date: April 10, 2020 Use the following link for the latest update concerning Lincoln Parish Schools. https://5il.co/ez14

The City of Ruston is partnering with Lincoln Parish Schools by inviting students who need access to WiFi to park in our Historic Fire Station, Civic Center, and Sports Complex parking lots to utilize free WiFi. Please see details for each location below. Parking lot of City Hall (signal is strongest on the north side of the building). WiFi name: Public WiFi Parking lot of Historic Fire Station WiFi name: Public WiFi Parking lot Sports Complex “B” Dixie parking lot WiFi name: Ruston Sports Complex Parking lot of Sports Complex “C” Softball/Tennis WiFi name: City of Ruston Wireless WiFi

To: Lincoln Parish Parents and Guardians From: Mike Milstead Date: April 3, 2020 1. As you’ve probably heard, Governor Edwards extended his “stay-at-home” order through April 30th. This means that schools remain closed until probably May 4th. As we receive updates, I will let you know. 2. We are increasing our efforts to reach out to students electronically and with print media as they are prepared. A schedule for physical pickups will be issued next week for you to take advantage of, if you choose to. 3. Presently the best thing we can do is to follow Governor Edwards stay-at-home order. The best way we can do that is minimizing the possibility of contact with people and places which increase the potential for spread of coronavirus illness. 4. We received guidance yesterday concerning high school credits and a “how to”related specifically concerning students who are seniors. We will be sharing that with senior parents in the next few days. 5. Continue to take advantage of all resources available to assist your child in continuing his education while away from school. 6. Stay safe and continue to follow best practices to resist coronavirus.

To: Parents of Lincoln Parish Students From: Mike Milstead Date: March 31, 2020 1. Good afternoon, Parents of Lincoln Parish students. Thank you for your efforts in keeping your children as educationally up-to-date as possible under the circumstances we are presently facing. All of us really want to get back to a normal process of teaching, encouraging, and nurturing our children. 2. Remember that you can access the best available information about specific classroom subjects on our Lincoln Parish School Board website, www.lincolnschools.org. Next week we plan to have paper-copy reviews for some subjects that you can pick up at various schools. If you don’t have access to a computer, you might find this information helpful in engaging your child. Later this week, I will provide school sites, subjects, and grade levels to you for pick up purposes. 3. We will resume food services both breakfast and lunch beginning Monday, April 6th, 9:30-11:00, at the 8 school sites previously selected. All Lincoln Parish students qualify for these meals. 4. Later this week the governor intends to extend his stay-at-home order to April 30th. Assuming that applies to our schools (and I think it will), then we will continue to provide information for you to help meet the educational needs of students. 5. Also, later this week, the Louisiana Department of Education will provide information concerning graduation and course credits for high school students. As soon as I receive that information, I will share it with you. 6. Remember to spend time with your child each day whether reading with them, using websites, or questioning them for their knowledge of items that they should know and be able to recall. 7. We will get through the situation in which we presently find ourselves. All school leaders, teachers, and other staff look forward to the day when we can resume our normal process of returning to school and educating our students. Remember to stay safe by following best practices—frequent handwashing, maintaining 6-feet of social distancing, staying at home, and sneezing or coughing into your elbow. 8. If you need to call the school board office with a question or concern, leave a message and a supervisor or principal will return your call. 9. I continue to pray for the safety of our students and parents at this time. Let’s continue to encourage each other as we have the opportunity.