Dear Bulldog Families:

Welcome back! We hope the spring break provided all of our families with an opportunity to rest, relax and catch your breath. The original intent of this afternoon’s email was to share with families the information about our district’s Distance Learning Grading Plan and you will indeed find that information within this communication.  However, we first need to update you on the latest status of Ohio’s extended school closure. 

This afternoon, Governor DeWine officially announced all schools in Ohio will remain closed for the duration of this school year.  So, we now officially know that we will not be returning to the traditional school experience in our buildings this year. We recognize that students and families will have many questions regarding this development.  Please know that we are actively working to provide you with further details as soon as possible regarding the impact of this further extension of the school closure. Thank you for your continuing support and patience as we create the path ahead.  

As you are already aware, enhanced distance learning and new content instruction began on April 6th. So we are well positioned to navigate the longer road ahead.  We continue to recognize that this current virtual learning environment cannot come close to replicating our Triple A school experience. At the same time, we are incredibly proud of our students, families and staff for rising to this historic challenge to continue the learning process and, most importantly, to maintain and enhance connections with students. 

Below please find the Distance Learning Grading Plan that Olmsted Falls City Schools will be following for the remainder of the school closure. As you will see, the grading plan differs slightly for students in grades K-3 and students in grades 4-12.  The main goal of the district’s grading plan is to provide a path for monitoring student progress and content understanding, while also taking into account the unprecedented challenges being faced.  This OFCS Distance Learning Grading Plan information will also be available on the district website. Please reach out to your student’s building principal with any questions.  

Overview of Grading Plan Goals:

• Across all grade levels the focus will be on student participation and engagement.  

• New content will be covered in all grade levels during this time, and students will continue to receive grades on assignments, projects and assessments.

• Actual assignment, project and assessment scores will be entered into PowerSchool as they normally would based on a student’s achievement (i.e. 8 out of 10 correct on an assignment = 80% on that assignment in PowerSchool).  The purpose of entering grades and monitoring progress in this way is to provide students, parents and teachers with the normal ability to monitor how a student is progressing in terms of content understanding. This data will be very useful for teachers as they continue to provide feedback to students and support student learning of new content. However, these raw scores will not be used to determine the final quarter grade.

• At the end of the grading period, students will be given an overall grade based on their level of participation/engagement and completion of assignments, projects, and assessments. This is the grade that will appear on report cards.  

For Our Grade K-3 Students:

• Teachers have worked collaboratively to identify the most important learning standards for Language Arts and Math, along with ways that students can show evidence of learning in each area.

• Teachers will assess students and use "Beginning, Developing or Secure" (B, D, S) to report student progress for each of the identified key learning standards.

• Any learning standard that is not taught/assessed during the third trimester will be left blank on the report card. 

• Specials teachers will not give a grade (B,D,S) on their standards as they will not be able to assess all of these standards virtually.  This includes Physical Education, Music, Art, Technology and Media.

For Our Grade 4-12 Students: 

• The final Grade for 4th Quarter will be based on completion/participation only for students in grades 4 through 12 (with the exception of high school students taking AP and/or CCP courses).

• Following are the final 4th quarter grades that will be given based on student level of completion/participation:

*A grade of “I” (Incomplete) will convert to an “F” on the report card after June 30th for students with completion/participation of less than 50%.  At the end of the grading period any student with a grade of “I” will have an opportunity to make up missed assignments, projects and assessments by June 30th to earn a higher completion grade. Students who have not exceeded 50% participation by June 30th will receive a final 4th quarter grade of “F.”   

Additional Notes for our High School Students AND Middle School Students taking Algebra and/or 8th Grade French or Spanish:

• There will be no semester or final exams.

• When report cards are sent home at the end of this school year, students will have a final grade for the 4th quarter (based on the above chart) as well as a final second semester grade for each class.

• Second semester grades will be determined by the student's 3rd quarter grade (50%) and 4th quarter grade (50%) for each course.

• The completion/participation grading applies only to general and honors classes – not to Advanced Placement (AP) and College Credit Plus (CCP).  AP and CCP classes will continue under normal grading conditions, and AP exams will be taken virtually during the normal AP testing window set for May 11-22. Students enrolled in AP and CCP classes will receive additional information directly from their teachers.

NOTE: Ohio State Tests for all grade levels, including high school end-of-course exams, have been waived by the State of Ohio and will not be administered at all this spring.  

A PDF download of the above OFCS Distance Learning Grading Plan plan can be accessed on the district website by clicking HERE.

Moving ahead, we continue to recognize the challenges students and families are facing during these unprecedented times and have been working to ensure that all students have access to an appropriate device as well as in-home internet access where needed.  It will be critical in the days and weeks ahead that all students are able to connect to their classes and teachers virtually.  At this point in time, we believe we have provided devices and/or assistance with internet connectivity to all students/families with those needs.  If your child is still in need of a device, or you need assistance with a temporary no-cost internet connection, please reach out to your child’s teacher or building principal right away. 

In closing, we want to reiterate that we are here to assist all students in succeeding during this challenging time. Our goal is to provide meaningful learning as well as opportunities for students to connect with their teachers and classmates. If you feel your student may be struggling with their assignments or with staying connected, please reach out to their teacher or building principal. Please also remember that our school counselors and school psychologists are available to assist as needed. 

REMINDER: If your student experiences an issue with a district device and/or an issue with any educational programs/virtual tools on any device, please complete the Tech Support & Repair Form and a member of our technology team will reach out to provide assistance.

We want to again extend our heartfelt thanks and appreciation to our Bulldog families and staff for stepping up to meet this challenge.  Together we will continue to get through this extended closure together.

Dr. Jim Lloyd

Superintendent for the Olmsted Falls City School District

26937 Bagley Rd.

Olmsted Township, OH 44138

Phone: 440-427-6000

Twitter: @OFCSSuper

Web: www.ofcs.net