Governor DeWine and the Ohio Department of Health’s executive order that requires K-12 school districts to implement a COVID-19 Reporting System in now in effect. On September 17, a public dashboard will be published on the state’s website (www.coronavirus.ohio.gov) that will include the number of diagnosed cases of COVID-19 in both staff and students per school district in each county. The dashboard will include cases both newly reported in the previous week and cumulative cases from September 8 forward. 

These cases will then be reflected on Highland's COVID-19 Dashboard, located on our homepage. Our numbers will be updated each Tuesday by the end of the day as long as school remains in session.  

The order also states that if a student is diagnosed with COVID-19, the parent/guardian should notify their child's school within 24-hours (or sooner) of receiving a positive test or clinical diagnosis.

The Highland School District will offer lunches at NO COST to ANY Highland students enrolled in the Virtual Learning Academy. This service is offered in conjucntion with the USDA free lunch program. You do not have to be eligible for free and reduced lunch starus to qualify. 

The district will offer school lunch meal “pick-up” on a weekly distribution. Families with students enrolled in the Highland VLA can receive a WEEKLY allotment of their child's school lunches. 

Beginning Monday, September 28 through Friday, December 20, 2020 (end of the USDA free lunch program), lunches will be distributed to families for the entire week. Each lunch bag will contain 5 complete lunches. (Please note, we will not be serving lunches on weekends or scheduled holidays).

All orders must be placed by 12 p.m. on Friday preceding the upcoming week's offering OR parents may sign up for all 12 weeks when completing the form. Parents must complete the following “VLA Lunch Request Distribution Form” in order to receive the free lunches. (COMPLETE A SEPARATE FORM FOR EACH CHILD).  DOWNLOAD FORM

Dear Highland Families,

We are so happy to have our students back!. As a district, we remain committed to a safe and responsible learning environment for all of our students and staff. 

As a reminder, we begand the year using our staggered hybrid schedule, which consists of 50 percent of students in a building at one time with all safety protocols in place.

• Students in grades K-12 attending school “in-person” are assigned to Green or White cohorts began school on Monday, September 14 (Green) or Tuesday, September 15 (White) and will rotate school attendance days through Friday, September 25. Hybrid Schedule 
• On Monday, September 28, all “in-person” students attend.     
• Students enrolled in Highland’s Virtual Learning Academy (VLA) began school daily on Monday, September 14.

The Highland School District will continue to remain in close contact with the Medina County Health Department to analyze and review available data related to COVID-19. We are prepared to move quickly into our contingency plans of hybrid or home distance learning, if necessary, due to increased school-based or community spread of the virus.

We are excited to release a video series to our students and families regarding important topics related to our return to school. Items such as hallway directions, changes to our bell schedule, lunch procedures and much more are addressed in the videos. If you have any questions, please email Mrs. Knapp (cknapp@highlandschools.org) or Mr. Backo (jbacko@highlandschools.org). 

• Video 1
• Video 2
• Video 3
• Video #4 
• Frequently Asked Questions
• HHS Video Series Powerpoint
• Building Map
• Late Arrival / Early Release Form

Dear Parents and Guardians,

In addition to the district’s 2020-21 Reopening Plan we provided in August, we now present students and families with the new “Teaching & Learning Guidelines” (including building schedules) for Option 1 (Traditional In-Person Learning, with Hybrid and Home Distance Learning Contingency Plans). Download HERE. 

Information on Option 2, Highland’s Virtual Learning Academy, (FAQ, Learning Expectations, VLA Support for Parent Coaches and Parent Communication Updates) is accessible on our website on the homepage.

Please contact your child's school office if you have any questions. Thank you!

On August 31, 2020, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will extend several flexibilities through as late as December 31, 2020. The flexibilities allow summer meal program operators to continue serving free meals to all children into the fall months. This unprecedented move will help ensure – no matter what the situation is on-the-ground – children have access to nutritious food as the country recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. USDA has been and continues to be committed to using the Congressionally appropriated funding that has been made available.  

Q: What does this mean for Highland students?
A: All students now qualify for FREE lunch between September 14 and December 18, 2020.

Q: Does my child have to qualify for Free & Reduced Lunch status?
A: No. All students are eligible to receive meals through this federally subsidized program for a limited time. 

Also, please note, in an effort to adhere to the latest COVID-19 CDC food service guidelines, the Highland Food Service Department will be making the following changes at all school buildings until further notice.

• Limited choice of daily meal options (one for elementary; two for middle; three for high school)
• Meals will be served in a disposable to-go container
• No self-serve options of any kind
• No a la carte options will be served
• Students will not be using the touch keypads at the point of sale

If you have any questions, please contact the Food Service Department at 330-239-1901, ext. 5513.