_____Blue Valley_____
BV Support Team • Meal Service • YMCA • Masks
Apply to join our BV support team and make a difference in your community
“How can I help?”
It’s one of the most common questions we hear from our Blue Valley community these days and it is what makes our community so special: your willingness to lend a helping hand and provide support during difficult times. Our students need us now more than ever, and in order to support them in the best way possible, we need our community.
Across the country, school districts are experiencing difficulties staffing several of the most critical school support roles. If 2020 has shown us anything, it is that together, anything is possible. With that in mind, we are asking you to join us in the driver’s seat, in the classroom, in the lunchroom and in our schools to help us provide the best in-person learning experience for our students. Blue Valley is seeking applications for the following support roles within our district:
Bus drivers (Training provided)
Substitute teachers (60 hours college credit required to apply)
Paraeducators
Custodians
Food Service workers
If you are looking to make a positive impact in your community and in the lives of our children, we encourage you to apply for one of these support opportunities in the district, or share this information with someone you think would be a good fit to join our team. For more information and to apply for school-level openings, visit the Blue Valley employment website. Apply for bus driver positions online.
Important information regarding in-person meal service for middle and high school students
The cafeteria staff is excited to welcome middle and high school students back for in-person learning through the hybrid model. Below are a few modifications the district has made in the cafeteria to help provide a contact-free environment, as well as important updates to the meal service program.
In-Person Meal Service: Entrée items will be packaged or will be served to students. Side items will be individually pre-portioned.
At the Register: Students will now scan a meal card with a barcode at the register rather than typing in their ID number.
High School: Students received an email on their school email account with their meal card attached. Please have your student open the attachment on their cell phone and screen shot it to save the image. Students will use their phones to scan their meal card at the registers. Students will also have an option to use a printed meal card and lanyard when they return to school.
Middle School: Students will receive a printed meal card and lanyard on the first day they return. Please make sure your student remembers to bring their meal card daily.
Meal Cost: Blue Valley was approved for funding by the USDA for ALL students to receive free* breakfast and lunch meals through Dec. 30, 2020 or until funding runs out. When this special USDA program ends, meals will be charged to your student's meal account according to the student’s eligibility: free, reduced or paid.
*Students must make a full meal to receive the free cost, otherwise items will be charged at regular a la carte prices. Signage will be posted in the cafeteria to assist students. A la carte snacks and beverages will be available. (High school: All meals that include a Premium entrée choice, including Pizza Hut, will cost no more than $.40.)
Meal Payment: If you have not done so already, please set up your parent account in the Titan Family Portal, the district’s new Point of Sale system. This is where you make meal payments, transfer funds between accounts, monitor meal account transactions, etc.
Drive-thru Meal Service: Drive-thru meal service will still be available for pick-up on days when students are learning remotely in the hybrid model.
School menus can be viewed online via Nutrislice. If you have questions, please call the Food and Nutrition office at 913-239-4062.
Y-Club offering significantly reduced rates thanks to CARES Act funding
The YMCA has exciting news for families in the Blue Valley School District. Thanks to the YMCA receiving CARES Act Funding from the Johnson County Board of Commissioners, the YMCA is able to offer Y-Club Before and After School care to families for a significantly reduced rate this fall.
Y-Club operates daily inside each Blue Valley elementary school from 7:00 AM for early drop-off and until 6:00 PM. The program is fully licensed and offers elementary-aged children a great opportunity to extend daily learning and have fun with their friends.
The YMCA’s offsite Y-Academy programs will continue to operate through October and November. For families who continue to need this service, the YMCA is able to use CARES funding to support deeply discounted/free enrollment for children. Please email yclubsupport@kansascityymca.org if you would like to enroll your child in Y-Academy.
Families who enroll in Y-Club by Sunday, Oct. 4 will be given priority access to discounted/free enrollment. Go to the YMCA website to start the process today. Questions? Email yclubsupport@kansascityymca.org.
Choosing a mask or face covering
Students and staff will wear masks/face coverings indoors at all times when at school. Most masks are effective at blocking a large number of respiratory droplets that leave the nose and mouth. As families consider masks/face coverings, here are some recommendations from Johns Hopkins Medicine:
Bandannas, scarves, hand towels, or any items made of cotton or linen are a good place to start.
Thicker, more densely woven cotton fabrics are best, such as quilting cotton or cotton sheets.
Stretchy knits are not ideal.
Hold the fabric up to the light. The fewer tiny holes you can see, the better it will work to filter droplets.
Making a good mask involves finding a balance. You want a fabric that does not allow droplets to pass through while ensuring you can still breathe properly with your mask in place.
Masks with one-way valves or vents allow air to be exhaled through a hole in the material, which can result in expelled respiratory droplets that can reach others. This type of mask does not prevent the person wearing the mask from transmitting COVID-19 to others. Therefore, CDC does not recommend using masks for source control if they have an exhalation valve or vent and for this reason students and staff are discouraged from wearing these in the school environment, and instead and encouraged to choose another mask option.
Please note: Based upon a recent study done at Duke University, cotton alternatives likely perform better than stretchy polyester options (such as traditional “neck gaiters”). For this reason, it is recommended that options other than neck gaiters should be considered. If someone likes the idea of a neck device that reaches up to the mouth and nose, consider fabrics that are not stretchy and porous. Additional guidance about masks/face coverings is available through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
In the event a student or staff member has a medical reason to be excluded from wearing a mask while at school, a mask exemption form must be completed and returned to the school nurse for review once completed. The Request for Face Mask Medical Exemption form is available online. A form is required for all exemptions. Please note, the form must be completed by an M.D., a D.O. or a nurse practitioner.
Blue Valley Schools
Email: bvinfo@bluevalleyk12.org
Website: www.bluevalleyk12.org
Location: 15020 Metcalf Avenue, Overland Park, KS 66223, USA
Phone: 913-239-4000
Facebook: www.facebook.com/BlueValleySchoolDistrict
Twitter: @BVSchools