Glendale Unified School District has just released a statement from the Superintendent of Schools, Vivian Ekchian regarding the COVID-19 related school closures. Find it below in its entirety.

Dear Glendale Unified Students, Staff, Families, and Community:

The Board of Education and our district leadership are committed to ensuring the health and safety of our entire Glendale Unified community. The public health crisis created by COVID-19 is unprecedented and we are in uncharted waters as we work to prevent the spread of this illness. We continue to follow guidance from state and local health and education authorities on how we can keep our students and staff safe in the midst of this rapidly evolving situation.

Today, the Los Angeles County Office of Education authorized the 80 school districts in Los Angeles County to close schools, effective Monday, March 16, in order to mitigate community spread of COVID-19. It is important to note that this is not a directive from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. This is an educational recommendation from the County Office of Education to encourage social distancing.

In the best interest of student health and safety, we have made a decision to extend spring break for an additional week, and then move to a remote learning model through April 3, 2020. Our schedule for the next three weeks will be as follows:

• March 16-20 – Regularly scheduled spring break
• March 23-27 – Extended spring break for students. Teachers and staff report their regular work locations.
• March 30-April 3 – Students engage in off-campus, remote enrichment activities (you will receive additional information from your school site next week). Teachers and staff report to their regular work locations.

At this time, we expect that regular classes will resume on Monday, April 6, 2020. We will reassess the situation in the coming weeks and determine if an extended remote learning model will be necessary.

Early Education and Extended Learning Programs (EEELP)

Glendale Unified Early Education and Extended Learning Program (EEELP) spring break camp will be open and operating on a normal schedule over spring break, through March 23. State subsidized childcare will continue in the weeks following spring break. All other preschool, childcare, and before- and after-school programs will be closed until Monday, April 6.

Nutritional Services

Our Nutritional Services Department will continue to serve lunches for our high-need students during the two weeks following spring break. Lunches will be distributed at grab-and-go centers located at several of our school sites, beginning March 24. We will send additional instructions to our families about this process shortly.

District Office Operations

District office operations will continue on a normal schedule unless otherwise directed by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. Our Facilities and Support Operations team will conduct their scheduled deep cleaning of all school facilities next week over the spring break holiday.

I know that this is a difficult, frustrating, and possibly frightening time for many of our students, staff, and families. We will continue to provide you with frequent updates and links to helpful resources. Please help us by taking care of yourselves and each other in the coming weeks. Although we need to practice social distancing in a physical sense, we can still offer a kind word or a helping hand to someone in need, even if it is just a phone call or a text message.

We are committed to ensuring the health and safety of our entire Glendale Unified community. We will continue to provide you with frequent updates in the coming days and weeks. Thank you once again for your support.

Sincerely,

Vivian Ekchian, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools