Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley CUSD #5

Middle School Families, With Valentine's Day coming up, we ask that students do not have any Valentines gifts delivered to the Middle School this year. This is due to our safety protocols for deliveries and people entering our building. Thank you, Mr. Bielfeldt

Thursday's Girls Basketball Game vs Tri-Valley will be available to stream on Tri-Valley's YouTube Channel, start time is 5:30! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw_WyQuazDVkZRrtWRUrbQQ

Here are the Girls' BB and Boys' BB schedules for GCMS HS. At this time, we understand WGCY will broadcast home boys' games. The video feed requires a subscription to NFHS.

Parents, Please see the link below for information on Miles of Smiles. Any student can sign up for a free dental exam. The form is due back to the school by Friday, February 5. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Nv5q-3MEPklN-z2A7ydgheSX0MZlOKrO/view?usp=sharing Mr. Bielfeldt

GCMS PTA meets tonight (Mon, 2/1) at 6:30pm. Join the livestream on Facebook Live!

GCMS will be in session today, February 1st. Buses may be slightly delayed. Please be careful in your morning commutes! - Mr. Darnell

Little League Summer Softball and Baseball sign ups are all online this year. Please go to the GCMS Little League Facebook Page to see about registration. Registration ends February 12.

The Elementary School Online Book Fair is now open! Log in and place your orders by February 6. https://www.scholastic.com/bf/gibsoncityelemschool

Families, I am reporting 5 student positive COVID cases from January 21 through January 27. We had one Elementary case, one Middle School case, and 3 High School cases. As a result of those positive cases we have an additional 23 students who had to be quarantined for close contact. We also have one staff member that is currently quarantined. We will continue to notify those directly affected immediately and post weekly updates through this platform. Today 80 GCMS staff members were given the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine provided by Ford County Public Health and Gibson Area Hospital. We are excited about this added layer of health and safety for our staff and the students they come in contact with. Please continue to be vigilant in your actions to keep your children and their classmates safe. Sincerely, Jeremy Darnell - Superintendent

In our latest BUG Video something strange happens at recess that forces students to look at things from a new perspective! https://youtu.be/ejc4x8p2BPM

With today's cancellation we are shifting our school menus for the week. Tuesday's menu has been shifted to Thursday, and Thursday's has been shifted to Friday. You can see updated menus on the Dining tab on our app or at https://www.gcmsk12.org/o/gcms/dining

GCMS Families, NO SCHOOL TODAY! Tuesday, January 26th. Due to dangerous rural travel conditions students will not have school today. All activities and practices are cancelled. Please stay safe, and we look forward to seeing everyone on Thursday! Sincerely, Mr. Darnell

Attention Middle School Parents - ALL after school practices for today (1/25) have been CANCELLED. ALL practices scheduled for tomorrow morning have been CANCELLED as well. We will have the scheduled practices after school tomorrow (1/26) pending student attendance. We ask that all basketball and volleyball players check their teams Google Classrooms for more information. Thank you for your understanding, Mr. Bielfeldt

Ford County Moves to Phase 1B in the Vaccination Plan: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RcEN9KBYMkj5mB__IN1P04jzZFK2-Gux/view?usp=sharing

MIDDLE SCHOOL BOYS BASKETBALL PLAYERS!- be sure to check your basketball Google Classroom today for an important message from the coaches!

Families, I want to be transparent and honest as we continue to navigate the challenges of the 2020-2021 school year. Yesterday, in typical Friday fashion we, educators, were thrown another curve without warning that is both great news and incredibly challenging. We, GCMS, will take on those challenges trying to maximize opportunities for the children we serve. The challenges include managing the expectations of the governing bodies which include IHSA, IESA, HOIC conference, Twin County conference, IDPH, and FCPH. These organization pass down universal rules / recommendations and we have to figure out what we can do and how we can manage those demands with our facilities, offerings, and staff. What sports will be played and when is not as simple as getting a season start and end date and moving forward. First, students-athletes could participate in multiple activities that either run simultaneously or have overlap creating both individual choice and potential team challenges for numbers. Second, we have to be able to provide safe appropriate facilities to engage. In a typical year our activities are spread out and gym or field space is a challenge. Compressing all activities into a narrow timeline could limit how often or what we can offer. We are fortunate to have dedicated coaches that often coach multiple sports, but they cannot be in two places at once when seasons overlap or run simultaneous. Officials will be in high demand, and have been scarce for years. Our athletic directors have a great group of officials but booking will be hard because of demand. Finally, transportation is required and we have a great crew, but limited numbers of buses and drivers for extra routes and events. I share these challenges with you to garner understanding for whatever decisions we make in the coming days. We ALL want our kids to be provided opportunities to do the things they love and we will do all we can to make that happen. Like all things in 2020-2021 what we decide will not be the same as the district down the road because our circumstance is different. We look forward to managing this unique circumstance and preparing for a fresh start to 2021-2022 this summer! If you have questions, concerns, frustrations, or celebrations please share those in a constructive and productive way and we can work together to serve our children. Darnell.jeremy@gcmsk12.org Thank you for supporting GCMS! Sincerely, Mr. Darnell

Stay Tuned!!! In 7 days we went from Tier 3 to Phase 4 and IDPH changed the sports regulations in Phase 4 without warning. The GREAT news is we can provide opportunities for kids to engage with extra curricular activities! Please be patient as we navigate what that will look like for GCMS. IHSA (high school) will be making some season decisions this coming Wednesday and IESA (middle school) has provided guidance that we will consider. There are many logistical challenges we will tackle and plans will be shared once we have more clarity. Thanks for your patience and understanding. Sincerely, Mr. Darnell

GCMS Elementary School yearbooks are now on sale. You can order online at https://bit.ly/3pbWv9Y or fill out a form and return it to the school (Students will be bringing forms home.) If you are wanting your student's name printed on the book, the deadline is NEXT Friday (1/29). If you don't want a name printed on the book, you have until February 19 to place your order.

GCMS Middle School Yearbooks are now on sale until February 22. You can order online at http://jostensyearbooks.com/?REF=A01863510 or fill out and return the form below.

Families, I am happy to report we have had just one positive case from Thursday, January 14th through today January 20th. That case was at the elementary school and all who were directly impacted have been notified. We look forward to having all three buildings up and running on Monday, January 25th. We are also working on planning for extra curricular activities to begin within allowable parameters on Monday. Thank you for your attention and support! Sincerely, Jeremy Darnell Superintendent