What's New at Roosevelt Middle School

Here are the latest updates from the Dubuque Community School District:

ENRICHMENT RESOURCES FOR FAMILIES
As we reach the mid-point of our scheduled spring break week, our Educational Support Team is currently planning and compiling enrichment resources for parents to support keeping students engaged during this school closure. We plan to begin sharing these resources early next week. While we know nothing can replace the learning that happens within the strong relationships between our teachers and students, we hope these resources provide parents with a variety of fun, engaging learning opportunities for students at all levels. This will be a developing set of resources that will continue to grow over time.

PLEASE PRACTICE SOCIAL DISTANCING
As this closure continues, public health officials continue to reinforce the importance of significant social distancing. During this time, the district encourages all students, families and staff to take this situation seriously, practice social distancing and eliminate all non-essential interactions with others.

DRIVER’S EDUCATION CANCELLED
There will be no driver’s education courses held during the shutdown period.

Here are the latest updates from the Dubuque Community School District:

STUDENT MEAL AVAILABILITY
We are pleased to share that the district and a number of community partners will provide meals for students during the school closure. These grab-and-go meals are available at no cost to any individual ages 18 and under (note that infant formula or food will not be available). Breakfast, lunch and dinner options are available throughout the community. VIEW THE FULL LIST OF LOCATIONS AND TIMES

STATE ACTION REGARDING MAKE-UP TIME
Late last night, the Iowa Legislature took official action to waive a school districts’ requirements to make up lost instructional time due to the coronavirus-related closure. At this point, we believe this action covers the closure in place through April 13. We will provide updates regarding the calendar for the remainder of the school year later in the closure.

MEDICATION PICK-UP: UPDATED TIMELINE
If you have a request to pick-up medication from school, please contact Lead Nurse Allie White at awhite@dbqschools.org by NOON ON MONDAY, MARCH 23 to schedule an appointment. For requests received after that time, the district will be in a reduced staffing mode and cannot guarantee the ability to obtain the medication.

Thank you to our families and staff for their patience and understanding as we move through these uncertain times. We are uplifted by the overall positivity and support shown by our families and community partners.

As a reminder, all schools are currently closed until Monday, April 13. We are working hard to answer all of your questions and appreciate your patience as information is developing and changing quickly. We also expect further guidance from the State of Iowa on a number of issues and will provide details as soon as we are able.

Here are the main updates for today:

DISTRICT ACTIVITIES AND EVENTS
During this closure period, all school events and activities (both athletic and non-athletic) are cancelled, following guidance from the Iowa High School Athletic Association and the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union:

“All IHSAA and IGHSAU sports are now in a prohibited period for practice, competition, and sanctioned activity until the closure is lifted. This prohibition means no in-person contact between coaches/administrators and student-athletes for the duration of the period.”

NON-DISTRICT ACTIVITIES AND EVENTS
All outside events and activities by rental permit holders in district facilities are also cancelled. The district will work directly with renters to refund any rental fees paid during this period.

MEDICINE PICK-UP AT SCHOOLS
Families with students who have medicine at school, and who need that medicine during the closure, can contact Lead Nurse Allie White at awhite@dbqschools.org to arrange a time to pick it up. Medication not needed over break will remain in the health office to be used following the closure.

MEALS FOR STUDENTS
School is a key provider of meals for many of our students – and we are committed to maintaining this resource during the closure. The district will begin providing meal options for students on Monday, March 23, with specific locations and times to be announced in the next few days. We are also collaborating with community partners who are providing meals and will collect and share information with families regarding all community meal options.

ACT EXAM CANCELLED
ACT announced this morning that the ACT exam scheduled for April 4 has been postponed to June 13, 2020.

Again, thank you for your continued support. Please continue to look for updates each day around 3 p.m. via email, on our Coronavirus Update Webpage and on our official district Facebook and Twitter channels. Also, please remember to look for the most accurate, up-to-date information on these official district channels and be conscious of the misinformation that is sometimes shared by other sources, especially on social media.

Tonight, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds announced that she is recommending that all Iowa schools close for four weeks to assist in reducing the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).

The district learned of this unprecedented move as the general public did, and we realize that you are likely to have questions. We share in many of those same questions and expect more details to be available tomorrow and over the next number of days.

Schools in the district will remain closed until April 13. Knowing that this decision was a possibility, our leadership team has been working diligently to prepare. We are finalizing our plans for this closure, which for the district begins impacting us next week following spring break. Throughout this situation, we will work hard to provide you with the most accurate, up-to-date information possible.

While we have few details tonight about the implications of this closure, in these challenging times we can tell you that we will remain committed to serving our students, families and staff to the best of our ability.

As a reminder, we will plan to send an update to families and staff each day this week at 3 p.m. (at a minimum) and will post the most up-to-date information on our website at www.dbqschools.org/coronavirus.

Thank you for your continued support.

The Spring 2019 Online Student Art Galleries are now live featuring art from the district’s elementary, middle and high school students!

View the Galleries

These galleries area a way to highlight the remarkable products of art education in the district. It’s a digital attempt at bringing the work of our student artists at all levels into your home – because art is created for others to take in.

Our thanks to the DRA for our grant that allowed us to install an additional three 55” hallway monitors this school year. These are great for sharing information with students, along with pictures of events and student learning. Here are three students with one of the new monitors by the gymnasium on the west end of the building.

The Winter 2018 Online Student Art Galleries are now live featuring art from the district’s elementary, middle and high school students!

View the Elementary Gallery

View the Middle School Gallery

View the High School Gallery

This gallery is a way to highlight the remarkable products of art education in the district. It’s a digital attempt at bringing the work of our student artists at all levels into your home – because art is created for others to take in.

Chris Burke

Christopher Burke, an 11-year teaching veteran who uses real-world examples to make his mathematics lessons come alive, is the Iowa Department of Education’s 2019 Teacher of the Year, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced today at Dubuque’s Eleanor Roosevelt Middle School.

“Chris Burke exemplifies the great teaching that is taking place in Iowa schools,” said Gov. Reynolds. “His passion for inspiring students to learn math in a real-world context and his enthusiasm for serving as a coach outside the school day underscore the extraordinary commitment of educators in communities across our state.”

Burke, 35, who is also a teacher leader at the middle school, is one of many educators in his family, including his wife, mother and sister. His wife, Betsy, also teaches at Roosevelt.

In the program’s 60-year history, this is the first time a Dubuque teacher has received the Teacher of the Year award.
Read More about “Roosevelt Teacher Named 2019 Iowa Teacher of the Year”

ERMS will be partnering up with the Live Like Jack foundation by collecting food to create Thanksgiving Bags. LLJ has been creating Thanksgiving bags since 2015 and their goal this year is to serve over 500 families! We are providing our students and staff with this opportunity to participate. You can help by purchasing the following items:

Can of Green Beans
Can of Sweet Potatoes
Can of Cranberry Sauce
A Box of Stuffing
A Box of Instant Mashed Potatoes
A Can of Gravy or Gravy Packets
A Package of Muffins or Cornbread Mix
A Box of Cake or Brownie Mix or Similar Dessert
A Jar of Instant Ice tea or Jug of Pre-Made Ice Tea