Friday, October 30, is the deadline to submit the Second Semester Decision Form if you wish to change your child’s learning option. If your child attends In-Person and you want to move them to Eagle Online for the second semester, or if they are in Eagle Online and you want to move them to In-Person for the second semester, you must fill out the form by the end of the day Friday. 

Our Return to Learning Plan was designed to offer families flexibility to switch at the semester break. The semester break happens right before students leave for winter break in December. We are asking parents to make this decision now so that we can begin to make the master schedule for Milford High School and Milford Junior High and begin making scheduling and staffing adjustments for elementary buildings. The first day of the second semester is January 4, 2021.

This is really important: If you do not want your child’s learning option to change for the second semester, then you do not have to fill out the form. 

If you do want your child’s learning option to change, then you must fill out the form by October 30.

Unless you request a change, your child’s current status of learning In-Person or in Eagle Online will remain the same for the second semester.

By following this timeline and deadline of October 30, we will review all requests and take action at the beginning of November. Our goal is to finalize and distribute schedules to our junior high and high school students by the time they leave for winter break on December 17. Elementary parents will receive confirmation of their student’s placement by December 17.

The school district is not planning to move to a remote learning model unless the Ohio Governor closes schools, if there is evidence of spread of the virus in our school buildings, or if we have too many staff out due to positive COVID-19 cases or needing to quarantine. 

Please refer to the following questions and answers about this process. Also included below is a graph that shows the requests to switch to date. If you have any additional questions, please reach out to your child’s school. 

We have compiled the following questions and answers to help families understand this process:

Q: If I want my child to stay in their current learning option, do I have to fill out the form? 

A: No. Unless you request a change by filling out the Second Semester Decision Form, your child’s current status of learning In-Person or in Eagle Online will remain the same for the second semester. If you do not want to make a change you do not have to fill out the form.

Q. When does the first semester end and the second semester begin?

The first semester ends December 17, 2020. Students start Winter Break December 18 and return to school for the first day of the second semester Monday, January 4, 2021.

Q. Will all requests to switch between learning options be granted?

Yes. We will grant requests to switch between learning options based on class sizes and staff availability. By offering families the flexibility to request to switch between learning options at the semester break, a student’s schedule, class assignment, or teacher may change, whether that student requests a change in learning platform or not.  

Q: If I request that my child moves from one learning option to the other, what will their transition look like?

The benefit of our decision to offer Eagle Online as a learning platform means that students learning in our online option are on-pace with their In-Person peers, and vice versa. If a change in learning platform is made and granted, the transition should be relatively seamless. Both In-Person and Eagle Online learning options are taught by Milford teachers using our Milford curriculum.

Q. Will my student’s teacher or schedule change for the second semester even if I don’t request a change?

Yes, it may. In any other school year, students in elementary grades typically do not switch classrooms mid-year, but that may happen this year depending on the number of requests made from families to switch between learning options. By offering families the flexibility to request to switch between learning options at the semester break, a student’s schedule or class assignment may change, whether that student requests a change in learning platform or not.

Every effort will be made to keep students with their current teachers. However, we do not have the option of adding staff right now, so students may be assigned to a different teacher if a high number of requests are made to change learning options. 

At the junior high and high school level, if a request to switch is made from In-Person to Eagle Online, the change could result in a different schedule for the student based on availability of classes and staff. The student’s new schedule will most likely not look the same nor have the same teachers as the student’s current, In-Person schedule.

Q. What are the expectations for Eagle Online? 

Those who have chosen Eagle Online are expected to utilize technology, have internet connectivity, have at-home support, and be aware there are segments of self-paced, independent learning. 

Q. What about state testing? If I choose Eagle Online for my students will they be able to take their state tests at home? 

The Ohio Department of Education will most likely NOT make adjustments to allow for state testing to occur at home. Most likely, Eagle Online students must come to one of our buildings to take their state tests.

Q. What is the deadline to request to change between learning options?

The deadline to fill out the Second Semester Decision Form is Friday, October 30. 

Q. Will we be able to change our mind and request to change learning options during the second semester? 

We are asking families to make this decision for their child for the entirety of the second semester. We will not be granting requests to change learning options after the October 30 deadline unless there is a documented medical reason, if the request is made for a student with a disability, or if there is another exceptional circumstance that impacts the child’s ability to learn in their current platform. We reserve the right and have the responsibility to bring students back into the building to learn In-Person at any time if there are academic and/or attendance concerns in the Eagle Online learning option.

The following graph shows the number requests to switch learning options to date by grade level: