1091 Broad Street, Johnstown, PA 15906

Superintendent (814) 533-5670 Ext. 1650 Business Manager (814) 533-5670 Ext.1562 Fax Number (814) 533-5068

November 6, 2020

Greetings Trojan Community,

We are closely monitoring the situations regarding COVID-19. To date the school district has had three
positive COVID-19 cases with our staff and two positive cases with students. To this date, we have had 49
students and 15 staff in quarantine. None of these have required us to close due to exceptional support from
our pandemic response team and the Department of Health contact tracing efforts. We are grateful and have
been extremely fortunate to provide the amount of in-person learning and support that we have conducted to
this point in the school year. This has been due to the diligence of our district staff, families, and our students
working together to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in our school community.

However, at this time, Cambria County has entered the second week of being classified as a county
having ​substantial transmission​ of positive COVID-19 cases. This is a change from the moderate
transmission range we have been in since the beginning of this school year. ​According to the COVID-19
Monitoring System Dashboard Cambria County’s most recent data is:

● A county Incidence Rate per 100,000 Residents (Most Recent 7 Days) is ​148.0​ and the PCR Percent
Positivity (Most Recent 7 Days) is ​5.5%​.
● An incidence rate per 100,000 residents increased from the previous 7 day reporting period to the
most recent 7 day reporting period.
● A PCR percent positivity increased from the previous 7 day reporting period to the most recent 7 day
reporting period.

After receiving feedback from the Pennsylvania Department of Education and the Pennsylvania
Department of Health, it is recommended that Cambria County schools move to a full virtual model due the
increase in COVID-19 incident rates. Throughout the week the key members of our district including
administration, members of the board, and presidents of both GJEA and GJESPA have been meeting to plan
for this change. The state department has continued to give the power of decision to the local LEAs to select
the learning model that is most appropriate for their situation.

At this time, the GJSD Board of Directors has decided to move GJSD into a​ ​full-remote learning
platform beginning on Thursday, November 12, 2020.​ We feel that this is the best decision and we will
continue to review our data and make the best decisions for our students, staff, and community. ​We will
remain in this learning model until Tuesday, December 1, 2020.
 The virtual learning will take place through the use of Google Classroom. Students will be REQUIRED
to participate in all of their courses on a regular basis, complete all assignments, and obligations assigned by
the teachers. The GJSD grading standards will remain in place and attendance will be taken through
participation in courses.

Elementary students will report as normal Monday and Tuesday. High school and Middle school
students in group A/B (Monday/Tuesday) report to school, participate in learning activities, and gather
materials needed for remote learning. The group C/D (Wednesday/Thursday) students were given their
materials on November 5, 2020 to prepare in the event of this recommendation coming from the
aforementioned departments.

All GJSD employees will continue to report to our schools daily to provide support and continue to
monitor the situation closely. Teachers will provide​ synchronous and asynchronous​ daily instruction, 5 days
per week, provide office hour support, and communicate with students/parents. Guidance counselors and
student support services will remain available during this time through teleconferencing.

If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to reach out to our offices. We, as a district,
recognize the challenges associated with remote learning and will strive to provide the best possible education
to our families. Some things to note for further support:

● The school nurses will be in contact with families to arrange for medication pickup.
● Afterschool programming (ASL/TLC) will continue in a virtual setting.
● There will be additional guidance on food distribution sites sent out early next week.
● If your child requires technology assistance help sessions are available at the following locations:
○ Mondays - JHS - 10am - Noon
○ Wednesdays - JMS - 10am - Noon
○ Fridays - JES - 10am - Noon

The safety of our students and staff is our first priority. We thank you for your patience and understanding. We
are here to support you and your families during these unprecedented times of this global pandemic.

Stay safe and stay informed,

Amy Arcurio
Superintendent

Michael Dadey
Pandemic Coordinator