Washington County Public Schools

812 Thompson Drive, Abingdon, Virginia 24210

Telephone: (276) 739-3000 FAX: (276) 628-1874
THE SCHOOL BOARD
BRIAN C. RATLIFF, ED.D.
Tom Musick, Chair
S u p e r i n te n d e n t
Elizabeth P. Lowe, Vice Chair
William L. Brannon
JEFF NOE, ED.D.
Billy W. Brooks
Assistant Superintendent
Megan A. Hamilton
J. Sanders Henderson, III

September 3, 2021

Dear WCS School Community:

Today marks Day 20 of the 2021-2022 school year. Please know how very grateful we remain for your continued
patience, understanding, resolve and cooperative spirit during such ongoing challenging times.

While we have much better information with which to navigate our circumstances than we had in the previous school
year, the COVID-19 virus continues to challenge our capacity and ability to balance some normalcy in school life with safety
for all. In our schools, we strive every day to ensure your child(ren)’s school life is engaging, and full of student learning
opportunities while maintaining a high level of commitment to the safety of each student.

Understandably, over the last few weeks, we have received calls, questions and concerns from parents, guardians,
and community members about maintaining in-person learning with anticipation of a possible return to a virtual learning
environment. As educators and parents, we understand these concerns for student safety. State law requires that we
maintain in-person learning five days per week unless we are forced to move to a temporary remote virtual learning model
due to high COVID transmission within a particular school, and in conjunction with VDH direction and guidance. IF that were
to occur, it would only be for the time required to help lower and/or mitigate COVID transmission inside that school. (see
Senate Bill 1303 (law) and associated provisions) -
https://www.wcs.k12.va.us/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1792014&type=d&pREC_ID=2240836

All COVID-positive individuals are required to isolate. Persons deemed a close contact to a known positive will be
required to quarantine for a duration determined in the current guidelines set forth by the Virginia Department of Health.

Due to the increased COVID transmission rate in our region, WCPS has begun posting our active COVID positive
cases on the Washington County Public Schools website. We encourage you to refer to important information on our
COVID-19 Updates section (https://www.wcs.k12.va.us/). In the coming days and on an up-to-date basis, additional and
helpful information will be provided. Also, please be reminded the health screening assessment needs to be reviewed every
morning before coming to school/work (https://4.files.edl.io/e548/08/27/21/203911-598b67bc-1bdc-4420-b731-
ca8ac1c71940.pdf).

No matter the circumstances, we appreciate the earnest partnership we have between school, parents, and
community. While we may not always align in personal thoughts and opinions, we will not be able to maintain in-person
learning and school community life without the cooperation and commitment of one another. In that vein, please continue
your positive support, resolve and attention to mitigation efforts in and out of the school setting. Everything we do whether
engaged in school activity or outside of school activity can and most likely will affect our ability to maintain an in-person
learning environment.

We wish you a very safe and enjoyable holiday weekend and we look forward to seeing everyone on Tuesday,
September 7.
Respectfully,

Dr. Brian C. Ratliff, Superintendent

Washington County Public Schools - Committed to the Success of Every Student