NUTRITIONAL SERVICES UPDATE FOR MARCH 30-APRIL 3 (INCLUDING SPRING BREAK) -Aiken County Public Schools has been granted a waiver to distribute multiple days of meals to students. We are grateful to our dedicated team and know that delivering multiple days of meals at once will allow for a much-needed break for employees.

Tuesday, March 31, two breakfast and two lunch meals will be available for pick up at all schools and will be delivered along regular bus routes. Tuesday's distribution will cover student meals through Thursday morning’s breakfast.

Please click HERE to see full information for March 30-April 3, including Spring Break.

NUTRITION SERVICE BEGINS TUESDAY; DISTANCE LEARNING PACKETS AVAILABLE THURSDAY BEGINNING AT NOON, March 16, 2020 Update - Parents and Guardians: Thank you for your understanding of our need to meet with essential staff members as we completed plans to transition to Distance Learning and Nutritional service. Please note that while our schools are closed, our District office, teachers and staff are working. Although students are not physically in our classrooms, our employees’ commitment to meeting your students’ learning and nutritional needs will continue.

Please click HERE to see full information for March 16, 2020. 

ACPSD Student Home Computer & Internet Access Survey

We appreciate your flexibility and understanding and are certainly keeping all impacted by these changes in our thoughts.

ACPSD TO IMPLEMENT DISTANCE LEARNING & NUTRITION PLANS/NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS THROUGH MARCH (MARCH 15 UPDATE) - This afternoon, Governor McMaster has issued an executive order to close all public schools throughout the state for a minimum period of two weeks. Our District has been preparing for the potential of a closure, and, at this time, we are expediting Distance Learning and Nutrition planning to ensure continued student learning and nutritional service throughout this mandated closure.

This school closure will begin immediately and is expected to continue at least through the end of the month. There will be no school for students in Aiken County beginning tomorrow. District leaders and school principals are asked to report to their work locations tomorrow morning to finalize planning. Teachers and other staff members should be on call tomorrow and prepared to report to work, as requested, to assist with planning.

All staff members will be essential to the success of our Distance Learning and Nutritional Service and will be called upon, as needed, to support implementation. Aiken County Public Schools will meet its financial commitment to all employees.

Additional details on the distribution of students’ printed Distance Learning Packets, remote teacher conferencing and virtual learning will be shared with parents/guardians on or before Wednesday, March 18.

Aiken County Public Schools’ has submitted required documentation to the State Department and we expect to be able to begin transporting grab-and-go student meals to students 18-years and younger throughout the county as early as Tuesday, March 17.

We can only imagine the impact that this announcement will have on our families. Please know that our school district family is committed to supporting the educational and nutritional needs of our community. We appreciate your patience in finalizing plans with essential staff members tomorrow and will have additional information after that time.

HOME COMPUTER & INTERNET ACCESS INFORMATION REQUEST, MARCH 14, 2020 - To assist our teachers and staff in proactively planning for Distant Learning, should that be necessary due to a closure, please click on the link below and answer a few questions about home computer and internet access. Schools/Teachers may also be requesting the same through other communications. Please take a moment to complete this request. Paper copies of the same will be sent home with students on Monday, March 16. Please complete a separate survey for each of your Aiken County Public School students.

ACPSD Student Home Computer & Internet Access Survey

MARCH 14, 2020 UPDATE: STUDENTS TO BE DISMISSED THREE-HOURS EARLY WEDNESDAY, MARCH 18, FOR PRECAUTIONARY DISTANT LEARNING & NUTRITION STAFF TRAINING - Currently, there are no confirmed cases of coronavirus in Aiken County and no school closures planned at this time. Please read the following update on our District’s response and precautionary preparations related to coronavirus and be advised that students will be dismissed from school three hours early on Wednesday, March 18. Currently, there are no changes to the dismissal schedule for Thursday, March 19.

As you know, we have heightened precautions related to the spread of COVID-19 by implementing a coronavirus-eliminating disinfectant schedule, encouraging and practicing handwashing and other recommended procedures, postponing all field trips and non-essential professional travel outside of Aiken County, delaying athletic competition and our employee appreciation event, and temporarily suspending all work-based learning in healthcare facilities.

None of these precautionary measures, particularly those that have disappointed and caused concern for our students and their families, have been easily decided, or without thoughtful discussion and collaboration among district and school staff and leadership, as well as state officials.

Please be assured that we are closely monitoring the health of our schools and community, in collaboration with DHEC and the CDC. If a member of a students’ household has traveled in an area of outbreak, has come into contact with someone who has been diagnosed with coronavirus, or is diagnosed themselves with coronavirus, families are urged to report this information to their child’s school immediately.

While we have received no directive to close schools or recommendations from the governor or public health officials to do so at this time, as we mentioned last week, we are proactively planning and preparing for distance learning and nutritional services so that we are able to continue educating and ensuring healthy nutrition for the children of our community throughout a school closure, should that ultimately be necessary

In an effort to train and prepare teachers and other staff members for Distance Learning, all students will be dismissed from school three hours early on Wednesday, March 18. We understand that dismissing students three hours earlier than their regular dismissal time will be challenging to our families, but believe that it is necessary to ensure that our teachers and staff members are prepared to transition to Distance Learning and Nutritional Service, should that become necessary in Aiken County.

While again, there are no confirmed cases of coronavirus in our county and no plans for a school or district-wide closure for our District at this time, families are encouraged to begin considering arrangements for childcare should that action become necessary.

This situation seems to be ever-changing and there is as great deal of uneasiness that uncertainty may cause. What we can promise is transparency in our communication of precautionary measures being considered related to school operations and that Aiken County Schools is committed to the safety and health of our students, teachers and staff, and greater community, as well as our mission of public education.   

Official information and details on our district’s response to coronavirus are available on our website, www.acpsd.net. Should any further precautionary decisions be made, information will be shared promptly on our website and through phone call, email and text message.

SPECIAL OLYMPICS SPRING GAMES & PROJECT UNIFIED EVENTS CANCELED BY SPECIAL OLYMPICS SC, MARCH 13, 2020 - We received information last night from Special Olympics South Carolina (SOSC) that the Special Olympics Spring Games scheduled for Friday, April 24, is being cancelled as a precautionary measure due to COVID 19. In addition, all Project Unified events throughout the state are being cancelled as well. In Aiken County, this will include Unified Champions Bowling (hosted by Paul Knox Middle), Side Walk Art (hosted by North Augusta High), the Softball Tournament (hosted by Midland Valley High), and Perfect Prom (hosted by Wagener Salley High).

Please contact Jennifer Browne in the Department of Special Programs with any questions (803-641-2428).

Please click here to read full details about Special Olympics and Project Unified canceled events that was posted to the website on March 13,2020.

ATHLETIC COMPETITION UPDATE IN RESPONSE TO COVID-19, MARCH 13, 2020 - Aiken County Public School District administration, in consultation with Principals and Athletic Directors made the decision this afternoon to temporarily suspend all athletic competitions effective immediately. Regular athletic team practice will be permitted. This decision will continue to be evaluated, along with other precautionary measures related to COVID 19. As always, the safety of our students, coaches, fans and community-at-large is our highest priority and we regret any concerns related to this temporary suspension of all competitive athletic events.

COVID-19 UPDATE & ADDITIONAL PRECAUTIONS - MARCH 12, 2020 - We understand how overwhelming and concerning information about COVID 19 can be to our students, families and staff members. Currently, there is no confirmed case of coronavirus in our county and no suspected cases in which individuals are being asked to remain home for self-monitoring.

Please be assured that our school facilities and buses are being disinfected on a recommended, regular schedule with safe, but highly effective products approved for use to eliminate coronavirus. We are grateful for the support of our community in encouraging handwashing, staying home while sick, and practicing recommended precautionary measures to ensure that we, as a school community, are working together to protect the safety of our students, staff, and community-at-large.

We apologize that these precautionary actions are necessary and appreciate your understanding of these efforts being made to protect the safety of our students, staff and school community. 

Please click here to read full details about coronavirus that was posted to the website on March 12,2020.

NOVEL CORONAVIRUS GENERAL INFORMATION, MARCH 2, 2020 - Understanding that parents/guardians, teachers, and staff may have concerns about the widely-publicized new or “novel” coronavirus, COVID-19, and how this new family of viruses could impact our community and public schools, our district administration wants to ensure you are made aware of preventative efforts and procedures in place related to this public health concern.

Any matter which potentially threatens the health and safety of our schools is of highest priority to our District. District leaders have been in consistent communication with officials at both the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) and the South Carolina Department of Education. According to public health officials, the risk to the general public from Coronavirus remains low.

Please click here to read full details about coronavirus that was posted to the website on March 2,2020.