HUTCHINSON, Kan. — During a special meeting of the Hutchinson Public Schools Board of Education Monday, members passed a resolution to thank staff and students for their work during a school year marked by a historic pandemic.
Resolution 2020-015 states:
WHEREAS, the mission of Hutchinson Public Schools is, “Educating, empowering and preparing every student for life,” the vision is, “Today's students prepared for tomorrow’s world," and its core values are, “Honor, persistence, compassion, scholarship and excellence”; and
WHEREAS, the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic caused Hutchinson Public Schools to be closed on March 13th, 2020, for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year; and
WHEREAS, students and staff have undergone significant changes in the education process, which have resulted in the loss of daily classroom education, experiences outside the classroom, and supportive and nurturing relationships between staff and students; and
WHEREAS, the Hutchinson High School graduating class of 2020 will not experience prom, the traditional graduation ceremony and other milestone opportunities; and
NOW, THEREFORE, The Board of Education of USD 308 Hutchinson Public Schools do hereby proclaim May 22nd, 2020 as
“USD 308 Appreciation Day”
in the City of Hutchinson and encourage all citizens to promote and celebrate the accomplishments of the staff and students in USD 308.
Hutchinson USD 308 Superintendent Mike Folks shared his appreciation with students and staff.
"Words can't adequately express how proud I am of the great resolve shown by our students and staff during this pandemic,” he said. “I appreciate their creative and resilient work not only to learn and educate but to support each other during this pandemic
The Hutchinson City Council is expected to approve the same resolution at its Tuesday meeting.
The COVID-19 pandemic led Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly to close school buildings in mid-March. Schools, in turn, had to move to online and other remote learning models. The closure led to the end of spring activities including co-curricular and extracurricular activities in Kansas as well as prom, awards ceremonies and graduations.
Hutchinson High School has set July 26 as its graduation date.