November 20, 2020

Dear Hollis students and families,

We first want to thank you for your patience and understanding in navigating new challenges and inconveniences this school year. It hasn’t been easy, and we appreciate the work everyone has done to support students and learning.

Unfortunately, Region 2 and the state of Illinois have seen a rapid rise of COVID-19 cases that are both alarming and concerning for our students and staff. Therefore, we are making the extremely difficult decision, as an Administration and Board of Education, to continue with remote learning for all students, effective November 30 – December 18.

At this time, and in the spirit of being proactive, we hope to have a return date of January 5, 2021, for in-person learning with dismissal at 12:30. We realize this announcement poses some challenges, and we wanted to give you plenty of time to plan for this change. It is our hope that this offers some consistency in an ever-changing, inconsistent world. As we have stated from the beginning, we will continue to follow the guidelines of the health department to keep everyone safe and healthy.

We recognize this decision will please some and frustrate others. We promise it was not a decision any of us took lightly, and it was made after much discussion and in consultation with the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Peoria County Health Department. At the end of the day, both the Administration and Board of Education felt continuing with remote learning was necessary to protect the health and welfare of not only our students and staff but also the Hollis community.

We stand proud of what we have accomplished since our start date nearly 14 weeks ago. We want to thank our dedicated teachers, building staff, students, and families for working together in education, health, and safety. While nothing is a perfect substitution for in-person learning, our teachers are committed to providing the best education possible under the current circumstances. We feel confident in their abilities to deliver instruction in a way that will provide consistency, rigor, and a strong social-emotional classroom connection during these troubling times.

We recognize you have questions about how this announcement will affect your family and daily schedule. Over the next few days, please watch for additional information regarding material pickup and lunch distribution. As always, please do not hesitate to contact us with questions.

Sincerely,

Chad Jones
Superintendent/Principal

Alisha Schoedel
Assistant Principal

Board of Education
Hollis Consolidated District #328