Hello Dolphins!  This is Kristen Faircloth, proud principal at Durant Road Middle School, with your July 26, 2020 Family Message.

We hope you had a wonderful weekend and are enjoying the hot yet beautiful summer weather.  While we know there are still many unknowns for the 2020-2021 school year, please know that the Durant Road Middle School team is working hard behind the scenes to streamline what the year will look like.  Many factors are being taken into consideration like Virtual Academy numbers, staffing, safety, and much more.  Thank you for your patience during this unprecedented summer of planning.  Please take a moment to read the message below as it contains important information as well as necessary survey links.  As always, please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns, we are here to help!

Changes to the Start of the School Year:  The district announced that it will delay bringing students back to campus under Plan B.  Instead, all students will begin the school year in online instruction.  The first two weeks of school for all students will focus on orientation and the distribution of supplies.  Students will not be initially divided into groups A, B, C during the first two weeks.  The first day of school for DRMS online instruction is Monday, August 17, 2020.  During this transitional period, the district will focus on its readiness for welcoming students back on campus while also monitoring guidance from local and state health officials.  

Facts with Faircloth:  With the announcement of WCPSS' Plan B Transition decision, we will hold a virtual principal chat (Facts with Faircloth) for families on Monday, July 27, 2020 at 5:00 PM.  The format will be a google meet that will be recorded and can be watched at a later time.  Please sign up using the following link:   Facts with Faircloth Signup Form .  A link for the google meet will be emailed to families who register.  We hope you find this community engagement session informative!

DRMS Virtual Visits:  A great way to learn more about Durant Road Middle School is to take a Virtual Visit!  Please visit the Durant Road Middle School Website to take a virtual tour of the school as well as meet the staff!  Within the Virtual Visits, you will find important information and helpful resources.  

Virtual Academy Updates:  There have been many questions in the community regarding the differences between the Virtual Academy and Plan A/B/C.  This chart is a helpful resource to distinguish between the two: Compare Virtual Academy and Plan A/B/C Chart.  A new Virtual Academy Registration window will open for the WCPSS families on July 27 - July 29.  The application will close on Wednesday July 29th at 5pm.  You may register using this link.  Families who have already applied to the Virtual Academy and would like to withdraw or change their application, please contact Durant Road Middle School (Zaquana Diggs, Data Manager) and we will make the necessary changes.  For more information about Virtual Academy, please visit the WCPSS Virtual Academy website.

WCPSS Technology Survey:  This is a friendly reminder that WCPSS is asking all families with a student in grades K-12 to complete this survey for each student, regardless of their school, whether they have applied to the Virtual Academy, whether they have a device or whether you need a device.  This short survey will help WCPSS better understand the needs of our students and make sure that we are able to meet those needs. 

A Message from the DRMS PTA:  Although this school year will be very different from years past, the PTA is already working on plans to support our DRMS community. We hope you will consider joining the PTA – it’s a great way to stay connected to our school family, especially in these challenging times. You can join online through Memberhub or from our webpage. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to durantroadmiddlepta@gmail.com with any questions. Thanks as always for supporting DRMS!

Thank you for supporting DRMS,

Kristen Faircloth

Principal