#InstructionalMomentMonday aims to recognize great instructional moments in Ohio County Schools and provide feedback on how to keep the instruction going at home!
It may seem ironic to have an #InstructionalMomentMonday today. Aside from one day of instruction that ended with an unexpected early dismissal, it’s been over two weeks since our students have been in a classroom. When students returned from spring break, they were met with downpours that soon turned into hazardous road conditions and flooding. Ultimately, the Ohio River crested at nearly 42 feet Thursday. Many homes and roads were impacted. Many OCS families were affected.
While students may have been out of the classroom, extremely valuable instruction was present. Mr. Rogers (and Madison Elementary School Principal Andrea Trio) often say “Look for the helpers.” Helpers were present at every corner last week.
Our OCS families and staff were phenomenal helpers during our unexpected early dismissal Tuesday. Families were flexible, kind, and understanding. Staff ensured every student was accounted for, fed, and calm. Many stayed late to allow for additional flexibility for families. Our community came together.
Many OCS employees were phenomenal helpers throughout the flooding last week. Director of Operations at Ohio County Schools, Mr. Crumm, worked countless hours in multiple buildings to ensure everything was as safe as it could possibly be. Dozens of custodians, maintenance workers, and bus drivers joined him. Dr. Miller and Mr. Jones spent much of their week at Madison Elementary School helping move materials to higher ground. Nearly 100 administrators, teachers, support staff, and students of all ages joined in this effort as well. Local businesses offered support in a variety of ways. Our community came together.
When the waters began receding, many in our OCS community needed cleaning supplies, food, and clothing. OCS school counselors were phenomenal helpers. They went into immediate action, organizing efforts to gather supplies and coming up with a plan to make sure the community could access it, often working together to arrange drop off locations. When supplies ran out, our counselors worked rapidly to secure more. At one point, when cars were too full to transfer more materials, a Triadelphia Middle School teacher simply said, “I’ll meet you there in ten minutes.” This was preceded by central office employees Mrs. Minch and Ms. Senkbeil dropping off an entire van load of materials for families. Community members visited all day delivering even more supplies with one community member even making a large monetary donation to provide to “any family in need.” It was a common sight to see our teachers and administrators (and their children) following families in need to their cars to help lighten the load affected families had to carry. Our community came together.
In Ohio County, we often use the hashtag #TogetherWeAchieve. And we try very hard to hold true to that statement. We believe in collaboration, innovation, and most importantly, our community. This #InstructionalMomentMonday looks different from previous posts. The instruction extends far beyond the classroom, and we hope the instruction inspires continued lessons. Last week offered an additional reminder of what #TogetherWeAchieve really means. We are all helpers. Our community comes together. We are Ohio County.