Calendar Change: No School on Friday, November 12

Due to staff and substitute shortages, we are changing the 2021-2022 calendar. Thursday, November 11, 2021, our district is closed in observance of Veterans Day.  Friday, November 12, 2021, our schools will be closed, the central office will be open. Athletics, activities, and school facility use will operate as scheduled on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. This day will be made up on Friday, March 25, 2022.

Like districts across the country, we continue to see sustained staff shortages in multiple teams across our district, including teachers, bus drivers, nutrition services, paraeducators, and office support staff.

"I recognize the hard work and dedication of our staff in supporting our students and families amidst extraordinary challenges. Unfortunately, this pandemic has impacted us all in so many ways," said Interim Superintendent Israel Vela. "I know that each of us in Team KSD is working through trauma caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. During the pandemic, our staff, at every level, has experienced an unprecedented amount of stress, impacting their mental health. Unfortunately, we cannot safely operate schools with the staff and substitute shortages we are already seeing in our data."

Our teachers, support staff, and administrators at every level and in our central office have gone above and beyond each day to serve our students and families, often sacrificing the time they need to take care of themselves. The levels of stress in our staff are incredibly concerning, we believe this has in part led to the high volume of planned leave for Friday, November 12.  

We recognize decisions about school schedules impact families and may add additional strain. We also know this decision may extend our school year. However, student and staff safety is our priority, and we cannot safely operate schools due to staff and sub shortages in our schools. Our Human Resources team is updating the school calendar; revised calendars will be posted to our website as soon as they are available.