COVID-19 Updates-Buildings closed through May 31st and Alternate Graduation Plans Will Be Made
Thursday, April 2, 2020
On April 1, Governor Pete Ricketts announced Nebraska’s eighth Directed Health Measure (DHM). As part of this DHM, schools statewide are directed to operate without students in their buildings through May 31st. Extracurricular activities are cancelled statewide as well.
Traditional graduation ceremonies are not going to be possible this May. Diller-Odell Public Schools will be working to determine appropriate alternative methods to honor the Class of 2020, whether that be a ceremony at a later date or some other locally determined alternative graduation that complies with the guidance of health officials.
Monday, March 23, 2020
After consultation with our Health Department and other State and Local officials, it has been determined that Diller-Odell, and all schools in the ESU 5 Region will be closed through Friday, May 1st, with the possibility of schools being closed for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year. This decision will be re-evaluated as circumstances change, and another announcement will be made on April 22nd concerning the rest of the 2019-2020 school year. This is a precautionary public health measure; local health and school officials are monitoring the COVID-19 situation in Southeast Nebraska closely. School Superintendents met with Public Health Solutions and determined that this action would help prevent exposure to our area to flatten the curve and decrease the spread of disease.
Monday, March 16, 2020
Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, Diller-Odell Public Schools, and the other ESU #5 schools will be closed to students Wednesday, March 18 through Tuesday, March 31. School facility use, such as the fitness centers will also be closed during this time. Staff may come in to their rooms as needed.
This decision has been reached after much discussion and deliberation with state and local authorities. We currently plan to resume school on Wednesday, April 1st but may need to extend that closure, based on the recommendations from health officials.
As always, our first priority is the safety and well-being of our students. We will continue to keep you informed should we need to extend the school closure. I have confidence that we have the best team in place to face this unprecedented challenge together. Thank you for your partnership and commitment to keeping our students and our community safe.
Sunday, March 15, 2020
As noted, at this point we will remain in session, but until further notice we are not planning on any field trips. We also will not be allowing outside groups to use our facilities for alumni sports, youth sports, dinners etc.
Friday, March 13, 2020
Although due to the coronavirus many conferences and activities have been cancelled, our plan at Diller-Odell is to follow the Commissioner of Education's direction and continue having school at this time. Below is his statement:
UNLESS state or local health officials ask you to close, it is recommended that you hold school in your regular order. I believe there are community needs that your normal operations serve. HOWEVER, there are circumstances that schools have decided to close based on their own understanding of local community needs and I will try to support those decisions as well.
If a time comes that we know there is community spread of the virus, and school is not a safer place than being out and about, our plans could change.