Jenks Tribune, Digital Issue 52 - August 7, 2020

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FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2020

JENKS PUBLIC SCHOOLS T O OPEN 2020-2021 WI T H DIS TANCE LEARNING

By Kyle Salomon

Several weeks after releasing a three-option “Return to Learn” plan, Jenks Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Stacey Butterfield announced Monday that all students in the Jenks school district will begin the year in a Distance Learning plan due to the rise in COVID-19 numbers in Tulsa County. The announcement came during a Jenks Public Schools Board of Education meeting. The 20202021 school year was slated to begin Aug. 19 for Jenks, but after Monday’s news, the start date is now Aug. 24. “After the July 13 School Board meeting when we rolled out the three-option learning plan, we were excited and thought that was how we were going to begin the school year,” Butterfield said. “As the number of positive cases in Tulsa County continued to increase, along with the recommendations from the (Oklahoma) State Board of Education and (Oklahoma) State Department of Health, our team looked and said it would be hard to determine what metric to follow if we didn’t follow this.” The original “Return to Learn” plan was put together by Jenks Public Schools Administration and approved by the Jenks Public Schools Board of Education in mid-July. It consisted of three options, which included at-school learning, all-virtual learning, and blended learning. The original three-option plan will go back into effect when it is deemed safe for the students to return to the classrooms and

OSU STUDENT GE T S IN DEEP WITH OKLAHOMA AQUARIUM BULL SHARKS By Kyle Salomon

Oklahoma Aquarium volunteer Trae Taylor was the Dive with the Bull Sharks contest winner in 2020. The Wewoka, Oklahoma native was selected out of hundreds of entries from across the country and had the opportunity to dive in the bull shark tank Friday at the Oklahoma Aquarium. After having the chance to dive in the aquarium’s Polynesian tank and sea turtle tank, Taylor said he was ready to jump in with the sharks. “The whole day I was just ready to get in the water,” Taylor said. “If there was a feeling to describe this, it would be as if I was a kid again waiting to open presents on Christmas morning.” Taylor said the moment was surreal when he first entered the water. “My thoughts were, ‘WOW this is actually happening. Something I have always dreamed of as a kid is actually happening right now.’” Taylor said his interaction with the sharks was an incredible opportunity. “It was so amazing,” Taylor said. “Looking at those sharks and being around them was a beautiful experience.

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Distance Learning is no longer required. Because of that, the deadline to opt into the all-virtual learning plan remains this Friday. Jenks Public Schools will remain in the Distance Learning plan until Tulsa County’s COVID-19 numbers are in the “Yellow Level” of the COVID-19 Alert Levels Chart from the State Board of Education. The “Yellow Level” means no more than 14.39 cases per 100,000 people. “We took a deeper dive into the color-coded system and felt that is where we needed to be,” Butterfield said. “Our goal is to be at school with our students and our employees. We are more comfortable knowing if we can get these numbers down in Tulsa County, they are going to start looking at transitioning us back to at-school. We are looking at twoconsecutive weeks in the ‘Yellow’ before we stop the required Distance Learning. There also may be other information we may be gaining as well. Everyone is learning as we go, we are building the plane as we fly it.” Jenks Public Schools transitioned to a Distance Learning plan in mid-March after the global pandemic infiltrated the Jenks community. According to Jenks Public Schools Administration, this version of Distance Learning will be different than the one in the spring. This fall, Distance Learning included summer planning and preparation. It will include teaching, assessing, and grading new content and concepts and will require a larger time commitment. Devices and internet access support will also be available. cont. on pg 6

I’d say the closest a shark got was approximately 10 feet or so. The longer I was in there, the more interested and comfortable they got. The sharks were definitely curious of what was going on inside their home. They kept checking me out, but none came up close and personal. I assume they got the social distancing memo.” Taylor said the experience was almost exactly what he expected. “The sharks showed signs of curiosity,” Taylor said. “I did expect though that at least one shark would have been curious enough to come up close. Other than that, the dive was everything I expected plus more. No matter how calm you are, once you see that first 300-pound plus shark, you get an amazing adrenalize rush. Also, I sense of complete peace comes from watching the beauty of sharks.” Taylor is a full-time student at Oklahoma State University and says his ultimate career goal is to work at an aquarium and do research on the species. As for diving, he said wants to take a major step the next time he gets into water with sharks. “Next on the list for me would have to be going to South Africa and getting in the water with a great white shark,” Taylor said. “I am trying to plan that after my graduation from Oklahoma State in 2021.”

807 East A Street Jenks, OK 74037

Call or text us 918-955-8152 biergartenjenks.com


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