ALASKA GATEWAY SCHOOL DISTRICT

PO BOX 226, TOK, AK 99780

Ph: 907.883.5151 Fax: 907.883.5154
Scott MacManus – Superintendent of Schools

Date: April 6, 2020

To: AGSD Staff, Parents, and Community
From: Scott MacManus, Superintendent
RE: AGSD COVID-19 Update

Please note that by the time you read this, things may have changed.

Summary
Right now the reality of the lockdown mandate is really taking hold across the state, and the
COVID case count is mounting. We learned this week that a-symptomatic people can be carriers
and not know it, and the federal and state guidelines now include wearing a mask at all times
when out in the public. It is important to note that our state government is working, and is taking
all appropriate preparatory measures, just as the school district continues to serve our students
and their families in far less than ideal situation. The district is serving approximately 850 meals a
day (breakfast and lunch) to eligible students, AP&T continues to install internet for students and
staff, and the percentage of students who now have internet access is increasing. AGSD
administration is planning and preparing to implement the roll out of our “Phase II” Instructional
Plan.

For now, In Alaska and as of this writing:

• There are 191 confirmed cases of COVID
• 7 new cases in the past 24 hours.
• 24 are hospitalized
• 6 total deaths attributed to COVID
• 6800+ tests

In the US:
• There are currently 1.35M cases worldwide, and 368k confirmed cases is the US (UP 30,000
in that last 24 hours
• 10,950 total deaths attributed to COVID (up over 1400 a day)
• 2000 deaths in the past 48 hours

“Educating all students to reach their full potential as responsible citizens”

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Fax: 907-882-2112 Fax: 907-547-2302 Fax: 907-291-2325 Fax: 907-778-2221 Fax: 907-883-5165 Fax: 907-883-4390 Fax: 907-324-2114
AGSD Management of the COVID-19 Health Emergency
As Superintendent I participate in various VTC meetings each day, typically starting with the
Commissioners briefing first thing, (now 3 days a week) and then either an AGSD Admin or
Leadership meeting, then the TCC Briefing. At each of these I am able to stay up to date and learn
valuable information that is used to help formulate our approach to this situation. We have rolled out
Phase II of the district’s instructional plans for teachers along with an “AGSD Parent’s Guide” to
instruction.

This week we are starting to prepare for the upcoming Board Meeting.

Food Service
Food security is one of our most important roles for our community, as we go through the Pandemic.
Wednesday the 25th was our first day of food service distribution, and since then we have
streamlined efforts, and our food staff have really stepped up...putting in long hours to ensure that
our kids have balanced meals. Staff from all across the district distributed 850 meals (lunch and
breakfast to kids) a day to families all across the district. As this continues, we learn better ways to
safely get meals distributed

Quarantine
Our numbers of staff I quarantine goes up and down, and it has been difficult to track, but we are
trying. Last week we had nearly 20 staff in quarantine, but now we currently have 6. This number
will go up and down, and I have greatly appreciated how well our staff have done their part to help
flatten the curve. In Alaska, these efforts, combined with the efforts of many across the state, seem
to be making a big difference.