Forward Janesville - TheReport - First Quarter 2021

Our 2021 Vision Board We asked local leaders what they envision for 2021, given the new reality we all occupy after a very destabilizing 2020. Here’s what they told us. In 2016, Blackhawk Technical College set a strategic priority to focus on education options to meet student, industry, and community needs. Who could have fathomed how important this focus would become in March 2020. That work was put to the test in March when the College was forced to shut down and move education online. Thankfully, the College's planning and investments meant that it took only two days to pause, retool, pivot, and continue delivering education. Delivering on our promise of flexible education in a supportive environment during the pandemic, Blackhawk Technical College: • increased access to technology for our students by providing access to Wi-Fi and offering free hotspots and laptops for students in need, • provided access to food and other household items through our Student Cupboard, and • offered free mental health counseling to students as well as free flu shots and COVID-19 testing. Since fully reopening our doors in June, our safety protocols have resulted in zero confirmed spread of COVID on our campuses. And proudly, we kept the choice in the student's hands, not ours, as we remained open for business. Through our valuable community partnerships, we have been a leader in COVID-19 response. Free community-wide testing on our campus began in October and will continue until March. Our attention is now shifting to vaccinations as we continue to work with key partners to create a community-wide vaccine clinic on our Central Campus. The coming year will be an exciting one at BTC. From new programs to athletic and extra-curricular opportunities, Blackhawk will continue to keep students at the center of our work. We are grateful for voter support of the $32 million referendum for a new Public Safety and Transportation Center. This three-phase project is slated for completion in late 2023. We are proud to be a part of the solution to this pandemic and economic recovery. Although we are concluding a year of tremendous upheaval few of us will ever forget, the pandemic has not deterred us. We continue to transform our campus, delivering essential training and education and creating new programs to serve our community. Without question, COVID-19 pushed everyone out of our routines, forcing us to address challenges that none of us expected to face. As a community, we can be proud of how we have addressed this pandemic and can take lessons learned to move us all forward. The School District of Janesville (SDJ) and Forward Janesville have common goals: to do our part to make this community a great place to live, learn, work, and play. Everything SDJ does is built around our promises—that every student is known by name, strength, and need, and every student graduates ready for college, career, and life. Our team is focused on doing what it takes to address student needs and achievement gaps and improve learning outcomes for all students. We have become a 1-1 district, where every student is provided an internet connected device. We are modernizing and updating resources for both students and staff and adopting a new math curriculum for grades K-12 and a new Language Arts curriculum for students in grades 6-12. For a community to thrive and for business to be successful, our schools must be successful. Janesville has a long history of supporting its schools and students, and that was evident again through the recently passed referenda. With this support, our staff and schools will continue to serve students and the community while addressing critical safety and security needs of our schools. Looking ahead to 2021 and beyond, SDJ will take the lessons learned over the past year, keeping the social and emotional needs of our students at the forefront. All of this is done so that our students graduate prepared to take advantage of the opportunities that Janesville, and the rest of the world, will present to them. Perhaps one silver lining we can take from the pandemic is appreciating the renewed importance of the communal experience. We are all in this together. SDJ is proud to be a partner with Forward Janesville, knowing that our collective strength is building a brighter future for all. Part of the Solution Tracy Pierner • President, Blackhawk Technical College “As a community, we can be proud of how we have addressed this pandemic and can take lessons learned to move us all forward.” “Through our valuable community partnerships, we have been a leader in COVID-19 response.” Moving Forward - Janesville! Steve Pophal • Superintenden, School District of Janesville 14 • W W W . F O R W A R D J A N E S V I L L E . C O M