Parents and Guardians,

Our teachers, administrators, and support professionals are excited to welcome students back for the 2021-22 school year. I understand many of our parents remain concerned as COVID-19 continues to spread in our community, but please know that district leaders have been working tirelessly to ensure campuses are prepared to provide proper health and safety protocols when students and staff return.

On Friday, the Florida Department of Health adopted a new Emergency Rule, 64DER-21-12, which states “Students may wear masks or facial coverings as a mitigation measure, however, the school must allow for a parent or legal guardian to opt-out the student from wearing a face covering or mask.”

With that said, I am announcing today that Hillsborough County Public Schools will require face coverings but will allow parents or guardians to opt their child out from wearing a face covering or mask. This requirement will continue until at least September 3^rd. We will continue to work with our health partners at TGH/USF Health to monitor conditions in our community at that time to make further decisions.

While the outcome may be the same whether we make face coverings optional or required with an opt-out, we believe this decision continues to illustrate that Hillsborough County Public Schools takes public safety seriously. We want to ensure we are doing all we can to help community wide efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. By taking this position today, we hope this provides our families time over the weekend to talk with their children before the start of school on Tuesday, August 10.

Parents will be expected to have conversations with their children so that students will follow through with their parents’ expectations regarding wearing masks while at school.

If you wish to opt-out your child, please fill out the HCPS Mask Opt Out Form here - web.hillsboroughschools.org/maskoptout. The only parents who should fill out the form are those who do not want their child to wear a mask. Parents must fill out a form for each child.

We are excited for the new school year and we thank you for trusting Hillsborough County Public Schools with your child’s education.

Respectfully,

Addison G. Davis

Superintendent of Schools

Changes to Grady Security Protocols and Events

Due to changes in Hillsborough County Public Schools' policies, Grady Elementary updated the 2021-22 Security Procedures. On Tuesday, August 10th, parents will be able to walk their students to their classroom door. Starting on Wednesday, August 11th, students will enter campus independently through the designated front gates. Extra faculty, patrols, and Grady's Security Officer will be available to assist as needed. 

In addition, no visitors will be allowed on campus for the first 30 days. As a result, we have cancelled Tiger Tears (August 10th) and Grandparent's Breakfast (Sept 2 & 3). 

Due to the new Covid protocols, we have tentatively scheduled after school enrichment clubs to run from September 27th - November 17th. More details will be shared in early September. 

To view the HCPS's Covid-19 student protocols, please click here.  

School Kits

Thank you to everyone that ordered School Kits! The kits are being delivered to Grady and will be sent to your child's classroom by Open House. Please note that the kits do not include backpacks or headphones. If you did not order the school kits, you can find the list of supplies by grade HERE.

Uniform Swap

PTA will be hosting a Uniform Swap at Open House on August 6th from 8:00 - 10:00 am. You can drop off your gently worn uniforms at the Grady Elementary Office from July 26th - August 4th. Uniforms will be sorted by size and available to pick up during Open House. 

After School Enrichment Clubs

After School Enrichment Clubs are planned for Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays in Fall from September 13 - November 17th. More details about clubs will be announced in mid-August. Volunteers are needed for ASE Club attendance and dismissal. Please contact [email protected] if you are interested in volunteering. 

Amazon Wishlists

While purchasing teacher wish list items, please designate Grady PTA as the recipient of a portion of your Amazon purchases on Amazon Smile. Follow the link: https://smile.amazon.com/ch/23-7102322 to get started.  

Save the Date for Upcoming Events

PTA General Meeting via Zoom - August 13th at 8:00 am

    Zoom id: 246 994 1760

    Pw: Grady

    This will be a very quick meeting to review and approve our 2021-22 budget and vote in two new executive board members: 

1.   Secretary - Katie Sickle
2.   Corresponding Secretary - Rachel Zysk

Dad's Club 

1st meeting will be held Thursday, August 26th from 7-9 pm at the Brass Tap at 203 N. Dale Mabry Highway. Please RSVP to [email protected] and include your contact information (name and phone #). Dad's Club is open to all Grady dads.

Going for Gold: Team Grady

First Day of School

Tuesday, August 10, 2021