DeSoto Grade School

We will be recognizing our 8th grade athletes this week. 8th grade recognition night for boys basketball will take place tonight 2/22, and we will honor the girls volleyball team tomorrow night 2/23. Tonights games can be live streamed at the following links. VB at St. Bruno 5:00: https://www.facebook.com/stbrunoschool. BB vs. Tamaroa/St. B. 5:30: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClvIh19CE44q8HAHQBy1sgg Athletes will receive information regarding spectators at our home events. I have attached a letter that will be sent home with the athletes along with their tickets. Please adhere to the guidelines presented. Thank you and Go Rangers!

School will be in session on Friday. There are still a few slick spots on the side streets; be careful!

Tonight's home volleyball game can be viewed on the DGS Athletics YouTube Channel at the following link. Feel free to reach out to Mrs. Clough with feedback on the live stream. This is still a work in progress. Thank you! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClvIh19CE44q8HAHQBy1sgg

We will be playing basketball and volleyball games tonight, February 18. The boys basketball team will play at Giant City. That bus leaves at 4:30 for a 5:30 game. The volleyball team will have a home game tonight. That game begins at 4:30. The JV team needs to be here at 4:00 and the Varsity team needs to be here at 4:30. To view the basketball game, vist the Giant City FB page: https://www.facebook.com/principalbhill To view the volleyball game, visit the DeSoto Grade School FB page: https://www.facebook.com/dgsrangers86 Good luck Rangers!

We will be playing basketball and volleyball games tonight, February 18. The boys basketball team will play at Giant City. That bus leaves at 4:30 for a 5:30 game. The volleyball team will have a home game tonight. That game begins at 4:30. The JV team needs to be here at 4:00 and the Varsity team needs to be here at 4:30. There has not been a decision made regarding school for Friday.

School is canceled for Thursday, February 18. The secondary roads and walkways are still too slick for a safe commute. The ball games scheduled for tomorrow are not being canceled as of now. The road conditions may improve enough by tomorrow afternoon to allow for those activities to take place. I will broadcast a message with that information around one o'clock tomorrow. Have a good evening!

8th grade parents/students, Please check your email for information regarding the 8th grade placement process for freshman classes at CCHS for next school year. Due to the snow days, the deadline date may change, and we will update with new information as it becomes available.

School is canceled for Wednesday, February 17 at DeSoto Grade School. All activities and events are also canceled.

Due to the skiff of snow accumulated today, school is cancelled for Tuesday, February 16. All activities are cancelled as well. Take care and stay safe!

DeSoto Grade School will be closed on Friday, February 12. There are still too many slick areas on roads and walkways to permit a safe commute to and from school. Remember, school is closed on Monday for President’s Day. Have a good, safe weekend!

Due to the additional ice, sleet, and snow that we have received today, school will be cancelled for Thursday, February 11. All athletic events and practices are also cancelled. Have a good, safe day!

School will be cancelled for Wednesday, February 10 at DeSoto Grade School due to the forecasted freezing rain and ice accumulations overnight tonight and during the day on Wednesday. All sports practices are also cancelled. This is an old school snow day; no remote learning required. Enjoy!

Looks like an eventful weather week is possible for this week. It's been awhile since we've had to use emergency days due to inclement weather, so here is a reminder of how we will communicate a school closing for winter weather. We will use emergency days if the weather causes treacherous road conditions or an unsafe situation for students. I will announce through our "all-call" system, send a text, publish on our webpage, and utilize Facebook. Additionally, we will get the posting out to WSIL Channel 3. I will call off the night before if at all possible so that parents can have more time to make arrangements. I Let's hope for the best this week, but be sure to have some alternate plans ready in the event of wintry weather.

Athletic events for this evening, February 8: Girls VB at home vs Elverado. JV game begins at 4:30 with varsity game to follow. That game can be live streamed at: https://www.facebook.com/dgsrangers86. Boys BB at Elverado. JV game begins at 5:30 with varsity game to follow. That game can be live streamed at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjQvGfH-q6swOWhfNhh77iw Good luck Rangers!

Have you downloaded the DeSoto Grade School app? Are you receiving notifications? Make sure notifications are turned on so you aren't missing out on any updates!

Our boys basketball team and girls volleyball team begin their seasons tonight with games against Pinckneyville 204. Remember that there are no spectators allowed at the games. You will be able to view tonight's games at the following links: Boys basketball game vs 204 at home: https://www.facebook.com/dgsrangers86 Girls volleyball at 204: https://www.facebook.com/204Tigers Good luck to both teams. Go Rangers!

Be sure to visit https://www.desoto86.org/ or the DeSoto Grade School app for current sports schedules. You can find a printable version for boys basketball and girls volleyball under the calendar tab. You can also find the schedules along with directions to the schools in the athletics section https://www.desoto86.org/athletics. Please remember these schedules are subject to change.

Time for another athletics update from Mrs. Clough: Boys Basketball and Girls Volleyball will begin playing games next week. Girls Basketball will begin in March. Here are a few things to keep in mind as the season begins. Please remember that this can all change at any moment. -Spectators will not be allowed. This is due to guidelines set by the Illinois Department of Public Health requiring fans to be at least 30 feet from the playing surface. -Most games will be live streamed by the home team. I will post a link prior to each game. -Locker rooms will not be available. Players must come ready to play. Players must have their uniform on UNDER regular clothing. -Masks must be worn at all times. This includes during the game. -Most schools will not have concessions. IF concessions are available it will be grab and go items only. Please make sure athletes have a water bottle for their game. I will continue to post updates as new information is available to us. Thank you all for being patient as we work through these new guidelines.

SIJHSAA UPDATE 1-20-21 A lot has changed since our last update on Friday. Region 5 has been moved to Phase 4 in the Restoring Illinois Plan. So, what does that mean for athletics? -Medium Risk Sports: (Volleyball) May conduct practice. Intra-team scrimmages may be conducted with parental consent. Contests are permitted against other schools within their COVID Region or conference. -High Risk Sports: (Basketball) May conduct practices. Intra-team scrimmages are permitted with parental permission. No contests are permitted. *All participants and coaches who can medically tolerate a face covering must wear a face covering when unable to maintain at least a 6 foot social distance. *Contests for Volleyball may start on February 1. Athletes should contact their respective coaches for information regarding practices. While this is good news for our athletes and coaches, please know that this was unexpected good news. Since it was so unexpected, there are many details that still need to be worked out. Please be patient with us as we sort out the details and await guidance from SIJHSAA. We will pass information along to you as soon as we have it. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

SIJHSAA Sports update: Sports are still on pause per stipulations of the Governor’s Office and IDPH. Currently, all 11 Illinois COVID regions are in Tier 3 mitigations. We do not have any type of timeline when interscholastic games would be allowed to start. On Friday, January 15, any of the 11 Illinois Covid regions could qualify to move to Tier 2 mitigations -per IDPH requirements. Please keep in mind that Tier 2 mitigations do not allow for contests to be played. Volleyball teams would be allowed to practice as a medium risk sport, but games would not be allowed. If basketball is not moved from high risk to at least medium risk, basketball teams will not be allowed practice regardless of the Tier status. If a given region does not move to Tier 2 and remains in Tier 3, then the sports for the schools in those regions will remain paused. IHSA, which is high school level, will be having a meeting on January 27, where they will be discussing what sports might still be able to compete this year and what those schedules would look like. Once IHSA has their plan in place, SIJHSAA will begin to devise their plan. The SIJHSAA will have a special board meeting on Monday, February 1, 2020. Hopefully the SIJHSAA Board will make some solid decisions concerning the remaining sports for this school year.