Dear JKHA/RKYHS Families, Faculty and Staff,
As we have shared with you earlier, the safest way for us to maintain in-person learning is by pivoting to remote learning for this week following Thanksgiving, from November 30th until December 4th. We recognize that remote learning presents many challenges for parents, students, and teachers, but it is the most prudent and responsible way for us to ensure our community’s safety during the second wave. Framing it this way, it is better for us to be remote for one week than risk the potential to be remote for a longer period of time.
Thanks to JKHA/RKYHS’s forward thinking and unique mitigation protocols, we screen our community twice weekly for early indications of COVID. The population surveillance screening process allows us to identify potential COVID cases in the school even if a student or teacher is asymptomatic. The process has proved its efficacy and helped prevent extended exposure to students and teachers.
The Health Committee together with the educational leadership has determined that the safest way to welcome back our students, faculty and staff is to screen all members of our community before we resume in-person studies on December 7th (December 8th for RKYHS). As such, we are requiring each member of our JKHA/RKYHS community to submit a saliva specimen on Thursday, December 3rd between the hours of 3:30-8:00pm. All members of our community are requested to arrive at school during these hours to submit a saliva specimen for screening. No appointment is necessary. A follow up email to this policy announcement will explain in more detail how the process will work.
If distance for commuters presents a problem or if you are not available during the window set for saliva submission, students, faculty and staff may take a rapid antigen test in lieu of a saliva submission. Results of the rapid test must be presented to the school offices before students may re-enter our building. Results should be sent to info@jkha.org.
We recognize that driving to school on Thursday afternoon with your children adds an additional burden to your family but in the interest of community health we ask that all members of our community partner with us to maintain the well-being of our students and teachers.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Sincerely,
Eliezer E. Rubin
