Re-Entry Planning Update: 7.1.20
Dear SJE Families,
I write in advance of the division-specific
Phase II Re-Entry Plans you will receive on July 15
to share important information with you about our continued planning. From the start, our approach has been shaped by two priorities: the safety and wellbeing of our students and employees, and providing continuity, stability, and predictability—the building blocks of effective learning—by offering as much as possible a ‘normal’ school day and schedule for your children. We have strived to keep disruption to a minimum while continuing to deliver an exceptional academic and co-curricular program, the hallmark of the St. John’s experience.
School leadership has spent countless hours participating in webinars, conference calls, and professional development, all offering many ideas, suggestions, and models for schools responding to the pandemic. We exhaustively researched so-called ‘learning zones,’ ‘cohorts,’ and ‘hybrid learning.’ In the end, we concluded that none of the aforementioned could provide a better model for our students, teachers, and school than the one we have devised. At the core of this is the belief that the optimal environment for effective teaching, learning, nurturing young minds, and supporting their social and emotional development is when they are together as a group rather than broken up, with every student simultaneously physically present in the same classroom rather than some in a separate room participating via technology, and each benefiting from ‘face-to-face’ learning facilitated by a dedicated teacher. I believe our plans strongly support our priorities and meet our goals for a safe and successful opening of the 2020-2021 school year.
Re-Entry Preparations
St. John’s preparations for the new school year include a number of significant measures to protect students and employees by mitigating the threat of COVID-19. Specifically, we have:
Added
- Acrylic desktop sneeze guards for every child in the school. You can learn more about these here (expected to arrive in approximately four weeks)
- PikMyKid - a mobile app to ensure student dismissals in lower and middle divisions are safe and more efficient
- Portable, HEPA air purification systems to further enhance airflow for each classroom
- Upgraded filters for our HVAC systems and running fans continually to increase airflow and circulation
- Multiple hand sanitizing stations - one per classroom and locations across campuses
- Bottle filling stations - at least one for each campus (drinking fountains will not be available)
- Signage reinforcing the importance of good hygiene among all members of the school community, especially when on campus
Implemented
- Enhanced cleaning protocols on each campus
- Developed CDC-driven policies and procedures for suspected cases of COVID-19 (staying away and returning to campus)
- Spaced student desks in each classroom to provide maximum possible physical distancing between students
- Required employees to take their temperatures each morning before coming to school
- Required student temperature-taking before students are permitted on campus and throughout the day
- Purchased pediatric, adolescent, and adult face coverings for emergency use, as well as disposable PPE gloves
- Lunches to be delivered to students in classrooms rather than eaten in large gatherings
- Minimized student transitions by changing a number of school day routines, including having teachers rotate to students and not vice versa
- Identified processes to limit unnecessary student movement during the school day and manage student ‘flow’ and larger gatherings such as Chapel
Face Coverings
A topic of great interest to all of us is the wearing of face coverings by students and employees throughout the school day from August 12. At this time, we have not yet made a final decision on whether to require them for everyone. We will continue to monitor developments and guidelines. What I can share with you is that face coverings will—at a minimum—be required for all students and faculty on at least four occasions during the school day:
- Morning arrival and afternoon dismissal
- Transitions between classes (these will be limited as much as possible)
- Chapel
Moreover, regardless of our final position, any student or employee who wishes to wear a face covering once classes are underway is welcome to do so.
For those participating in ‘Jump Start’, face coverings will be required for teachers and assistants in all divisions. They will also be required for lower and middle division student participants, and will be optional for primary division students. Medical exemptions will be permissible with a note from a physician stating the need for the individual to not wear a face covering.
Phase II Re-Entry Plan
You will learn much more about each division’s plans, procedures, expectations and policies on July 15. It is important to keep in mind that COVID-19 is fluid, and our response is subject to change at short notice. We recognize that some parents may not feel comfortable with their child returning to school in August and will do all we can to support those families via distance learning.
All parents are reminded to complete and return the applicable form (available on the Magnus Health portal) informing the school of your decision no later than the end of July 22.
If we do not receive a completed form by that deadline, we will move forward with the understanding your child(ren) will NOT be returning on August 12 and, instead, will remain away from campus at least through October 7.
Please feel free to reach out to your child’s respective division director(s) with any questions you may have. We will continue to communicate and share more important details as necessary. Thank you so much for sharing your children with us. We are extremely excited at the prospect of seeing them back at school!
Sincerely,
Hugh Jebson
Head of School
