Dear EPHS Seniors & Families,
I hope this message finds you safe, healthy, and completing a successful first day of distance learning! On behalf of our entire school community, I want to thank you for the leadership, support, and flexibility you have displayed through these challenging and uncertain times. We're looking ahead to the major events scheduled in the coming months, including prom and our graduation ceremony, and I wanted to share some updates on our planning efforts.
We continue to take guidance from local, state, and national agencies, and to collaborate with our host venues. A lot of unknowns remain about whether we will be able to host events and the potential limitations we might face. Nonetheless, our goal continues to be to avoid cancelling important milestone events, and instead develop alternative plans. With that comes uncertainty as we seek to make informed decisions about how we move forward; I appreciate your willingness to “work through the grey” with us.
I wrote to you on March 23 (linked below) that we would work with students to develop alternative plans as needed for these special spring events and to communicate updates as they become available. As you know, student voice is a core belief of my leadership. I can’t say enough about the insights and innovative spirit of our students. With their help, along with our staff and parents, we are working to prepare for a range of situations in the coming months.
We are excited to relay that we have a few sets of possible plans to share at this time.
Please note that we will be confirming these dates based on guidance from state and local agencies, and we will be communicating finalized plans with you as soon as possible. Our first choice is the Red Plan with the Black Plan as the alternative.
Red Plan
Prom: May 30 at US Bank Stadium (note date change, location tentative)
Graduation: June 5 at 3M Arena at Mariucci, University of Minnesota
Black Plan
Prom: July 25 at US Bank Stadium (location tentative)
NEW: Senior Celebration: July 29 afternoon at EPHS stadium/parking lot
Graduation: July 31 at 3M Arena at Mariucci, University of Minnesota
Should we implement our Black Plan, many specifics would need to be worked out (e.g., timing of senior party, what the senior celebration will include). Nonetheless, we wanted to communicate these dates now for tentative planning purposes. Please note again that all of these dates are subject to change and the ultimate decision will be driven by consultation with our state and local health departments and informed by the CDC guidelines. We will develop these solutions like we always do, in partnership with our students and community over the next several weeks.
For those students who are interested in providing feedback for this planning, I invite you to participate by completing
this form
! We will also be communicating about our many other spring happenings in the coming weeks; stay tuned.
We have two guiding goals as we do this planning – (1) student safety, and (2) honoring and celebrating the amazing Class of 2020
in ways that are meaningful to the Class
. We take this planning seriously as we recognize that our school is so much more than a building or set of classes and assignments
. Eden Prairie High School is a community that brings people together in many special ways; that won’t change this spring
.
A note on Be the Light Campaign
You might have noticed that many high schools are turning stadium lights on to honor seniors. As we’ve considered this idea, though we haven’t participated yet, we really appreciate the spirit of what they are after here. We’ve learned from our neighbors that this gesture has caused crowds of 200+ at times. So, with the stay at home order in effect, we’ve decided to hold off and seek other opportunities as our first priority is always the safety of our community. We’re trying to do everything we can now to keep our community healthy so that we can have larger, meaningful celebrations in the near future. I can assure you that as the spring continues and we get more information, we’ll be finding multiple ways to honor the Class of 2020. You deserve it.
Thank you again for your leadership. There has been a lot of change thrown at you in recent weeks. I haven’t seen, however, a change in the passionate, humorous, and kind ways you approach life. Our school-wide commitment to
Inspire Each Student Every Day
also remains, along with my personal commitment to do whatever it takes for you to experience the closure to your high school experience you deserve.
Sincerely,
Robb Virgin, Principal
Twitter & Instagram: @EPPrincipal
