July 23, 2020

St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School (SFA) Return to School Task Force Committees successfully completed the second of three meetings this week.  Minutes from the meetings will be posted online tomorrow . We thank all those who are participating in these meetings and bring their energy, ideas, and feedback to safely reopen our school. This time has yielded a lot of good discussion and we are now ready to finalize our plan for the start of the 2020-2021 school year. We look forward to sharing the plan with you. Every day new information is released and the new plan will provide some flexibility with your choices for education at SFA this year. In addition to our plan, we will provide an updated survey to keep a pulse on all of our families.

Today, the CDC released updated guidelines entitled “Preparing K-12 School Administrators for a Safe Return to School in Fall 2020” with “key considerations” which provide a broad outline on how to resume in-person instruction. This document is based on the best available evidence at this time.  

We have also been in close communication with the Diocesan Office of Schools as they are exploring potential opportunities for our Catholic Schools to open through a waiver in collaboration with the Department of Public Health.  

While we are hoping to see the curve begin to flatten, the gift of time may allow these numbers to decline. The Diocese is expected to make an announcement in the next few days on moving the start of school to September 8.

When we start school, St. Francis of Assisi School will offer a fully-virtual program for families that desire to keep their students at home. We are pleased to announce that Mrs. Amanda Kreuz will lead that program as our Virtual Learning Coordinator for the 2020-2021 school year. Mrs. Kreuz has a strong teaching background that spans from Kindergarten through Eighth grade. As a credentialed teacher, she brings her expertise in instruction and also her passion for learning to this new role. While students will receive direct instruction from a grade level homeroom teacher, they will receive coordination, support, and re-teaching from Mrs. Kreuz throughout their school week. We are excited to offer this option to keep all of our families connected as part of our faith-filled academic community.  

Every week is a new adventure - thank you for sharing the journey together!

Be safe and be hopeful,

Jeannette Lambert
Principal