August 28, 2020
Dear St. Philip’s Community,
I hope you have had a good first week of school. After last week’s activities to prepare our community for remote learning, the faculty and I were excited to reconnect with students and turn our attention to doing what we love: teaching. While I know that remote learning brings its own challenges, I find that the routine and structure helps make days feel a little more “normal”. Still, I look forward to the sense of normalcy and familiarity that comes with seeing all of our students in person. While the St. Philip’s campus is and has been ready for students and teachers, we continue to watch community health indicators, which are gradually improving.
We are constantly striving to find the right course of action to honor both our responsibility to community health and our mission to educate. With those dual goals in mind, we are pleased to announce a staggered re-opening of our campus, beginning on Monday, September 14th. As I have shared in our Zoom conversations, a staggered reopening allows us to start with a smaller population on campus. We recognize the challenges faced by our youngest learners with remote learning, and will welcome them back to campus first. As we engage in person with our early childhood students, we are also mindful of the need to celebrate and support the Class of 2021. Therefore, we have set aside a day for our 5th grade students to be on campus and kick off their senior year.
Schedule
Below is the schedule for the coming weeks. Please review the information below carefully, as initially, students will be on campus on different days. You will see the phrase “at-home educational activity.” This refers to a required activity that will not involve virtual connection with your child’s teacher.
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August 31st - September 4th
- PreK3 and PreK4: Delayed start continues
- Kindergarten - 5th Grade: Remote Learning*
______*Please be on the lookout for an at-home educational activity for _______Tuesday, September 8th to be assigned no later than Friday, _______September 4th.
- September 7th
- Labor Day (No School)
- September 8th
- PreK3 and PreK4: Delayed start continues
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Kindergarten - 5th Grade: At-home educational activity (no virtual assignments - faculty planning day)
- September 9th - 11th
- PreK3 and PreK4: Delayed start continues
- Kindergarten - 5th Grade: Remote Learning
- September 14th - 17th
- PreK3 - 1st Grade: In-person instruction begins on campus
- 2nd - 5th Grade: Remote Learning
- September 18th
- PreK3 - 1st Grade: At-home educational activity (no virtual assignments)
- 2nd - 4th Grade: Remote Learning
- 5th Grade: In-person instruction on campus
- September 21st
- All Grades: In-person instruction on campus
Parent Meetings
In order to answer any questions regarding this staggered return to campus, I will be hosting the following Zoom calls with parents:
PreK3 and PreK4: _______ Wednesday, September 2nd, 6:00 p.m.
Kindergarten and 1st Grade: Wednesday, September 2nd, 6:30 p.m.
5th Grade: ____________ Thursday, September 3rd, 6:00 p.m.
3rd and 4th Grades: ______Wednesday, September 9th, 6:00 p.m.
2nd Grade: ____________Wednesday, September 9th, 6:30 p.m.
Medical Requirements
In order to better protect the health of your children and our community, our Health Policies Handbook was shared with you on July 30th. Nurse Stephanie Begert will be sending a message shortly with reminders and additional information as you prepare for your children’s return to campus.
Medical Task Force Meeting
We are immensely grateful for the input and counsel of our Medical Task Force. As we move into our staggered re-opening, we have scheduled another opportunity for you to hear from them. The Medical Task Force Update will be held virtually at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 10th. More information will be forthcoming toward the end of next week, including a Zoom link and a Google Form where you may list any medical questions for the team.
Arrival and Dismissal Information
We have changed our arrival and dismissal procedures in order to minimize crowding, promote safety, and allow for contact tracing. There will be four drop-off/pick-up locations on campus and a staggered arrival and dismissal schedule. Your cooperation is crucial in ensuring these new procedures are carried out smoothly. On September 4th, you will receive an email with details regarding our pick-up and drop-off procedures. We will send hard copies of the policy along with your car placards on that day as well. Please review the information carefully, and contact Mr. Edward Diaz with any questions.
Questions
I realize that many of you may have questions about our plan for a staggered re-opening. I will try to anticipate some of them here, and hope that you will take advantage of the upcoming Zoom calls to ask any others that you may have.
Q: Why aren’t all students returning to campus on September 14th?
The rationale for a staggered re-entry is twofold. Having a smaller number of students on campus initially will allow us to implement our procedural changes and safety standards to ensure that we are creating the safest environment for students, faculty, and staff during this pandemic. In addition, we recognize the challenge remote learning presents for all of our students, and realize this challenge is greater for the youngest members of our population. Their need for in-person instruction is paramount.
Q: What if I want to keep my children remote?
We anticipate that some families will elect to continue receiving remote instruction. All classrooms are equipped with Swivel Cams, and students will be able to live-stream classroom instruction.
Q: Can I walk my child to class?
We realize that walking your child to class may be a favorite part of your morning routine and is a special custom at St. Philip’s. However, our plan to keep our students and staff safe and healthy requires that we limit the number of people on campus. No parents or other non-essential personnel will be allowed on campus without the express permission of the Head of School and/or Rector.
Q: What if we are out of town right now?
For the health and safety of students, faculty, and staff, we have asked that you refrain from sending students to campus for 14 days after traveling internationally or via common carrier (such as a train, bus or plane). You will be able to live-stream classroom instruction if your child’s class meets on campus during that 2-week window. For further information, please contact Nurse Stephanie Begert.
Q: What does this mean for St. Philip’s fall traditions?
Our traditions are an important part of what makes us St. Philip’s. Due to the limited number of individuals on campus and the continued importance of social distancing, the Administration and the School Home Association (SHA) are re-imagining our fall traditions, so that we can celebrate and be together in new ways.
Personnel Update
As we continue with remote instruction next week, I hope you will join me in welcoming Ms. Ariele Macadangdang back to St. Philip’s as a full-time music and violin teacher. Ms. Macadangdang was with us for 4 years as an assistant violin teacher. Ms. Macadangdang has a Bachelor’s in Music Performance from Western Michigan University and a Master’s of Music in Instrumental Performance from the University of Miami Frost School of Music, both in Violin.
We continue to move forward in faith and in hope. COVID-19 has already touched the St. Philip’s community, and it would be naive to assume that it will not do so again. We must be diligent and never let our guard down. Students view school as a safe and comforting home away from home. Frequent closings do not support that perception. We trust that you will be our allies in this, and keep the health and safety of the entire community foremost in your minds in the days ahead. Together, we will be a stronger community as we support all our students on their journey of learning, growth, faith and hope.
Faithfully,
