Dear Serra Parents and Guardians,
We hope you all enjoyed a safe Thanksgiving Weekend. As you might know, on Saturday, San Mateo moved to the most restrictive Purple Tier as a result of increased transmission of COVID-19 in the community. While this brings further restrictions on our personal gatherings and business operations, Serra is not included in the restriction. San Mateo County announced that schools that have already begun the "Return to In-Person Learning Plan" may continue without interruption. Serra will continue with its phased reopening plans with lower division students returning to in-person instruction beginning December 7.
Our ability to continue to have in person instruction will be dependent on the rigorous cooperation of all members of the community. A Purple Tier designation does emphasize the need to strictly abide by health protocols, as follows:
Symptom Assessment:
Prior to coming on campus for classes or athletic conditioning, your son is required to complete an online health screening. For the academic part of the school day, this is accomplished by answering a series of questions through Ruvna on their phone or device. For students participating in athletics, students complete a series of questions through Sportzpeak mobile app.It is extremely important that your son follows the instructions listed on his phone regarding participation in school and/or activities that day.
Quarantining:
The CDC strongly advises that all families who have traveled out of the Bay Area or participated in a large indoor gathering or any other risky behaviors over the Thanksgiving break must quarantine for 14 days.
COVID positive assessment:
Families must notify the school immediately if any of the following applies to their child:
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Student has tested positive for COVID-19.
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Student is being tested for COVID-19 based on his symptoms.
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Student is identified as a close contact of someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 (within six feet for 15 minutes, regardless of face coverings).
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Please keep your son at home and send an email immediately to [email protected]. Mrs. Ortiz or Mr. McGrath will contact you and will work with your family and with San Mateo County Health.
COVID-19 Testing:
Serra is requesting that students planning to attend on-campus instruction be tested prior to coming to campus and once a month thereafter. San Mateo County is offering free testing for all school-age children Tuesday through Saturday. You also can secure testing through your healthcare provider or other convenient testing service. Serra faculty and staff will be tested on a monthly basis as required by San Mateo County Health.
Parents of Freshmen and Sophomores:
We are hosting a webinar at 7 p.m. tonight to outline information for lower division hybrid instruction, scheduled to begin December 7. All lower division parents are strongly encouraged to attend. The link for tonight's webinar is https://serrahs.zoom.us/j/91976028413. We will be sending additional return-to-campus protocol information to lower division parents and students later this week.
Lower division students will participate in a meeting tomorrow, December 1 at 12:30 p.m. with Mr. Strange and Mrs. Ortiz to review the protocols for in person learning. The link can be found here and is also available in the Padre Week Ahead.
Lower division parents will have the option to choose whether or not their son will attend both weeks of hybrid learning beginning December 7. This will be completed through a Lower Division - Hybrid or Distance Learning Google Form. The deadline for responses is Wednesday, December 2 at 3 p.m.
Thank you for your attention to these details. We look forward to having our lower division students back on campus beginning next Monday.
