We’d like to once again thank all of our families for your questions and feedback as we move forward in our planning for the upcoming school year. 

As a reminder, last week we announced our plan to begin the school year in a hybrid model. You can find the full email from last week here .

This week, we will go more in-depth on policies, procedures and more. As always, please send all questions to vikings@stlaurence.com

School Schedule
The daily schedule will be from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., which will allow us to maximize classroom educational time. The schedule will consist of 7 periods, with extended time between classes for sanitization, and also to allow students safe and distanced movement between classrooms. Through minimizing movements and decreasing the amount of students physically in school, we strongly feel that students and teachers can safely execute a full day's schedule.

School Calendar
You can find the updated school calendar for the first semester here . This calendar reflects orientation dates, the Viking Black and Viking Gold schedules, days off and more.

Viking Black and Viking Gold Schedule Assignments
Viking Black and Viking Gold schedule assignments have been finalized and will be communicated next week. We are happy to share that we were able to accomodate families by placing siblings on the same days. Please keep an eye out for more information next week.

Class Schedules
Schedules will be shared via PlusPortals on Monday, August 10. In order to maximize in-person instruction for our students, elective options have been changed to specific grade levels. Therefore, students may be placed in an elective they may not have originally chosen. If you have any schedule questions, please contact the appropriate counselor:
Freshmen - Dr. Tom Pallardy tpallardy@stlaurence.com
Sophomore - Mrs. Agnes Kasboske akasboske@stlaurence.com
Junior - Mrs. Lauren Bennett lbennett@stlaurence.com
Senior -Mrs. Lauren Bennett lbennett@stlaurence.com

Orientation for All Students
Each class will participate in an introductory orientation during the week of August 17. To help control the amount of students in the building, we have also separated students into their Viking Black and Viking Gold groups for orientation:

Monday, August 17th
Freshman Orientation
Viking Black 9am-12:30pm

Tuesday, August 18th
Freshman Orientation
Viking Gold 9am-12:30pm

Wednesday, August 19th
Sophomore Orientation
Viking Black 9am-11am
Viking Gold 12pm-2pm

Thursday, August 20th
Junior Orientation
Viking Black 9am-11am
Viking Gold 12pm-2pm

Friday, August 21st
Senior Orientation
Viking Black 8:30am-10am
Viking Gold 11am-12:30pm

Students will go over all new procedures during orientation, with extended sessions for the freshmen to help further acclimate them to high school. School buses will not be available and families are responsible for providing transportation to school on their orientation day.

Arrival Procedures
The school building will be open for entry beginning at 8 a.m., with the school day starting at 8:30 a.m. We encourage students to arrive no later than 8:15 a.m. to allow enough time to move through all entry procedures. Parents are instructed to remain in their vehicles.

Students will be entering through separate wings based on their grade level cohort:
B Wing - Sophomores
C Wing - Freshmen
D Wing - Seniors
E Wing - Juniors

Students will undergo a mask check upon entry.

Students' temperatures will then be taken. Any students who record a temperature of 100.4 degrees or higher will be re-checked using a different device. If the temperature remains at 100.4 degrees or higher, the student will be brought to a newly designed Nurse’s station to ensure isolation and safety, where the student will be evaluated by the nurse. If appropriate, the student’s parents will be contacted to pick up their child outside of the nurse’s station, which will be located on the northeast side of the building at the circle drive behind the Leadership Center. 

After taking their temperature, students will receive hand sanitizer and report directly to their first period classroom. 

We will provide full details on parking and traffic flow for morning drop off and pickup, along with a diagram to show where designated wings and the nurse’s station are located, in the coming weeks.

Dismissal 
The school day will end at 3 p.m. All students are expected to be out of the building immediately and picked up no later than 3:15 p.m., unless they are in sports. Students will exit by their wings.

All after school athletic procedures will be communicated by coaches once school is in session.

Mask Policy
As mandated by the state of Illinois, masks must be worn at all times in school. If the mask does not have a St. Laurence logo, masks should be a solid black, gold, blue or white with no images or messages. Masks may only be removed when eating or drinking, or when outside while practicing proper physical distancing. If students are utilizing reusable masks, families should purchase at least two masks and masks should be washed by parents after every school day. If students are utilizing disposable masks, masks should be discarded after every school day at home. Parents should send students with extra disposable masks in case they are damaged during the day.

Per the CDC, cloth face coverings may help prevent people who have COVID-19 from spreading the virus to others. Wearing a cloth face covering will help protect people around you, including those at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19 and workers who frequently come into close contact with other people (e.g., in stores and restaurants). Cloth face coverings are most likely to reduce the spread of COVID-19 when they are widely used by people in public settings. The spread of COVID-19 can be reduced when cloth face coverings are used along with other preventive measures , including social distancing , frequent handwashing, and cleaning and disinfecting frequently touched surfaces.

Lockers & Bookbags
Per Illinois State Board of Education recommendation, use of lockers will be suspended for the time being. Students will be able to carry their bookbags with them during the school day.

Lunch and Breakfast
Students will have a lunch period during the school day. Students will be separated between the cafeteria, foyer and gym balcony, with seating spread out to ensure physical distancing. Only cohorts may sit near each other and all students, including those within cohorts, must physically distance. Additionally, limits will be placed on the number of students per lunch table. 

Lunch will still be available for purchase through our cafeteria partners at Country House Restaurant. Breakfast will not be served for the time being.

Vending Machines
Vending machines will not be accessible in order to minimize potential transmission.

Bathrooms
Bathrooms will be assigned to specific cohorts when possible and disinfected throughout the day. In the event that cohorts share a bathroom, specific stalls and urinals will be assigned to grade levels to limit cross contact.

Visitors
Any nonessential visitors (including parents), volunteers, and activities involving external groups or organizations, will be limited. All visitors will be limited to the main office area when possible, and hand sanitizer will be readily available for visitors to use upon entry. 

We will also keep accurate records of visitors, including the individual’s reason for visit, contact information, and all locations visited, in case contact tracing is needed.

Student Travel
Per the Cook County Department of Public Health, a 14-day quarantine is recommended for persons entering suburban Cook County, Illinois, from states with high incidence of COVID-19 infections. As such, students are encouraged to not travel out of state or the country.

Purchasing Uniform and Spirit Wear Apparel
The Spirit Shop will be open from August 10-14 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.. Additionally, the shop will be open on August 11 and August 12 from 5-8 p.m. No walk ups will be available - you must sign up for a 10-minute time slot online. You can sign up for a timeslot here .

Books
All books are online textbooks. Students will receive online textbook information the week of orientation. Students will be able to purchase and instantly download the books to their iPads at home that week.

Transportation
Private bus service will begin on August 24. Details about pick up locations, times, and safety protocols will be communicated on August 17. Those who signed up on the transportation interest form will receive more details about cost, deposit and service early next week.