Dear Vanguard Families,
On behalf of all of us at VFES, we hope everyone enjoyed a healthy and happy holiday.
I want to take a minute to provide an update about the status of COVID cases identified at VFES so far throughout the break.
I am happy to report that our COVID Case Managers (CCMs) have dealt with only one positive case and 2 or 3 close COVID-related contacts as of this writing. While this is very good news, we all know this can change overnight. We continue to monitor the cases and the impact they may have on staffing for in-person instruction on Jan. 3. It is too early to make a final decision, but I remain hopeful for an on-campus start to 2022.
We will provide another update to you on Friday afternoon, Dec. 31. Ideally, at that time, we will be able to commit to a decision regarding in-person versus remote instruction on Jan. 3. The decision will be based on the number of positive COVID cases and the subsequent impact on staffing. I remain very optimistic, but also realistic to the potential for a significant increase by the end of the week. While I hope that Friday’s communication can be rather concrete, I want to ask all of you to please begin to make preparations for possible remote instruction for Monday, Jan. 3. Again, I am just recommending we try to plan ahead in the event we need to go remote. If Friday, Dec. 31 is ok, but Sunday, Jan. 2 reveals numerous positive cases of staff, we may need to make a very last-minute decision to start the week of Jan. 3 with remote instruction.
Before I close I want to acknowledge the recent revisions to isolation and quarantine the CDC published yesterday. We want to be very thoughtful about this change. It is difficult to shift mid-stream when the campus is closed, but I will definitely work with our case managers over the next few days to determine the best way to make this transition to the revised guidelines.
Thank you for your efforts to adhere to the public health guidelines. I hope you all continue to have a relaxing holiday week.
Take good care,
