Dear TMS community,

I hope that this note finds you and your families healthy and well. Today, I am writing on the topic of TMS’ return-to-campus timeline. In response to the recent change in Marin County’s COVID-19 community risk status, the TMS Admin Team sent detailed surveys to our employees, parents/guardians, and students, as part of our ongoing planning for a possible return to campus in November. We had extremely high participation rates on these surveys; thank you for taking the time to complete them. 

After taking into account all of the family, student, and employee survey data and feedback, engaging in extensive deliberations with the Admin Team, and multiple consultations with the Chair of the TMS Board of Trustees, Amy Jonak, I have concluded that it is in the best interest of our community to conduct the remainder of the fall semester through remote learning. I know this announcement will evoke a range of responses, from relief to disappointment to frustration. I completely understand and respect these emotions, as I’ve felt them all, too. 

These are the primary reasons for postponing a return to in-person learning:

  • The reality that large portions of the TMS community feel uncomfortable with a return on the recently-proposed November timeline, or feel that doing so is unsafe and unwarranted. 
  • The unpredictability of local COVID-19 case rates as we enter both the flu season and the holiday season. 
  • The immense logistical complexities of staffing even a hybrid return in three weeks’ time—the implementation of which will undoubtedly interrupt the flow of the current semester in unpredictable ways. 
  • The reduction of uncertainty and upheaval across our constituency groups, allowing families to plan their home lives, students to sustain continued focus on remote learning, and teachers to focus on remote teaching. 
  • The significant practical difficulty of running school with both in-person and remote students, coupled with the reality that some of our teachers need to teach remotely for various reasons. 

I understand that there are strong feelings in our community on this issue. Some are eager to have students return as soon as possible, and some are anxious about the potential health risks of having students on campus. We have balanced a variety of factors in coming to this decision, and the stark reality is that there is no path at this point that will please everyone. I understand, too, that this has been a very difficult time for all of us. Most notably that includes our students, who are missing social connections with their peers and teachers and the normal routine of attending school and learning actively in person. They have been at the center of our considerations, and their survey responses were crucial in our decision-making process. 

In terms of best serving our students, I do want to highlight that TMS’ commitment to remote learning for the remainder of the semester allows our faculty to devote 100% of their energy toward their online classes, while the Admin Team and staff can continue planning for our safe return to campus. 

The bottom line is that the safety of TMS employees, students, and families is of paramount importance. While I am a firm believer that in-person education is what is best for our community, I do not believe that the potential benefit of a November return—especially one that will very likely interrupt our fast-moving academic calendar—outweighs the risks.

Given the importance of transcript grades, as well as when we transition from semester 1 to semester 2, this means that the next logical opportunity to return to in-person learning on campus is at the end of January 2021. Obviously there are factors that may be beyond our control at that point, but that is the next date we are focused on.

This school year has already been mercurial to an extent that none of us has likely ever witnessed before; no doubt it will continue to be. I appreciate your willingness to ride the waves we’ve experienced thus far, and know everyone will continue to be positive and constructive as we move forward. In light of all of this upheaval, we are committed to keeping our school calendar as normal as possible so that families can plan and teachers can have adequate instructional hours to cover necessary content with their students. 

Though I’d like to avoid as many changes to the school calendar as possible, I do want to highlight one important upcoming date, and alert you to one calendar change. Friday, October 23rd, is the end of our first term. Please be aware that grades earned by that date will appear on student transcripts to indicate student achievement in the first half of the classes they are taking now. The other half of their course grades will be earned between Tuesday, October 27th and Wednesday, January 20th, 2021. The calendar change I mentioned is that we are adding one additional Teacher Work Day between the two terms—on Monday, October 26th. This is to allow teachers time to grade end-of-semester assignments, finalize grades, and write comments to students. There will be no remote classes on Monday, October 26th. 

Finally, I want to conclude this letter with what I think will be welcome news for some. We are currently planning a range of voluntary social (and socially-distanced) activities for students that will take place in person and on campus in the coming weeks. Our first set of activities will include a series of afterschool hikes for which students can sign up; these will be led by TMS faculty and staff members. Students will be able to see one another in person and in their cohort groups. In order to participate, students will need to sign up and carefully read the safety guidelines. Parents and guardians will also need to sign to indicate their understanding of what is required. Please keep an eye out for this information. 

In closing, I want to remind you that my (virtual) door is always open to you if you have any questions or concerns. Please email me (bgriggs@themarinschool.org) if you would like to set up an appointment. In addition, this week I am having a “Connecting with Ben” meeting for parents and guardians on Thursday, October 15th at 9am. You can RSVP and submit questions in advance here. I look forward to seeing you in my Zoom room Thursday morning if you can make it. 

We’re in this together,
Ben