Dear St. John’s Parents:
Thank you for your responses to our survey regarding returning to school. And, additionally, thanks to those who have brought forth questions and offered suggestions. If you have been keeping up with the news, you are aware that the Governor has determined that schools may open for in-person instruction on January 18th (which is Martin Luther King holiday on our school calendar)—"contingent on continued low CAR scores and test positivity rates”.
With that in mind, we will resume online instruction on Monday, January 11, after our winter break, and continue fully online through Friday, January 15.
IF allowed, we will plan for Tuesday, January 19, to become a teacher preparation day (with no classes for students) and have our students return to face-to-face instruction on Wednesday, January 20. Remember that these plans are “definitely tentative”.
Online instruction will continue for those who choose to keep children at home. We will not need to require a quarter-long commitment to either choice. Our survey results indicate that the majority—about 75%--of parents choose in-person classes for our students. Those numbers do not allow for separating classes into sections of fully in-person and fully-online instruction utilizing current faculty. The online learning will happen concurrently with the in-class lessons. We will work closely with teachers to make both aspects of learning as effective as possible—while carrying out stringent safety protocols.
Our Board of Trustees is currently reviewing our updated guidelines for opening. This document will then be sent to the Department of Public Health and Social Services as required. At that time, we will forward it to all of you. It is similar to our August return plans, with staggered drop-off times and so forth.
The school office will be closed on Thursday, December 31, and on Friday, January 1.
And, to all of you, Happy New Year! We wish you a blessed 2021.
Pat B.
