Jamie's Update: SGS Re-opening Plans Announced
Dear SGS Community,
Since our closure in March, we have been planning and implementing multiple scenarios for re-opening Saint George’s School. In March, we looked forward to the warmer months and summer to flatten the curve, only to see cases spike in Spokane and around the country. I have worked closely with the administrative team, teachers and the Board of Trustees in the planning process as guidance has continued to evolve and change in regard to the quandary of opening schools during this pandemic. There have been vigorous discussions weighing all available information, there has been optimism and pessimism, but everyone was working together to make the right decision about the start of school.
Based on the science of the COVID-19 virus and existing data, the Washington Department of Health, the Spokane Regional Health District (SRHD) and the Governor have strongly recommended for schools to begin the year remotely. With the support and approval of the Board, Saint George’s School will follow that guidance and start K-12 in a Distance Learning model.
This is not what we were expecting in March or even in July. Everyone associated with the school wants to be back in-person. At the same time, we have a duty to our students, employees and families to provide an environment that is safe for learning and teaching. At this time, we must rely on the health officials’ expertise. The current conditions and case count do not provide the level of safety to begin in-person instruction. We have an obligation to our community during this health crisis to act responsibly and limit the transmission of COVID-19, so we can resume in-person school sooner than later. We have a very narrow margin of error from the SRHD, if there are one or two positive cases (which is likely based on what we are seeing around the country as schools re-open) with a student and/or employee we would be forced to remote learning. Furthermore, to go against this recommendation could impact how quickly we could transition to in-person instruction when we are able.
As I have stated previously, the complexity of this decision is immense. In addition to the safety and well-being of our community, other considerations include: new laws and legal obligations, liability, employment practices, transportation challenges, facilities, technology, OSPI requirements, State Board of Education requirements, SGS reputation, Governor’s proclamations, Department of Health Guidelines, professional development for teachers and a focus on delivering the exceptional SGS education in-person, remotely and in hybrid models. Not to sound trite, but this is part of the new normal for now.
We will now devote our energy and resources to starting school in Distance Learning. Next week, we will send out our back to school information packets. This will include information for assigning technology to students in grades 2-8, and it will provide IT training and orientation for devices and for the learning platforms. We will also plan orientation for our new students. These plans are being coordinated and will be communicated by division heads. The week of August 31 will look different than originally planned.
We are still about 3 weeks from the start of school and COVID-19 cases seem to be on a downward trend. We will be closely monitoring this data and will move to in-person learning as soon as possible. Today, as the situation continues to change on a daily basis, Superintendent Chris Reykdal shared the Washington Department of Health’s newly released Decision Tree for re-opening schools that will provide additional guidance and metrics to re-open. https://www.doh.wa.gov/Portals/1/Documents/1600/coronavirus/DecisionTree-K12schools.pdf
I am hopeful and optimistic that we can return to in-person learning as soon as we can do so in a responsible manner. Our buildings are ready, our teachers are ready and are students are ready. I am confident we will deliver the best online instruction in the region based on our teachers’ commitment to their students, their training and their own high standards.
The SGS Re-opening Plan provides more information and the details of how we will move forward and serve our students.
Thank you for your support and patience over the last several months and going forward in these difficult times.
Sincerely,
Jamie Tender
Head of School