When will campus re-open?

This is the question that nearly every parent, every teacher, and every school administrator across America is asking right now. 

Quickly followed by, “What will school look like?”

I wish I had a definitive answer for you. I wish that I could highlight the meticulously designed hour-by-hour schedule that we create each year for each student at Saint Andrew’s Episcopal School. 

Currently, there are decisions that still need to be announced from the county and state that will determine specifically under which circumstances and criteria schools can re-open their campuses. There will be guidelines about classroom configurations, social distancing, and timelines for disinfecting classrooms. Right now, as I write this, there’s still much we don’t know. 

What I do know is that Saint Andrew’s will re-open for the 2020-2021 school year on Monday, August 17. We will have an opening chapel. We will have a Parent Meeting. Your children will be greeted enthusiastically. Your children will learn new things. 

I know that we have a beautiful 10-acre campus (Thanks to your support!) that we will work to utilize as fully as possible as permitted. The Administrative Team is considering how we might use every possible space to its fullest potential from our classrooms to the chapel to the gym to the outdoor classroom to the field and every square inch in between.

I know that we have an exceptional faculty who work tirelessly and lovingly, dare I say wholeheartedly, to educate your children wherever they are. I know that each one of them cares about your child’s development. Not only their academic advancement, but their physical, spiritual, and social development.

I know that our already small class sizes give us flexibility in curriculum delivery and allow for personalized attention whether it be in the classroom or through distance learning.

 I know that we have a thoughtful, caring parent community who wants only the best for their children and will do whatever it takes to ensure the health of our community.

I know that we have the technological resources available to us, and the experienced team to support them, to make a wide variety of learning scenarios possible to us should they be needed.

I know that our facilities department has the latest training and tools to effectively manage the rigorous sanitation that will be necessary when the campus re-opens.

I know that because of your support of the Be A Saint campaign coordinated by our Parents’ Association Board, we’ll be able to assist our Saint Andrew’s Episcopal School families whose jobs have been impacted due to this global pandemic.

I know that we have a consortium of schools across the state and across the nation with whom we are working to brainstorm, share resources, and determine the most effective strategies for getting your children back on campus as quickly and as safely as possible.

I know that we will not compromise on delivering the complete, balanced, and inspiring education that helps our students graduate with the knowledge, skills, and—most importantly —embedded habits of mind and heart essential to success in high school, college, and

beyond, and to the formation of full lives, well-lived.

The Administrative Team is considering all that we do know and working to create a multitude of solutions for what we do not yet know. 

We’re designing the next school year for a wide variety of scenarios ranging from returning to our previous on-campus schedule with new health protocols in place to complying with a continued shelter in place order and many, many blended options in between. We are evaluating how students will move around campus. We are considering how staggered start and end times may impact families. We are considering how classroom configurations will be affected by implementing 6’ between students, or 4’ or 3’.

I have many unanswered questions, too. Questions that I realize unfortunately may not be able to be fully answered for some time still as this virus continues to impact our county, state, and nation. As more information becomes available, the Administration and faculty will determine the optimal plan using all that we know to best support your children’s academic and social-emotional needs with the many resources available to us. 

The latest news on our reopening plans is below. I will continue to share updates as they develop.