Returning in January – Our Plans

Thursday, December 17, 2020

Dear Parents,

We hope everyone is having a good Chanukah.  With winter break only a day away we wanted to touch base regarding plans for our return in January.  We are mindful that with the ever changing landscape and the alarming increase in Covid-19 cases, plans could change, but we wanted to begin setting the stage.  Our intention is to continue balancing our desire to have the children at school and learning in person, with the realities of keeping everyone on campus as safe as possible.

As we continue to move through Chanukah and into the winter break we ask everyone to do their part as members of this school community and follow the safety protocols and the most current health orders. These last few weeks have brought the first several cases of COVID within our parent community and most recently, a child was infected. While we have been fortunate that these cases have been mild, and all families have been safely quarantined, overall exposures and case counts have risen dramatically, with over 20,000 new cases in LA County yesterday alone.

It is also important that our families make smart decisions about social distancing, masks, travel and gatherings over the upcoming break, as our ability to operate will depend on them.  We need your help to keep school safe and open! The health order from the Department of Public Health states that should a case occur within a class, that class will be shut down for 14 days. The ORDER additionally now states…. “should three cases occur across the school at any time over a 14 day period, the entire school will be required to shut down for 14 days.”  We are doing everything we can to avoid this scenario and ask your participation and partnership in this effort.

Yesterday afternoon we also learned that even though the State of California is going to recognize the CDC’s change in the quarantine requirements from 14 to 10 days, Los Angeles County has not yet decided to do so. Therefore, as we have informed you in the past, if you are travelling on an airplane, boat or train during the Winter Break you are required to self-quarantine for 14 days (from the date of your return to Los Angeles) before returning to school. Should the county adjust this requirement at any point during the next few weeks we will of course be in touch with any changes to the school policy.

A few additional and important reminders and requests:

• Should someone in your household be exposed to or test positive for Covid-19, your transparency and timely communication with the school is vital. By notifying us immediately, we can determine the appropriate precautions to help prevent community spread.
•  If a family member has developed symptoms (or was exposed) and has not been tested yet, OR has been tested and is awaiting results, please let us know and remember, your child MUST BE KEPT AT HOME UNTIL YOU HAVE THESE RESULTS. If there is a positive test outcome in your household, this extra precaution may prevent us from having to quarantine entire classes.

Wishing you all a happy, healthy and safe winter break.  May this, the final night of Chanukah, bring everyone enormous light, joy and happiness.

Chag Sameach and Thank you,

The Administration