Update In Response to Governor Newsom’s Announcement

Friday, July 17, 2020

Dear IRDS Families,

As many of you may know, California State guidelines to reopen elementary, middle and high schools were updated today by Governor Newsom. He announced that schools will not be able to return to in-person learning until LA county is no longer listed on the State’s COVID-19 monitoring list for 14 consecutive days. Although Governor Newsom’s announcement creates less autonomy in our decision-making, it does not change the strength of the programming we are planning for this fall. While we had hoped that this situation would not present itself, we have been planning for this potential reality.

Elementary School

While starting the elementary school year in person may still be a possibility, we are prepared to offer your child a fully engaging, comprehensive online learning program integrating feedback received through our parent survey, until such time as we can resume on campus.

In addition, we are continuing our work to incorporate the guidelines from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health into our facility for the fall to ensure that all necessary and appropriate measures are in place when on-campus learning is possible. As a small school we are fortunate that we can pivot back to on campus learning very quickly.

Early Childhood

For our early childhood program, we are still exploring the nature of this order. It is our understanding right now that the Governor’s announcement today may not apply to Early Childhood Education, and we therefore still anticipate being able to open our ECE for in person learning in August. We are currently seeking additional guidance on this matter and will be in touch in the coming days with a more definitive answer.

In the meantime, should you have any questions we ask you to reach out as we are eager to hear your thoughts and answer any of your questions.

Please continue to stay safe and healthy and we remain grateful for your partnership in our school community.

Shabbat Shalom,

Yuri