The start of the 2021- 2022 school year is fast approaching and I know many of you have been wondering how we’ll be starting the school year at Christ the King. Assistant principal, Jeanne Stover, and I, along with our new Christ the King pastor, Father Pietramale, have been closely monitoring information related to COVID-19, the new highly contagious “Delta” variant, and how this could impact both our school start up and our daily operation this year. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we’ve taken the necessary time to carefully evaluate the latest COVID-19 related information and to finalize our School Start Up Plan for 2021 - 2022.
Currently, the CDC county-level tracking of transmission rates show that Douglas County is currently in an area of high transmission and new CDC recommendations also suggest that unvaccinated and even vaccinated individuals should wear masks while indoors. The American Academy of Pediatrics and the CDC both recommend that all school students 2 years old and older and all school staff wear masks while indoors at school. All of these sources of information guide and reinforce our decision-making process. After reviewing inputs and recommendations from the CDC, the Douglas County Health Department, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and an infectious disease doctor expert within our own school community, our administrative team, with approval from Father Pietramale, have made the following decisions related to the start of the school year:
Prescreening at Home…please prescreen your child(ren) at home prior to coming to school. If you child is not feeling well or showing any cold, flu, or COVID-19 symptoms, please keep them home.
Entering the School Building…this will be very similar to last year with Preschool 3-year olds entering through the Preschool 3 door, Preschool 4/5 entering through the Preschool 4/5 door, Kindergarten – 2nd grade entering through the gym doors and meeting their teachers in the gym, 3rd & 4th grade entering through the cafeteria doors and meeting their teachers in the cafeteria, and 5th – 8th graders entering through the main front doors and meeting their teachers in their middle school “House” classroom.
Temperature Checks...no temperature checks will take place upon entering school this year. Please do this at home if your child is not feeling well and if they have a fever, please keep them home.
Masking… all Preschool through 8th grade students and school staff members will be required to mask while indoors. Masking will not be necessary when outside during recess, PE, or for other outdoor activities. This mask requirement will go into effect on the first day that students are in the building (on August 17th for “6th Grade Orientation”, on August 17th for “Preschool – 4th Grade Back to School Night”, on August 18th for “Kindergarten & 5th Grade Orientation”, and on August 19th for all other students on the first official day of school). Students, teachers, staff and all visitors, even if vaccinated, will need to wear a mask to help protect our under 12 year old students who have not yet had the opportunity to be vaccinated. Our hope is that as more individuals become vaccinated, the “Delta” variant will begin to slow down and we can forego mask wearing in the future. Masking will likely continue until at least October 1st, and beyond if necessary, but we will continuously evaluate the need to mask and will make any adjustments, including ending the masking requirement, as quickly as possible based on local conditions and expert recommendations. Students, teachers, staff, and visitors can bring their own mask to school or can use one of our school masks. Student masks must be a solid color and students bringing a mask to school will need to have one for the morning and a fresh mask for the afternoon.
Remote Learning…we will not be offering the option to voluntarily remote learn this school year. However, any student needing to quarantine due to COVID exposure or infection will be shifted to remote learning like last year for the duration of their quarantine period. Teachers will again use “Swivl” devices to send videos of daily classroom instruction home to students who are quarantining.
Lunch Periods…student lunch periods will take place in a similar way as last year but will all take place in the cafeteria with students spaced out by at least 6 feet. Extra tables have been brought in to allow for this and students will stay at their tables during the lunch period but will still be able to socialize with classmates throughout the lunch period. Hot lunches and milks will be delivered to student tables using delivery carts. School administration and teachers will supervise all lunch periods and although parent lunch supervision volunteers will not be needed this year, parent volunteers are still needed and welcome in the kitchen area and to help deliver hot lunches to students at their tables.
Recess Periods…recess will take place outdoors without masking whenever possible. During bad weather, recess will take place indoors and masking requirements will need to be followed. Students will be permitted to wear their mask outside during recess or during any other outside activity if they choose.
Middle School Houses and Use of Lockers…these will be back and will operate as in normal school years.
Mixing of Classes & Grade Levels…this will take place as needed and as we normally would do.
Attending School Mass…Kindergarten – 4th grade students will attend Mass as a group each Tuesday at 8:15 a.m. and 5th – 8th grade students will attend Mass as a group each Thursday at 8:15 a.m. All Kindergarten – 8th grade students and all teachers will attend all-school Mass each Friday at 8:15 a.m. Students will be spaced out as much as possible and will be masked while indoors during Mass.
Sanitizing and Disinfecting…hand washing and sanitizing will take place often throughout the school day just like last school year. High touch areas within classrooms and in common use areas will be disinfected both at the mid-day point and again at the end of each school day.
Dismissal Procedures…dismissal will take place in the same way as last year with a driving line in the front of the school and two driving lines in the church parking lot. The 2021 – 2022 Family Handbook contains detailed information on dismissal procedures…please refer to Appendix F of the handbook for specific dismissal procedures.
Long Pants (for boys) during Mass and Shoes for all Students…these remain the same as last year. All boys are required to wear long pants during Mass and all students can wear athletic tennis shoes as part of the uniform on all school days once again this year.
Clubs and Extracurricular Activities…these will all take place as originally planned this school year and more information on specific clubs and activities will go out once the school year is underway. We’re very excited to bring our clubs and extracurricular activities back this year and have added many new clubs and after school activities this year.
The decision to require masking in school while indoors was not made without very careful thought and consideration. Our administrative team feels that this decision and all the procedures and safeguards outlined above are in the best interest of Christ the King Catholic School at this time. We also feel that this is the best way to keep our children safe, in school, and still provide students with effective instruction and the needed time to socialize and interact with teachers and classmates. I truly value each and every student, teacher, staff member, and family at Christ the King and simply want everyone to be safe as we begin this school year and to also help ensure that students can be in school each and every day. Your cooperation and support to uphold our procedures and protocols is so important to our overall goal of providing a faith-based education following the teachings of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanks in advance for all your support and cooperation, and God Bless.