Good afternoon St. Joseph’s Families,
Thank you so much for your patience as St. Joseph’s has formulated a plan for the re-opening of St. Joseph’s Catholic School in collaboration with Fr. Mariusz, Dr. Sarah Quilici, St.Joseph’s School Advisory Board, St. Joe’s faculty and staff, and other Treasure Valley Catholic Schools.
I am including a communication from the Diocese of Boise on the phased re-opening of Catholic Schools in Idaho. All Catholic Schools across the state were given direction from the Diocese on our phased re-opening plan.
Plan for the beginning of School:
August 17th – 21st:
Our students in K-8th grades will have an opportunity to come on-site to meet the teachers and learn about the safety protocols at school. It is so important to us that our students feel safe! This will happen one-on-one for our kindergarten students and in small groups for 1st – 8th grade students. We will coordinate by alphabet based on student last name for those families with multiple children here at St. Joe’s. During this visit, students will receive training in new protocols in the school (masks, social distancing, recess, classroom expectations, learning platforms for remote learning, picking up materials, etc.) For our 1st – 8th grade students, this will take place from 8:30 – 11:00 throughout the week – this is for students only. Our kindergarten teachers will be scheduling one-on-one visits with each family. Masks will be required.
- Monday – Last names A-C
- Tuesday – Last names D-H
- Wednesday – Last names I-L
- Thursday – Last names M-R
- Friday – Last names S-Z
August 24th – September 4th:
Students will come to the school in the same small groups by last name (See above – same day as previous week) from 8:30-11:00. Some distance learning/remote learning will happen during this two week period. This will give our students a chance to work in small groups with their teachers and fully understand classroom expectations.This format will also be getting students familiar with distance learning in the event that we have to use this format for the entire school. The goal is to set our students up for a successful return to school on Tuesday, September 8th. More detailed information on distance learning during this two week period will be sent to all families at the end of next week.
Tuesday, September 8th:
In the St. Joseph’s family survey sent out several weeks ago, 70% of our families indicated they would send their children back to school for in person learning, 30% stated they would prefer distance learning. We have taken this feedback into consideration when developing this plan. Fr. Mariusz wants St. Joseph’s Catholic School to provide in-person learning as fully as possible for those families who want this option. Father Mariusz and I have had many conversations over the last month on this topic -our School Advisory Board has also been part of this process.
On Tuesday, September 8th, St. Joseph’s Catholic School will open in person for those who want to be present in the building with many safety practices in place – including everyone wearing masks. We will provide distance learning for those families who choose that format.
It is our plan to have in person learning Monday through Friday 8:00 – 2:00.
Next week, I will be requesting information from each family on the format of education they wish to have for their child. We will ask each family to commit to whatever format they choose for the first quarter of school. First Quarter ends on Friday, October 16th.
I will be hosting a Virtual Town Hall Meeting for our different grade levels next week to answer any questions you might have. Joe Fourney, our school board president, and a teacher from the grade level will be available to answer questions as well. I will be asking for questions to be presented ahead of time – look for an email Monday morning with that information. Please do not email me with individual questions, I will be sending a document for you to present your questions.
Virtual Town Hall Meetings:
Tuesday, August 11th 5:30-6:30 – Kindergarten -2nd grade parents
Wednesday, August 12th 5:15-6:15 – 3rd-5th grade
Wednesday, August 12th 6:30 – 7:30 – 6th- 8th grade
We have put much prayerful thought into this plan in an effort to continue to provide an excellent Catholic education for our students. Thank you for being a part of St. Joseph’s Catholic School and we look forward to serving your family for the 2020-2021 school year.
Blessings,
Tammy Emerich
Principal
St. Joseph’s Catholic School
