Letter to Parents and Guardians - Preparing for All Scenarios

December 17, 2020

Dear Parents and Guardians,

As we prepare for the start of Christmas holidays, I want to thank you for your continued support and commitment to adhering to public health and safety measures that have ensured schools remain a safe place for our students and staff.

We recognize now more than ever, what a true gift it is to participate in Advent activities in our schools and parishes. Our schools and classrooms continue to offer opportunities to celebrate our Catholic faith through charitable campaigns, virtual reflections and classroom prayers, as we focus on this very special time of our liturgical year.

Looking ahead, we encourage families to remain vigilant during the holidays by following public health advice in order to make the return to school in January 2021 as safe as possible. By adhering to public health measures in our communities, we can all have a safe and relaxing holiday season. You can check the government’s holiday web page for more direct and up-to-date guidance on how individuals and families can plan for a safe holiday season, including suggestions for holiday activities for children and families.

Self-Screening
As a reminder, anyone feeling ill should not attend school. All children, students, staff, and visitors must be screened for symptoms of illness every day before attending school or child care. To help meet this requirement, you may use either the provincial COVID-19 school screening tool.

Self-screening will still be a requirement when we return to school and we will continue to reinforce masking and hand hygiene as well as cohorting and physical distancing with students and staff.

We encourage you to visit Ontario.ca/covidresponse to learn what public health measures are in place in our community – but also please be aware that these could change depending on the most current public health advice.

Preparing for all scenarios
Yesterday, the Ministry of Education advised Ontario school boards to prepare for all possible scenarios following Christmas break. Thus, students currently attending in-school classes are being encouraged to take home any materials they may require for remote learning (including personal belongings). Our goal is to return to in-school classes in January, however we will continue to follow recommendations as outlined by the Ministry of Education and local public health authorities.

If a move to remote learning does occur over the holidays, communications will be sent to families with students attending in-school classes advising them to access their classes and teachers online via Edsby.

In closing, I want to extended my heartfelt thanks to our students, families, staff, clergy, parish communities and community partners for your cooperation and collaboration this past year. I know this Christmas will be different, but I wish you a joyous holiday filled with love, peace and hope.

Yours in Faith,

Tracy Barill
Director of Education