Dear Parents,
I am confident that it is of no surprise that this week’s letter to you will be addressing the precautions Stella Maris Academy is taking to keep your children safe and healthy during this time of uncertainty. Please rest assured that we are in frequent contact with the Diocese of San Diego Office for Schools and the California Department of Public Health. Additionally, we are receiving regular updates from the San Diego County health and education officials.
The San Diego County Office of Education stated in its latest coronavirus update on Wednesday that any school closures here are unwarranted and “could create unintended consequences” that would hurt public health officials’ efforts to protect the community.
County health officials have the authority to close schools if they believe it’s necessary. Instead, the county education office has asked schools and districts to update their emergency plans, encourage healthy practices such as washing hands and regularly clean commonly-used surfaces, such as doorknobs. I am proud to share with you that SMA has fulfilled each of these recommendations. Our students are washing and sanitizing hands often and our night cleaning crew has stepped-up the nightly disinfecting of desks, chairs, touch-points (ie doorknobs and cabinet handles), lunch tables and playground play structures. This Friday, our faculty will meet to finalize our plan for remote teaching, should this become a reality for our school. We will fine tune our proposed daily scheduling and breakout into departments to share additional platforms that are grade level appropriate and engaging to students.
Please know that the health and safety of your children and our staff is of great importance to us. We will continue to be vigilant and will share any new updates we receive. Please join us in prayer for a healthy end to our school year.
Blessings,
Francie Moss