Day student expectations include the items below to ensure the health and safety of the students and the entire community. We ask families to assist in ensuring their students are able to adhere to these expectations:

St. Mark’s School day students are expected to to adhere to the following expectations:

• Students should avoid large gatherings to reduce the risk of transmission of COVID-19. These gatherings should be avoided regardless of location, whether at home or outside the home at another location.
• Students should remain committed to wearing a mask and practicing social distancing whenever they are outside the home.
• Students should avoid dining at any indoor establishment.
• Students should avoid use of public gyms, training facilities, and/or weight rooms including working with trainers or coaches.
• Students should not hold part-time jobs in which they interact with the general public or with other employees while attending classes in person. Risks associated with exposure, even with the best efforts, are too high and we ask that part-time jobs are avoided while the student is attending classes in person.
• Students should not participate in group activities that include large groups indoors, such as outside organized athletics or other activities which involve large groups. Trips for medical appointments and other essential activities are acceptable
• Students should maintain the same level of vigilance in upholding the School’s safety plan away from campus by limiting exposure to as limited a number of people from outside the home as possible and adhering to social distancing and mask requirements if meeting.

St. Markers!  

As we start to think more intently about the reopening of the campus for in-person + remote classes on January 19th, I am sharing an update about some schedule changes for the upcoming semester. You can find the updated daily schedule here, along with an explainer video.  

We have worked to make appropriate changes based on our experience and feedback from the fall, along with some of the special considerations for our operations this winter (athletic practice schedules, health and safety protocols, etc.).  We will continue to evaluate and collect feedback as we work through the winter and spring, and will consider any necessary changes periodically along the way.  

Full implementation of the new schedule will begin on January 25th. 

During the week of our return to in-person and remote classes, January 19th - 22nd, we will run a modified schedule that offers each class the opportunity to meet synchronously for 60 minutes, and add one additional asynchronous preparation.  As Window Two and Semester One close on Friday, January 22nd, this schedule offers us time and space to manage workloads at a traditionally stressful period of the academic year, and to readjust to the routines we will be operating here on campus for the remainder of the year.   Please remember that classes will not meet on January 18th, as previously planned. More details will follow about procedures for returning to campus.  

I will follow up next week with an email regarding the assignment of lunches and class blocks for those classes meeting mid-day in the staggered "ABC" arrangement.  

We encourage students to reach out to their teachers and advisors with questions about how class and campus routines will change with the updated schedules.  You should see the adjusted timing reflected in the Google/Canvas color calendars. 

Finally, I would like to offer a particular note of thanks to the faculty task force that worked very thoughtfully to plan for these schedule changes:  Ms. Cook (Co-Chair), Ms. Duran, Mr. Eslick, Ms. Guyer, Dr. Harwood, and Mr. Vachris.  

Best,
Mr. Waters

December 29, 2020

Dear Parents,

I hope these weeks are providing the opportunity for some relaxing family time. I wanted to let you know that the Health and Safety Task Force met today, Tuesday, December 29, to examine and discuss local, state, national, and international COVID-19 data. After this examination of available data, St. Mark’s remains committed to a return date of Monday, January 4, for remote learning and Tuesday, January 19, for in-person learning, as previously announced. More details about our in-person return will be communicated in the Deans’ Weekly newsletter on Friday, January 8.

In addition, the Health and Safety Task Force is finalizing a revised social agreement for day students which will clarify health and safety protocols and expectations. More details will be available in the January 8 Deans’ Weekly.

As a reminder, students who are returning for in-person learning in January must arrive on campus with evidence of a negative PCR test that is no more than seven days old. All students must quarantine for 14 days before returning to campus. As announced in the December 19 Deans’ Weekly, students are permitted to quarantine at home, provided the following requirements are followed:

• A 14-day quarantine with no contact with others outside of the home and no travel outside the home must be completed. We also ask that family members limit contact with others, especially large groups, to the extent possible.
• As noted above, students must arrive on campus with a negative COVID-19 PCR test result that is no more than seven days old. Leaving the home to obtain a COVID-19 PCR test does not violate the quarantine requirements.
• Students must arrive via private transportation directly from their quarantine location without staying overnight at another location, such as a hotel, en route.

Please contact Director of Health Services Adria Pavletic at adriapavletic@stmarksschool.org with any questions about the quarantine process.

Thank you for your attention to these important details. I wish you and your family a happy and healthy 2021 from all of us at St. Mark’s.

Sincerely,

John C. Warren ’74, Ed.D.