Back to School Divisional Information
Lower School
Town HallIt will be on Tuesday, August 17 from 6:30-7 p.m. John Bracker and Marcy Kwitny will join us to welcome questions from Lower School families about Poly’s proactive approach to ensure the health and safety of our community.
Here is the Zoom meeting link:
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6163053462
Meeting ID: 616 305 3462
Important Health and Safety Information:
- To safeguard the health and well-being of the Poly community, all faculty, staff, and age-eligible students are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by October 1,2021.
- Poly will require all students and employees to wear a mask indoors and outdoors.
- All students, faculty, and staff must attest to a negative COVID-19 test no more than five days before the start of school – August 30 for Lower School.
- Our division (with the youngest students), as well as vaccinated employees who have close contact with our students, will participate in weekly COVID-19 testing at Poly starting the week of August 30. We are still working out the details, and I will let you know the process as soon as possible.
- Please continue to visit the Poly COVID-19 webpage with relevant resources and updates on community health and wellness at Poly.
Lower School On-Campus Events
In keeping with our ongoing effort to lessen density and minimize COVID transmission on our campus, and to err on the side of extreme caution as our students are not yet eligible for the vaccine, we will not have visitors on the Lower School campus until we learn that the vaccine is available to our students.
The beloved events we hold in the fall such as September’s Back-to-School Night, Book Fair, and Parent-Teacher Conferences, just to name a few, will all be held as virtual events. The “Sweet Welcome” will take the place of the August Lower School Open House. Poly asks that parents conduct meetings via Zoom or phone, or at an off-campus location.
I will continue to schedule my virtual “Office Hour” every week. I’ll let you know as soon as I have a schedule for those Zoom meetings.
“Sweet Welcome” and Mask Distribution Plan
Based on data from a Caltech study on high-performing face masks, certain KN95 and 3-ply masks outperformed the sample of other face coverings. We will be providing these high-performing masks.
In a similar process to our supplies distribution (drive-through pickups) last fall, each classroom teacher will set up a schedule for the “sweet welcome”, and at that time each family will receive a supply of high-performing face masks. I will send this schedule/details to you sometime next week.
Lower School Hours
Our first day of school is Tuesday, August 30! We will have supervision on the playgrounds from 7:45 a.m.-8:25 a.m.…classes begin at 8:30 a.m. We can’t wait!
Middle School
Town Hall We welcome questions from community members about Poly’s proactive approach to ensure the health and safety of our community. the Middle School town hall will be held on: Wednesday, August 18, 6:30 - 7 p.m. Pat Gray will share the Zoom Link the morning of August 18th.
Mask Distribution Plan
Based on data from a Caltech study on high-performing face masks, certain KN95 and 3-ply masks outperformed the sample of other face coverings. In an effort to foster community health, we will expect all students, faculty, and staff to comply and wear these high-performing masks provided by Poly while on campus this year.
The Middle School will be offering multiple drive-through mask pickups in the days leading up to Orientation Day on Wednesday, August 25th. We will offer early morning and evening times on both Monday, August 23rd, and Tuesday, August 24th for you to pick up your student’s masks. We will have two different mask types and sizes for students to select. Students will be required to wear one of these masks beginning Wednesday August 25th, and each student will be provided with an initial 3-month supply.
Please keep an eye out for an email from Pat Gray with specific times.
First Day of School
We have a special Middle School Orientation Day planned for Wednesday, August 25th. Students should plan to arrive by 8:15 am; they will be dismissed at 3:10 pm. Among other things, students will receive a locker, have their photo taken, run through their schedule, and take a tour of campus. We do not encourage students to bring their books to Orientation Day, as some students will not receive their lockers until later in the day. Our first full day of classes is Thursday, August 26th. Teachers and Advisors will help students set up binders and review what is needed for each class. We generally give students through the first weekend to gather all needed school supplies.
Responsible Use Agreements
This important document was mailed out in early July and must be signed by parents and students. The signed RUA is due on August 25th, Orientation Day, and should be turned into the Middle School office.
Back-to-School Night
Middle School BTSN will be held on Thursday, August 26th from 6:30-9:00 pm. This is an important night to meet your student’s teachers and hear the details of the year. You will receive your student’s class schedule during the Advisory meeting so that you know where to go for the mini-classes. Please note that we will not be serving food this year, and parents will be expected to wear a mask while on campus.
Arrival Procedures:
Students may be dropped off between 7:45 a.m. - 8:25 a.m. (Attendance is taken by teachers at 8:30 a.m.) at either Catalina Gate #10, or at the Wilson Ave. Carpool area.
Pickup Procedures: (always have your name placard prominently visible on your car’s sun visor) **feel free to make multiple copies of the placard if you have different vehicles for student pickup.
- Monday-Thursday, school ends at 3:10 p.m.
- Students who are not attending Homework Hour or one of the after-school programs must leave campus by 3:30 p.m.
- Vehicles picking up only Middle School students may only pick up at Catalina Avenue gate #10.
- Vehicles picking up Middle School and Lower School students may only pick up at Wilson Ave. Carpool.
- Catalina gate #10 will be locked at 3:30 p.m., so students attending Homework Hour or one of the after-school programs will be picked up at Wilson Ave. Carpool.
- On Fridays, school ends at 2:55 p.m. Students not going to “Lake” will be picked up at Catalina or Wilson depending on the above information. Students who go to Lake should plan to be picked up no later than 4:00 p.m. at Wilson Ave. Carpool.
Upper School
Welcome back, Upper School families!
Town Hall
We look forward to hosting the Upper School community for a town hall meeting this Thursday, August 19, from 7-7:30 p.m. Join us to hear about the steps we're taking to support the health of our colleagues, our students, and their families. Please make sure to RSVP here and share your questions ahead of time.
We look forward to hosting the Upper School community for a town hall meeting this Thursday, August 19, from 7-7:30 p.m. Join us to hear about the steps we're taking to support the health of our colleagues, our students, and their families. Please make sure to RSVP here and share your questions ahead of time.
Back-to-School Letters and Updates
We shared updates about our schedule, ordering textbooks, parking and driving on campus, and plenty of other return-to-school information through our summer emails. In case you missed those messages, or to review their contents again, please visit the links below.
Welcome Letter from US Director Ara Brown
Resources
Policies
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