Dear Parents, Students and Friends,

Today, Governor Newsom announced that the California Department of Public Health has released the updated Guidance for Schools and also set the metrics that all California schools (public and private) and county public health officials must use to determine whether to allow in-person, on-campus instruction.

As Sacramento County was placed on the California County Monitoring List on June 25, and remains there as of today, July 17, Jesuit Sacramento and all Sacramento County schools are not able to begin their school year with on-campus class instruction at this time.

However, Jesuit Sacramento will still start the school year on August 17.

We are working with county health officials to determine how we will be starting the school year.  Once Sacramento County meets the threshold as set by state health officials in lowering the incidence of COVID-19 in the community, comes off the California County Monitoring List, and deems it safe, Jesuit Sacramento may begin to implement a phased reopening of the campus for in-person, on-campus instruction.    

As such, today’s communication includes our detailed 2020-2021 Safe Return Plan. This document provides information on safety measures, caring for our students’ well-being, protections and precautions, navigating campus and our COVID response, which we are pleased to share will now include an on-campus medical professional. We had shared last week that we would be providing this document to you; although our timeline to return to in-class instruction will now be changed, this information is still critical for you to know what to expect when back on campus.

We want to reassure you that Jesuit Sacramento has already met or exceeded the Governor’s standards on safety and precautions that must occur to return to campus. Our 2020-2021 Safe Return Plan was drafted in consultation with Sacramento County health officials, our administration and the Jesuit Sacramento Safe Return Task Force, which includes ongoing consultations and guidance from multiple physicians, nurses and medical professionals. Some of the guidelines that the Governor noted today and that Jesuit Sacramento has already included in its plan are:

• Stay home when sick or with symptoms
• Mandatory masks and face coverings for everyone on campus
• Protective screens/barriers to maximize safety and spacing
• Physical and social distancing in classrooms and across campus
• Intensive cleaning, disinfection, and ventilation
• Response and quarantine protocols in conjunction with public health authorities
• Provide accommodations to serve students, faculty, and staff that may be at high-risk
• Arrival, departure and on-campus transit procedures and flows
• Foodservice adaptations to provide meals 

Additionally, the work done to develop our academic framework, which we shared last month, coupled with our technology infrastructure and classroom livestreaming capabilities, allows Jesuit Sacramento to quickly adjust and adapt as the situation evolves.

Our Distance Learning model will include an emphasis on the social and emotional needs of our students and will include modifications to allow electives, enrichments, clubs, athletics, and events as well as our religious core to occur, even in the remote environment. 

We know the news that things will move slowly to a full return to on-campus instruction is disappointing for many, and starting the school year with Distance Learning is now a possibility. Still, the health of our students, faculty, and staff is always our main guiding force. As we have since the pandemic began, our dedicated faculty and staff remain fully prepared to continue providing not only an excellent college-prep curriculum but care and concern for each student, just as Jesuit Sacramento has done since 1963, whether in person or remote.  

We will share more details via emails in the next few days after critical meetings with health and education officials, who will guide us further on the exact criteria that Sacramento County must meet to allow Jesuit Sacramento to hold on-campus instruction for the fall. Jesuit Sacramento will also use the Return to School webpage to post information, guides, and reminders to help you navigate the start of our 2020-2021 school year.  

Jesuit High School strives to form men of action and integrity. This is an opportunity to act in a way that allows Jesuit Sacramento, and all schools, to return to in-person learning.  Our ability to be back on the campus is contingent upon our collective commitment to mitigate this virus in our community.  One of the most important expressions of being a Person for Others right now is to do your part to keep each other safe. We are asking that our students, families, and all members of our community continue to observe social distancing and all other virus mitigation practices. This is a call to action and challenge for our students, parents, faculty, and staff to do our civic and moral duty to stop the spread and make schools safe to be back in the classrooms. Let us do this together.

Thank you for your continued faith in Jesuit Sacramento.

AMDG

Dr. Michael Wood, Ed.D., Principal | JHS Class of 1999

Rev. John P. McGarry, S.J., President