Family Communications

August 7, 2020 - Important Update About the 2020-21 School Year

Important Update about the 2020-21 School Year

Dear DeLaSalle Families,

We open this message with a profound sense of gratitude for your continued partnership with us as we plan for the 2020-21 school year. Thank you for the many email and telephone conversations that we have had in recent days. Thank you to the more than 75 percent of our families who have responded to a parent survey to share their insights with us as we finalize details about how to conduct school. And thank you to the many families who joined us for our parent listening session via Zoom last night. Relationships matter and we are grateful for our partnership with your family as we identify the best possible educational experience for your child. Your commitment to a DeLaSalle education for your child invigorates our work each day.

Schedule Changes to the First Two Weeks of School

As we communicated in our listening session last night, DeLaSalle has moved two of the key dates for the start of the school year as part of our thorough preparation for the upcoming year. New Student Orientation programs will be on Thursday, August 27 for incoming ninth graders and transfer students, with more details to be communicated next week. The first full day of classes for all students will be on Monday, August 31.

These schedule modifications will allow our faculty three days of additional professional development time to enhance their delivery of curriculum through the hybrid model of instruction, for both students on campus and in distance learning. In addition, we will be upgrading the HVAC systems in the B building, with the obvious short-term benefit of better ensuring the health and well-being of students and teachers on campus, but also the long-term benefit to complete work that has always been a project on our long-range Facilities Master Plan. It makes sense to do that work this year. Finally, as part of our safety and health protocols, we will also be installing thermal temperature scans at our two main entrances and developing a more efficient process for students and staff to arrive each day.

Back-to-School Questionnaire

Thank you for your responses all summer! We need a few more pieces of information from you to provide the best possible educational experience for your child and family needs. Please complete this Back-to-School questionnaire to indicate: (1) your decision/request to participate in hybrid or full distance learning, (2) what times your child would arrive on and depart from campus on the days they participate in in-person instruction, and (3) your student’s locker needs. If you have more than one child at DeLaSalle, please complete a separate questionnaire for each. Please respond as soon as possible and no later than Friday, August 14. Thank you again.

Upcoming Student/Parent Information Sessions

We look forward to gathering again as a community on Thursday, August 13, to share more information about our back-to-school plans with you. Our various planning committees will be doing more work early next week, informed by the many good suggestions that have come from our parents and students. We invite families — students and parents alike — to join us for a listening session on the 13th, from 5:00-5:45pm via Zoom. Please find the login information at the end of this message:

Again, thank you for your patience, wisdom, and understanding as we work through the many details of what school will look like as we begin this fall. In Faith and hope, as partners and as a community, we are confident that our collaborative work this year will be significant for the students we serve.

Live Jesus in our hearts … Forever!

Sincerely,

Bryan E. Bass, EdD
President

James Benson
Principal

July 31, 2020 - DeLaSalle Will Begin 2020-21 School Year with Hybrid Learning

DeLaSalle Will Begin 2020-21 School Year with Hybrid Learning

Dear DeLaSalle Community,

As always, we begin with prayer and hope that you and your family are healthy and well. We are writing to share an update as we move into the final stages of our summer-long planning for the 2020-21 school year. We reiterate our commitment to protect the physical and social-emotional health and well-being of our students and staff as we refine the working models for conducting school this fall. We will care about your child’s heart, spirit, and mind as the centerpiece of our work. We will prepare all students throughout this year for their next level of education. Inspired by the resolve and wisdom offered by so many in our community, we will continue to respond to each other with kindness and care. Together, we will meet the challenges of this most unique year — as DeLaSalle always has.

Like many of you, we watched yesterday afternoon as Governor Walz and his administration released guidance for how Minnesota schools may resume this fall. As we have done throughout this pandemic, we continue to update and align our planning based on current conditions, public health guidance, and community feedback. Since March, we have also adapted our method of instruction in response to evolving trends in this pandemic.

DeLaSalle will begin the school year sometime during the week of August 24 with a hybrid model of instruction that combines a mix of in-person and distance learning for most students, with full distance learning available each day for students who need or prefer that model. We believe this hybrid model best accomplishes our goals: educating students with high expectations for both their holistic well-being and their academic preparation; addressing the needs and concerns identified by our families and staff; and offering our students and staff opportunities for on-campus community. Today and into early next week, the administrators, faculty, staff, and trustees who serve on our Instructional Design and Pandemic Operations teams are finalizing the specific details of how we will implement this model. We will communicate updates over the next two weeks, and we thank you for your continued patience as these groups conclude their work.

Our successful implementation of two programs this summer demonstrates the effectiveness of our approach to hybrid learning. More than 140 ninth graders, led by 50 juniors and seniors on the Islander Welcome Crew and many staff, chose to participate voluntarily in our inaugural Summer Bridging Academy program to get to know each other and enhance their academic skills prior to the start of the school year. We have followed the protocols of the Minnesota Department of Health by checking the temperature of each participant upon arrival, practicing proper physical distancing of six feet, wearing masks or face shields, and practicing good hygiene. Throughout the program, some students have connected virtually from home while others participate on campus, as current DeLaSalle teachers lead academic skills courses and use enhanced technology we also will use for the school year. These measures, which reflect MDH guidance, helped to ensure a safe environment and mitigated further transmission of COVID-19 when one student in the program tested positive for the coronavirus. Because of the measures we had in place, no other program participants were considered by MDH to be a close contact requiring contact tracing, and no other participants reported symptoms or a positive test. The student who did report is healthier today while remaining in quarantine for a 14-day period.

Coaches and students in our athletic programs have followed the same health protocols as they have participated since mid-June in summer training on campus. Those athletes, their families, and DeLaSalle now await further direction about the fall sports season from the Minnesota State High School League, whose board of directors will meet on Tuesday, August 4. (As of this writing, all Minnesota high schools are still preparing for the first day of fall sports practices on Monday, August 17.)

We are grateful for all of you. Thank you to the many students, parents, and staff who have provided thoughtful perspectives through virtual listening sessions or surveys. (Well over 450 households have responded to our parent survey to date.) Your comments and questions continue to inform our planning. We invite parents to provide additional input during our next two virtual listening sessions on Thursday, August 6, and Thursday, August 13, each day from 5:00-5:45pm via Google Meet. Please use this form to share any questions you would like us to address in the listening sessions.

In addition to those listening sessions, we will communicate again with you over the next two weeks and will continue to provide specific details about how you and your family can successfully plan for the start of school. We are grateful for your partnership and belief in our mission as we embark on our 121st year of education on Nicollet Island.