Head's Weekly Message — Feb. 26, 2021

Dear Mayfield Senior School Parents,

 

This week we have received some very good news that fills my heart with hope! As the COVID-19 case numbers continue to decline and vaccination rates continue to rise, with cautious optimism we are setting the tentative date of Thursday, April 8 as our goal for resuming in-person instruction at Mayfield Senior School.  

 

In order to achieve this goal, the virus case numbers in Los Angeles County must continue to fall as stipulated in the state’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy to an adjusted rate of 7 or fewer per 100,000, and they must stay at that level for two weeks, putting our County in the Red Tier. Schools would be allowed to open five days later.  

 

If the case numbers continue to decline, I predict that Los Angeles County has a good chance of entering the Red Tier by late March so that we would be able to reopen our campus just after Easter Vacation. Again, this is just a prediction—but I’m hoping and praying that we will not be disappointed. Please be aware that at this point there continues to be a travel quarantine in effect, which requires anyone who travels out of the state to quarantine for ten days after returning to California. It is impossible to say whether or not this rule will still be active in April, but make sure to plan accordingly.

 

To assure the safety of our community, our reopening plan will use a hybrid instructional model with half of our students attending in-person instruction on Mondays and Tuesdays and the other half on Thursdays and Fridays. Students who are not on campus will join their classmates at school remotely via Zoom. There will also be a fully remote option for all students.

 

Lots of additional information will be sent in the next few weeks so that you and your daughters will be fully prepared. In the meantime, the state requires that we survey our parent community to determine your support for reopening our campus. Please complete this simple two-question anonymous form which will also help us determine approximately how many families will choose the fully remote option.

 

As we continue to plan for the reopening of our campus for instruction, we are so enjoying our “Mayfield Mornings.” This past Wednesday we welcomed our 9th- and 11th-graders in Big Sister/Little Sister groups for some prayer, games and socializing. Next Wednesday it will be the 10th- and 12th-graders’ turn. As our tentative reopening date draws nearer, we will be using these Wednesday mornings to help acclimate our students to our reopening safety protocols, including all the rules and regulations that we all must follow to mitigate against virus transmission.

 

With all our reopening work—we continue to plan for a fully-in-person Summer@Mayfield program, with registration opening tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. Please note that some courses will fill up very quickly. Also—as a reminder—those families receiving financial aid for the 2021-22 school year will have that same percentage applied to summer school tuition.

 

Finally—I am so pleased to let you know that over half of Mayfield’s faculty and staff have already received at least their first dose of the vaccine through a state program. We look forward to growing access to the vaccine as we continue to pray for the health and safety of our community.

 

With Love and Gratitude,