Our comprehensive safety plan worked well during the Fall Trimester. We successfully repopulated the campus in late September. Colleagues, students, and parents conscientiously followed the required protocols that provided layers of effective protection. As a result, we prevented the spread of COVID-19.
Now, the school’s ad hoc safety committee has reconvened to apply the lessons learned and address the more significant challenge of keeping everyone safe at a time when the United States is failing to contain the pandemic at a national level. During this December Intersession, the committee meets every other day to identify additional safety initiatives, including more frequent testing of all students and employees. The administrative team will review the committee’s report and present recommendations to Franklin Academy’s Board of Trustees next Friday, December 18. Then, I will explain in a substantive email to the Franklin family how our school plans to move forward while the pandemic is surging.
I conclude this communication with a recommendation that the CDC made last week: “schools should be the last settings to close after all other mitigation measures have been employed and the first to reopen when they can do so safely.” I concur. Our trustees, administrators, teachers, and staff want what every Franklin parent wants – the opportunity for all students to return to campus, enjoying the benefits of living and learning together while staying healthy and happy.