UPDATE ON SCHOOL RE-OPENING FOR IN-PERSON INSTRUCTION
Ingenuity Prep Families –
As you may be aware, DCPS announced last week that they would begin reopening schools for in-person instruction for some PreK3 through 5th grade students in November. Given that announcement, we know that families may be wondering about Ingenuity Prep’s plans for reopening for in-person instruction and we wanted to share an update with you today.
In July, when we announced that we would be starting off this year with all virtual instruction, we also indicated that we would be in virtual learning indefinitely and that we anticipated that it could extend through Winter Break. Today, we wanted to inform you that we’ve decided we will not be reopening for in-person instruction for students until after Winter Break. And, while we now know that school will not re-open for in-person instruction until after Winter Break, we have not yet identified when after Winter Break we will re-open for in-person instruction.
While we are all agreed that a fully functioning, in-person learning structure, free of the threat of the pandemic most maximizes learning, developing social-emotional skills, and building community, the implications of the current combination of community health conditions, impending cold and flu season, and other factors for our students and staff do not lend us to believe that re-opening for in-person instruction is the right decision at this time. And while we believe this is the right choice, it is also — in many ways — a disappointing one. We know that continuing in a virtual learning space will continue to be impactful for our students, staff, and all of you. But as we’ve consistently said, our highest priority is health and safety and we will only re-open for in-person instruction when we are confident we can do so safely. And we don’t have the confidence that is true at this point in time.
Additionally, we wanted to share that — beginning next week — we will be launching two opportunities for families to share input to inform the decision on when and how to re-open for in-person instruction. We will be gathering that input through:
- Family Focus Group Sessions — Each session will run from 5:30 to 6:30 and will be focused on gathering input from families. Each Academy will have their own session on the following days:
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- Early Childhood Academy — Monday, October 26
- Click Here to Join Zoom Link
- Phone: (310) 715-8592
- Meeting ID: 881 1735 6629
- Passcode: 58755
- Click Here to Join Zoom Link
- Elementary School Academy — Tuesday, October 27
- Click Here to Join Zoom Link
- Phone: (301) 715-8592
- Meeting ID: 828 5684 3705
- Passcode: 894156
- Click Here to Join Zoom Link
- Middle School Academy — Wednesday, October 28
- Click Here to Join Zoom Link
- Phone: (301) 715-8592
- Meeting ID: 899 7222 7239
- Passcode: 650870
- Click Here to Join Zoom Link
- Early Childhood Academy — Monday, October 26
Click on the designated link to join those sessions.
- Family Survey — Your input through surveys (and there have been many!) since this summer has been very helpful in informing our planning. We’re going to launch a new survey to gather your input and gauge parent’s interest on returning for in-person instruction. That survey will launch on Tuesday, October 20th and is open to all families to complete due October 27th
Based on the input we receive from families and staff, our Senior School Leadership Team will formulate an initial plan for re-opening for in-person instruction. We’re aiming to make an initial decision in early November. This timeline and process will set us up to ensure we get great input from our school community and ensure we are able to communicate a final decision well before Winter Break and at least a month prior to the date we will re-open for in-person instruction.
Thank you very much for your continued investment in and commitment to your student’s learning here at Ingenuity Prep. We’re looking forward to having the opportunity to hear from our school community to gather advice and perspective that will help ensure we re-open for in-person instruction in the safest and most effective way possible. We’re hopeful that we see that day sooner rather than later. In the meantime, we will continue to do our very best to run an excellent virtual learning experience for our students.
As always, if there is anything our team can do to support you and your student(s) during this time, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. Our email addresses are listed below and I would be happy to hear from you.
All our best,
Will Stoetzer, Co-Founder and CEO Jennifer Hampton, Chief Academic Officer