December 29, 2020

Dear Parents/Guardians:

Throughout the holiday season, we have continued to monitor COVID data and information and we have consulted with local health agencies and partners.Unfortunately, the spike that occurred after Thanksgiving has continued to keep the local number of cases and spread at a high level.There is great concern and expectation that due to widespread travel and gathering throughout the current holiday season, there will be continued opportunity for numbers to increase.As a result, for health and safety reasons it has been decided that Wayne Highlands School District will resume on January 4, 2021 remotely. Full remote learning for all students will continue until Tuesday, January 19, 2021, with Monday, January 18, 2021, off in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.It is our intention that students will return to school, in-person, on Tuesday, January 19^th.We will continue to closely monitor the situation as we go along hoping that the situation settles.

As I have said from the beginning, we are all in this together.The best chance for school to reopen as normal will come from all of us doing our part with mitigation efforts.As the Coronavirus situation continues to develop, we urge you to take the following necessary precautions to limit the spread of COVID-19 in our school community.

• Wear a mask and maintain a physical distance of at least 6 feet from any person while outside the home and avoid sharing food, drinks, or utensils.
• Stay home when you are sick. Watch for symptoms of COVID-19 including cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fever, chills, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, and/or diarrhea.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Sing the Happy Birthday song twice to help know when it has been 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use alcohol-based hand sanitizers that contain at least 60% alcohol.
• Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue and then dispose of the tissue and clean your hands immediately. If you do not have a tissue, use your sleeve, not your hands, to cover coughs and sneezes.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipes.
• If you are contacted by the Pennsylvania Department of Health or your local health department, please cooperate with monitoring and follow all instructions so that other people do not become sick.

Please note, if there is a weather-related reason to cancel school during the remote learning school days, it will be announced like we normally do using our One Call Now Alert System.If there is weather that requires a closure, it will be just like a typical “snow day” with no remote instruction.In essence, school will be closed.If you have not already done so, please visit our website at https://whsdk12.me/ to sign up for the One Call Now Alert System.You will find the One Call Now link under “Quick Links”.

In closing, I continue to be grateful for your continued understanding and support as we all navigate through this complicated time together.My best wishes to all of you for a healthy and happy 2021!

Sincerely,

GREGORY FRIGOLETTO
District Superintendent