Dear CSSE Families,

I hope you are all staying safe while enjoying your summer. Last Friday, my Back to the Building committee met again to finalize our plans for the 2020-21 school year. In forming this plan, we have relied on guidelines from CDC, AAP, and the Archdiocese. Our goal is for our students and staff to be able to be physically in our school building this year, in a way that is safe for everyone. We know you are eagerly awaiting news of what our return to school will look like, and we anticipate rolling out our Back to the Building Plan by Monday, July 20th. 

Although we are still finalizing the details of our Back to School Plan, I would like to share a few details with you. When we return to school, our staff — including all teachers — will be wearing face coverings. These coverings will be transparent, so that children can see their teachers’  faces; this helps foster both academic and social-emotional development.

In addition, every child, at all grade levels, will be required to have some type of face covering available during the school day. There are a variety of options available for students (masks, gaiters, plastic face shields) — we strongly recommend that your family begin looking now for a solution that will work for your individual child, and that you encourage your child to practice wearing his or her face covering over the next few weeks, to get used to it. Face coverings must have appropriate prints and  may not have any words or writing on them. All face coverings are subject to approval by school staff. Our Back to the Building Plan will specify when and where students are required to wear face coverings; these requirements may vary by grade level.

One option available to students will be a gaiter with our school logo on it. We are working with PTO on this project, and are hoping to secure the funds to provide these gaiters free of charge to students and school staff. If you would like to contribute to this effort, please let me know.

Our goal is for students to be in the building this year, gathering together to pray and learn. I am confident that you are already doing your part to mitigate the spread of Covid-19 and pave the way to a safe return to school by washing hands, wearing a mask, and practicing social distancing. It is also imperative that every family follows and supports our Back to the Building Plan. This will give us the best chance to stay together in the school building this year. 

Thank you for your commitment to St. Eugene, and to Catholic education. Faith formation and education is always a partnership between our school and our families, and in this upcoming school year, that partnership will be especially important. 

We look forward to  sharing our full  plans next week!

Faith Forward!

Mrs. Goldsworthy