| March 23, 2020 Dear Hathaway Brown Community, Early spring invites us all to marvel at nature’s capacity for healing and renewal. This spring, however, we are also being asked to show courage, resiliency, and optimism as we face an unprecedented time. After Spring Break, we will still operate as a school, albeit a new one. Students will begin remote learning on April 1. On that day, we will begin an extraordinary and unprecedented era at HB that will embrace our mission of rising boldly to the challenges of our times, and our mantra of “learning for life.” I have complete faith that teachers and students will continue to strive for excellence, that we will witness extraordinary achievement, and that we will learn new lessons about teaching, learning, and community. A tremendous amount of planning and preparation for this transition has been going on over the last two weeks, and my team is excited for this new chapter. There are many questions that this situation has presented us. I humbly ask your patience and understanding as we work through your requests and respond as a caring and kind community to COVID-19’s new realities. I am hoping this bullet list anticipates some things on your mind and provides clarity at this moment: - I am anticipating that we may continue remote learning EC-12 beyond April 6 and potentially through the remainder of the spring term. Although Governor DeWine has not yet changed the date for when schools would be back on campus, we are assuming that he will. (Especially after issuing his “Stay at Home” order yesterday.) Coronavirus projections by leading health experts point to an extension of remote learning. We are making decisions with this at the forefront of our minds.
- The Governor ordered the following: “All school buildings that provide any kindergarten through grade twelve instruction in the State of Ohio are to be closed to students beginning at 12:01 a.m. on March 17 and ending at 11:59 p.m. on April 3, 2020.” In order to keep campus safe, students/children may not return to campus for their belongings or for any other reason. If you need something, please reach out to your Division Director or an administrator, or even me, and we will figure a way to get you what you need. If you need a computer, iPad and/or hotspot, we are more than willing to help with that as well. Let your Division Director know what you need, we will find a way to get it in your hands.
- We know that many parents and students are interested in learning more about the ways that our remote learning will be delivered and what the expectations for interactivity and productivity will be. The Division Directors will be in touch with those details by early next week.
- The Class Deans, Homeroom Teachers, Mentors/Advisors, and Division Directors will continue to provide outstanding connections for you and your student(s), and our priority is student engagement. If you or your student needs counseling services, please reach out to us and we can help. Additionally, we have updated our web presence at www.hb.edu/covid19 with a number of helpful articles and links and other resources designed to aid families as we move into this new horizon.
- Our College Counseling office advising will go on as planned using a variety of technologies. Outside testing organizations such as AP, SATs, and ACTs, for example, are modifying rules/curriculum requirements/dates as I write. Details continue to come in on this front, and we will keep you updated.
- We will continue to build community for parents too! Look to your Division Director’s communication as they modify Parent Coffees and other such things. We will create new ways for the community to celebrate and connect.
- Due to the Governor’s Stay at Home order, we have adopted a remote working option for our administrators and support staff. With the exception of essential maintenance and security activities that require a physical presence, faculty and staff are working remotely.
- We know we are going to need to postpone and reimagine some of our core traditions and events. We will rely on student leadership, parent insights, and faculty and staff creativity to reimagine these important rituals. For example, we have postponed Alumnae Weekend (slated for May 15-16, 2020). We do not have any details yet, but we will be working to create a way for the class of 1970, other reunion classes, and all alums to have a chance to return to campus.
- We are reviewing the financial implications of this fundamental change to our operations. Our focus right now is on campus operations and safety. On questions of finances, we ask that you be patient. We know many have questions about extracurricular trip and other program refunds and we will be in touch with those families once we know more. We are honoring that this is Spring Break for many of our employees. I do want to let you know that HB is committed to paying our faculty and staff.
The decisions we have made have been guided by our commitment to our community’s health and safety, to our unique culture, and to our historic mission of the education not just for school but for life. It isn’t often that we get this kind of opportunity to model innovation, engagement, optimism, and curiosity in such ways to our students! In the past two weeks, I have heard messages of support from countless students, parents, alumni, faculty, and staff. I have found myself deeply moved and inspired. Anticipating Health Questions: I have questions about COVID-19 and HB, who can I contact? Sheri Homany, HB’s Associate Head of School is the point person for HB and COVID-19 questions. Please begin by reaching out to her. Her e-mail is shomany@hb.edu, and her office number is 216.320.8769. You can see all our communication on our web site: www.hb.edu/covid19. If I contract COVID-19 or someone in my family does, what should I do? Please contact Sheri as we know from speaking to the local health department, every case seems to have its own set of circumstances. Public health officials will notify you directly if you are identified as having been exposed to the coronavirus. If you are medically directed to be quarantined by the CDC or the local health department, please follow their guidelines/requirements and know, they will provide an official letter to HB on the matter. Please let us know before coming back on campus if the health department notifies you or if you have been exposed. We will work together to follow the CDC/Health Department protocols. It is important that all official channels are followed. If someone at HB gets COVID-19, will I be informed? Yes, we will let our community know if someone contracts COVID-19. We will not necessarily specify who, but we will let folks know that someone is positive, and we work with our local health department and the CDC to follow their requirements. As our learning becomes more digital, we must seek to become more personal. We are focused on transparent communication and will continue to keep you updated. Please look for communication from your Division Director at the end of this week. I welcome the questions on your mind, and we will email you next week. Stay safe and be healthy! Fondly, Fran P.S.—Last week, as COVID-19 intensified, I reached out and called Clara Rankin (HB class of ’34). She said, “I am so grateful to Alexander Graham Bell! What would we do without the telephone? What would we do without the internet? And I have such a lot to learn on the computer. What a great time to begin!” At 102 years young, she is learning for life and intensely optimistic about what this situation will teach us.
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