From the Desk of the Head of School- February 5, 2021

Dear Parents,

Congratulations! We have made it 100 days. Can you believe it? There were celebrations aplenty in our classrooms and I’m sure some of you may be doing your own little happy dances right now...

The light at the end of the tunnel seems to be slowly growing in its brightness. It is hard not to be optimistic about where we are headed in terms of this pandemic. Yet, it is important to remember all the work we have put in together as a learning community to get us to this point and it is important to acknowledge that our continued commitment to that work is what will eventually lead us out of the tunnel and into the light. 

I expect that our faculty and staff will virtually all be vaccinated by the end of the semester, we are seeing that our classrooms are not driving transmission in ours or the broader community, and we see the daily new cases per one hundred thousand population, positivity rate and infection rates all coming down to pre-Thanksgiving levels. This is all encouraging news, and it should be celebrated. But we can’t take our eye off the ball of in-person learning yet. 

Please continue to monitor your child closely and if there is a concern, err on the side of caution and keep them home. For symptomatic members of your family, feel free to use our testing program: you can find the sign up HERE. Also, please consider the impact of your family decisions on the broader Harding Academy community. We have the Super Bowl this weekend, President’s Day Weekend next week, and Spring Break not long after. Please be mindful of the new CDC guidance (updated on Feb. 2, 2021) on travel: both domestic and international

We will continue to operate with our current safety protocols and mitigation measures in place for the foreseeable future. I cannot predict at this time with any accuracy what the late spring or summer will hold, but I share the optimism of the moment and believe we will return to a pre-pandemic environment during the next year. 

We’ve made it 100 days and we are poised to make it many more - together. 

I hope you have a great weekend. Stay safe and healthy.
 
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