Living with a highly contagious virus means that our routines will be disrupted to minimize spread until a treatment or vaccine can be fully implemented. 

Under current distancing guidelines, our campus square footage allows for 100% student attendance with physical distancing. If restrictions are imposed and Summit moves to a Hybrid Learning Mode, we will reduce student attendance on campus to minimize risk of transmission. 

Summit is exploring all models to determine which would best fit within our philosophy and instructional delivery preferences. In all modes, the desire is to maximize the time students can have on campus, while also providing a robust digital core to serve as a homebase for learning.

While being apart is not ideal, Summit provides full-featured Chromebook laptops as part of tuition for all our students. We are confident that we can deliver the highest quality blended learning experience for students even within these face-to-face restrictions. 

While we value our independence, when it comes to delivering the best academic program for our students during a global pandemic, we must remain connected to the wider community and not act unilaterally in decisions regarding our students' and the larger public health. 

To that end, in addition to being guided by our task forces and community data, Summit will also continue to consult with local public and private schools, as well as regional and national associations, to gather data and make informed decisions.

Switching between operational modes will be decided using the following inputs:

• Governmental requirements/guidelines
• Science/health metrics: treatments, response capacity, virus spread
• Community (Forsyth, NC and Summit) health and outbreaks data 

Summit Athletics plans to offer a robust team sports experience that contributes to a Summit education this fall beginning August 17. Any changes to our normal programming moving forward will be determined in partnership with our state and local organizations.

Our planning for the 2020-2021 school year is well underway and we intend to begin on our scheduled date of August 25 (as noted in our Key Dates Calendar) on campus.

In the coming weeks and throughout the summer we will be providing increasingly detailed information regarding our Re-Entry Plan for the 2020-2021 school year.

Our Re-Entry Task Force, comprised of administrators, staff, faculty, trustees, educational experts, and medical advisors, is addressing all aspects of the opening of school in August, including:

• Prioritizing the health and safety of our entire Summit community.
• Following specific health precautions in accordance with federal, state, and local requirements as well as the recommendations of our Summit medical advisors.
• Collaborating with leaders of sister Independent Schools from around the country and the world in examining a variety of scenarios—and their implications—for the coming year. We intend to begin the year together on campus. However, we will be prepared in the event we must shift to a combination of on-campus and distance teaching and learning.
• Planning that honors physical distancing and innovative space use. One of Summit’s gifts is our unique and expansive campus—along with creative and resourceful educators who are adept at making the most of it.
• Continuing our studied approach to Summit’s relationship-based distance learning model, including refinement of our work over the past two months through careful analysis and ongoing professional development throughout the spring and summer. Summit faculty have been nothing short of extraordinary during this crisis. As ever, this will continue—whether we are on campus, off-campus, doing both simultaneously, or toggling between the two.

Driven by Mission

As always, our school mission remains front and center, a driving force in shaping Summit's response to the pandemic. While this period is undoubtedly challenging, it also presents unique opportunities to respond with different learning modalities and approaches to relationship-based distance learning. 

Summit’s history of academic excellence and innovative spirit positions us to make the most of the challenges ahead with creative agility. The entire Summit community can rely on that fact.

Mission
Summit School provides a challenging curriculum within a caring environment to help students develop their full potential.

In planning for the next school year, we are operating under the following assumptions:

• we are going through a monumentally stressful and disruptive time in history, and we should not expect to flip a switch back to “normal;”
• there will be heightened attention to matters of wellness and public health which will impact our students, their families and the format which learning  needs to occur;
• various formal and informal forms of social distancing will continue; and
• coronavirus waves are predicted to cause future short-term, place-specific stay-at-home orders for the foreseeable future.

• Adjust academic schedules for maximum flexibility between on campus, hybrid, and distance learning modes
• Adjust physical environment for distancing and heightened public-health protocols
• Review programs, policies, and procedures for safe operations
• Identify tools and resources to make work easier and effective in this environment

We are beginning with what we can control in the spring and early summer. Working groups were created in April to review:

• School Calendar
• Re-Entry
• Academics
• Health and Safety
• Facilities and Operations
• Dining
• Financial Contingencies
• Policy Ramifications

These groups rely on guidelines from governmental and health bodies as well as business and medical experts within our community.

Our combination of large campus, small class sizes, agility and creativity enable us to accommodate our entire student body while maintaining the required physical distance. 

At the same time, we recognize that we may also be required by an exec order from the governor or a directive from public health officials to spend time off campus, or simultaneously off an on campus — with some students at home due to illness or family situations and others on campus. We are both committed and positioned to provide the maximum learning for children in the richest possible environment in all of these scenarios.

You may know the Department of Health and Human Services released its Strong Schools NC Toolkit. It serves as an interim guidance for public schools. Note the word "interim"--so much is still in flux with how our state is managing the spread of this virus. As an independent school, we take guidance from our state government, our public health officials and from our peer schools--translating that, when and where we can, into what is best for Summit. 

Below are the health related and virus containment strategies Summit will have in place for camps and the opening of school on August 25. 

The major areas are:

• Physical distancing and space use
• Minimizing exposure
• Face coverings
• Cleaning and hygiene
• Monitoring for symptoms

Physical distancing and space use

• Our task force has already mapped out capacity for students in classrooms and is making adjustments. Fortunately we have a large and flexible campus with classrooms of varying sizes. We also have a great deal of outdoor space we will use for recess and teaching. 
• Our campus is marked with signage for one-way travel. 
• We reconfiguring our buildings for increased air circulation.

Minimizing exposure

• We will limit parent entry into the school during arrival and dismissal
• Children will limit their travel around our campus
• We are working with Flik to provide a staggered lunch delivery system, including possible individual servings of food in the classroom

Face coverings

• Face coverings for children is challenging, and we continue to investigate this.
• Our focus for face coverings will be for older children and staff and faculty

Cleaning and hygiene

• Budd services is following the highest standards of disinfection of our spaces
• Teachers will teach, supervise, and reinforce handwashing for all students
• Hand sanitizer is available far and wide
• Teachers will increase the frequency of disinfection of any and all shared objects
• We will limit the sharing of personal items and supplies

Monitoring for symptoms

• All students will be screened daily before entering buildings
• Anyone with a temperature greater than 100 will not be allowed to enter the school and will be sent home immediately.

When we operationalize re-opening in the fall, we will organize around the following framework to keep our community healthy.

Prevention

• Education about the virus and how to stay healthy
• Program adjustments to maximize individual and community wellness
• Physical and social adjustments to minimize risk of exposure

Detection

• Monitoring regional and local outbreaks to understand community risk
• Ensuring individuals coming to campus are of low risk of spreading illness
• Tracking individual cases and trending illnesses within our community

Response

• Communicating with local health authorities and internal community
• Adjusting operational modes
• Implementing cleaning and disinfecting protocols

Using guidance from trusted health authorities, this group will determine the best policy and operational approaches to keep our community healthy during the COVID-19 outbreak.  Areas to explore could include:

• Providing educational frameworks and approaches to keep the community informed regarding health and wellness best-practices
• Providing guidance on PPE, screening, contact tracing or school closure recommendations
• Developing methods for communication with divisions about on-campus health trends
• Conferring with the Facilities and Operations team
• Conferring with the Dining team and Flik 

Our internal team is receiving support and guidance from doctors, government scientists, and public health professionals with connections to Summit School.

This group will review governmental and health guidelines to develop clear and reasonable operational guidelines and protocols for facilities use. Areas to explore could include:

Campus Use

• Occupancy guidelines/restrictions based on state recommendations
• Expectations for parents, prospective students, and outside visitors

Cleaning/Health

• Cleaning protocols used by Budd Services cleaning teams
• Cleaning protocols for classroom teachers/individuals
• Sourcing and procurement of resources
• Installation of additional handwashing or sanitizing stations

Social Distancing Physical Adaptations

• Recommendations for spacing/barriers to desks and counters – classrooms, offices, and public spaces
• Procedures to reduce touching of doors and/or cleaning of heavily used objects
• Developing appropriate signage/wayfinding instructions

Social Distancing Human Adaptations

• Altering “human traffic” patterns
• Potential restrictions for lockers and other max-contact areas
• Gathering guidelines and/or restrictions for larger groups

It is too early to fully project how Summit's childcare options might look next school year. We want to accommodate all families in the safest and most seamless way possible. We will continue to work to deliver the safest and highest quality opportunities that we can. 

The Summit Afternoon Academy hopes to continue offering after-school activities for Eaglets (3s) to 5th Grade students. These high-quality, enrichment classes focus on meaningful experiences in a wide variety of topics. Our teams of teachers are exploring options for blended and distance learning should the need arise. 

Summit students have always engaged with their community with numerous activities and field trips. Within safe boundaries, we will continue to make every effort possible to get students off campus with museum partners, community organizations, and outdoor experiences. 

The Board of Trustees in concert with the administration of the school has established an Emergency Relief Fund (ERF). Effective immediately, the ERF provides emergency financial assistance grants, separate and apart from normal budgeted financial aid to current and future families in the Summit community who have been or will be adversely impacted by the pandemic. These grants are designed to support families with tuition for the upcoming 2020-2021 school year.

The following criteria will apply as Summit considers assistance on a case by case basis:

1. Families experiencing financial stress should be in contact with Cindy Kluttz (ckluttz@summitmail.org) in our admission office. 

2. Complete SSS
.

3. Submit documentation as requested by Summit.

Conversations with Summit staff about a family’s financial circumstances are held in strictest confidence.

Several supporters of the School have stepped forward to contribute to this Fund. The School is also reaching out to the wider Summit community to humbly invite their participation. Of course, we do not expect current families who are experiencing financial stress to contribute to the Fund—indeed, the Fund has been created to support these very families. We are deeply grateful to those who are in a position to do so to contribute. If you would like to make a contribution, please contact Jeanne Sayers (jsayers@summitmail.org).

Donate to Covid-19 Emergency Relief Fund

Thankfully, Summit entered this crisis from a strong financial position. As part of our strategic planning process in 2015, we developed several long-range financial planning models that give us the necessary flexibility to respond to and weather our current situation.

However, like many schools and businesses, Summit carries debt. Additionally it has experienced a number of unanticipated financial impacts resulting from Covid-19, especially as it relates to a sharp drop in ancillary (non-tuition) income that directly supports the academic program and general operational expenses. 

We anticipate additional costs this summer as we prepare the campus for social distancing and as our faculty works hard to build their distance learning plans.