Saint Simon COVID-19 Response

Saint Simon is offering both in-person and distance learning to meet the varying needs of our students and families.

• Grades K-4:  In-person and distance learning will be offered Monday-Friday. The core academics will be offered as live instruction and the enrichment courses will be a combination of live and recorded sessions.
• Grades 5-8:  In-person students are divided into two cohorts and attend in-person and distance learning on a 3-day/2-day alternating schedule over a two-week period. Both distance learning and in-person learning will be offered Monday-Friday.

• General guidelines: Masks should have two or more layers, be worn over the nose and mouth, and be secured snugly under the chin and over the bridge of the nose. Masks may not have an exhalation valve. Students should not wear gaiters in place of masks. Students are welcome to wear face shields in addition to masks, but may not replace a mask with a face shield.
• Staff: All teachers, staff, and visitors will be required to wear masks on campus.
• Students: Students will wear masks on campus including when arriving, departing, and at recess.
  • K-2: All students will be encouraged to have on masks in the classroom. Masks must be worn by all students when not at their own desks.
  • Grades 3-8: All students in grades 3-8 will be required to wear masks in the classroom.
• PE: Masks will be worn in PE except as directed by the PE teacher.

Handwashing Stations: One outdoor handwashing station is supplied for every classroom.

Sanitizer: Hand sanitizer is available in every classroom. K-4 sanitizer use will be supervised by an adult.

Shared Spaces/Restroom: Students must wash or sanitize their hands when leaving the classroom and upon returning from the restroom and other shared spaces.

Water Bottles: Students may use the bottle refilling stations for their own water bottles. The bottle filling station button will be wiped down after recess and lunch.

• Tables I & II: The steps required to respond and report are outlined in Tables I and II from the County of Santa Clara Health Department and will be followed by Saint Simon staff.
• Learning for Students Quarantining or with Mild Symptoms: Students who are quarantining due to COVID-19 concerns or who have mild symptoms of illness, and would normally have come to school, will be able to participate in distance learning if they are absent from school. If students are ill and unable to participate in distance learning, they will have the opportunity to make up any missed work due to the absence in accordance with the school policies. However, if students have a regular pattern of calling in sick and joining distance learning, they will be moved to distance learning.
• After-Hours Symptoms/COVID-19 Notification: If a student is diagnosed with COVID-19 or exposed to a close contact who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 during non-school hours, the school must be notified immediately by sending a message to healthoffice@stsimon.org with COVID-19 in the subject line.
• Isolation Area: An isolation tent will be set up temporarily to the side of the church for students who are showing symptoms and need to be picked up from school.  In inclement weather or unhealthy air, the isolation area will be moved to a designated location in the Parish Center.

Visitors will park in designated parking spaces next to the convent, phone the office, and wait in their car for the staff to greet them. Any visitor who needs to enter the building will be asked to sign in at the school entry and answer the health check questions before entering.

A successful reopening will rely on the commitment of the school community. As Saint Simon welcomes students back on campus, it is important to have a shared understanding of these commitments and acknowledge the responsibility that everyone has for the health and safety of the community. Given this, all parents acknowledge a series of statements based on the Saint Simon Reopening Guidelines.

• Daily Cleaning: Janitorial staff will clean and disinfect hard surfaces pursuant to CDC guidance.
• High-Touch Areas: Teachers will disinfect the classrooms’ high-touch surfaces throughout the day (doorknobs, switches, etc.).  The homeroom teacher will disinfect before the specialty teacher arrives.  Specialty teachers will wipe down high-touch areas when exiting the class.
• Outdoor Equipment: Outdoor equipment used by cohorts will be sanitized daily.

Air Flow and Purification

• Windows & Doors: Staff will keep doors open at drop-off and pickup and windows open unless doing so would pose a health or safety risk.
• Filtration: MERV 13 filtration is used throughout the school.
• Air Purifiers: Medical-grade HEPA air purifiers are in each classroom.
• Fresh Air: The facilities department is determining the feasibility of adding a fresh air supply to the classrooms HVAC systems to increase the circulation of fresh air.