ST. JOSEPH CATHOLIC SCHOOL - Back to School Plan for Preschool, Elementary School, and Middle School 2020-2021
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ST. JOSEPH
CATHOLIC SCHOOL
Back to School Plan for
Preschool, Elementary School,
and Middle School
2020—2021
901 W. 4th Avenue, Kennewick, WA 99336 | 509.586.0481 | sjske.org
St. Joseph Catholic School is a dynamic, faith-filled community where each child is challenged
excel and grow in mind, body, and spirit as an image of God in our world.
Page 2 St. Joseph Catholic School
A Note from Mr. Kelly
Dear St. Joseph Catholic School Families and Friends,
St. Joseph Catholic School was established in 1964. Since then our society
has seen many difficult days. One day, we’ll look upon these days as
“History”. The last five months have challenged us to grow and become a
stronger community. We are looking forward to this new school year and
although it will not be like any other we have experienced, it will still be
great.
As we begin this new school year we are taking important steps to keep our
children safe while we provide the best education possible. We have many
diverse situations and needs within our school community and this plan
has been created with that in mind. Since information changes quickly, this
plan must have the ability to be adjusted. We are in a time where we must
be able to adapt and grow, even as adults. The example we set will define
how our children see the world and how they approach the challenges they
will face in their future. Together we will create an amazing academic ex-
perience for our children and because of our love for them, they will share
Christ’s love with the world.
God Bless, Perry Kelly
St. Joseph Catholic School is a dynamic, faith-filled community where each child is challenged
excel and grow in mind, body, and spirit as an image of God in our world.
Page 3 St. Joseph Catholic School
School hours/schedule - In-person and Online
St. Joseph Catholic School is really 3 schools in one - Preschool, Elementary School, and Middle
school. There are different considerations with each grade regarding how we can best serve
their needs. All students need to be kept safe and will be required to wear masks and follow
social distancing rules. Younger students may find it more difficult to cope with wearing masks
and social distancing than older students. This plan has been created to help create a more
calm and loving atmosphere as students adapt to school during Covid. With that in mind we
are adjusting our school schedule as follows.
Preschool will have two sessions Monday through Thursday.
Session 1 will be from 8:00 AM until 10:45 AM.
Session 2 will be from 12:15 PM until 3:00 PM.
Class sizes will be smaller and students will be grouped according to their activities. For exam-
ple, Childcare students will remain with other Childcare students with as little mixing of stu-
dents as possible.
Elementary students began the year with an AM/PM schedule. Students took needed core and
religion instruction directly from their classroom teachers in person. Students have had a
Brain/Recess break. Students also had a Friday online activity/lesson as well as online Mass.
Beginning the week of October 26th, elementary students will attend school
5th through 8th grade students will attend school in person Monday through Thursday from
8:00 AM to 3:00 PM and online on Fridays. Middle School Classes will remain in the same room
for much of the day while teachers move from class to class. Outside breaks will be a part of
the day to provide periodic breaks to move and get some fresh air. When students move to a
different room for a class, every effort will be made to vary hallway times between classes.
St. Joseph Catholic School is a dynamic, faith-filled community where each child is challenged
excel and grow in mind, body, and spirit as an image of God in our world.
Page 4 St. Joseph Catholic School
School times for In-Person learning at a glance—
8:00 AM—Elementary and M.S. begin (all students)
8:00 AM— AM Preschool
10:45 AM—AM Preschool ends (classes are cleaned)
12:15 PM—PM Preschool begins
3:00 PM—PM Preschool, Elementary and M.S. end (classes are cleaned)
School for Online Students will continue.
Students who have attended live instruction along with the students in the classroom
through Google Meet may continue to do so.
Pick-up and Dropoff -
Drop off - Students will go directly to their classroom porch. Middle school
students will go to their assigned door. Students will have spots/marks on the
porch or sidewalk in front of each classroom for distancing.
All students will be reminded to use hand sanitizer and to wash their hands and use proper
hygiene.
Temperatures will be checked as students enter the building, according to
the procedure for health checks.
Pick-up - Students will go directly to their parents or cars. Parents will be
expected to wear masks and maintain social distance if they leave their car
to pick-up their children.
We will observe a “no visitors” policy during the school day.
St. Joseph Catholic School is a dynamic, faith-filled community where each child is challenged
excel and grow in mind, body, and spirit as an image of God in our world.
Page 5 St. Joseph Catholic School
School Mealtimes, recess, and Exploratory Classes
School Lunch will be in classrooms. At this time Hot Lunch is expected to be availa-
ble for purchase, to be delivered to students.
Recess and break times will be held in different areas and will be staggered. We
have a lot of spaces on our campus where students can have recess. We will
use them to our best advantage. Students will be allowed to remove masks
during recess provided they follow distancing guidelines. Recess monitors will
assess how students are doing and adjust as necessary.
Middle School lockers and class rotations and Student Grouping
M.S. students will remain in their “Home room” for as many classes as possible ra-
ther than moving from class to class. When students move from one class to
another, desks and high touch areas will be disinfected. Teachers will spray
desks in between classes and students will wipe down the desk when they ar-
rive.
Teachers will be moving from room to room as needed, while remaining in their
safe areas at the front of the room.
We are not using lockers at this time. If we enter phase 3 we will consider the use
of lockers. Most class supplies will be kept with students in their homeroom.
As Winter approaches, students may be able to use lockers for items that need
to be stored.
Students will be assigned personal Chromebooks or laptops for the year. We will
need to purchase additional Chromebooks and laptops for this. Families are
encouraged to have a computer at home for their children to use as needed.
St. Joseph Catholic School is a dynamic, faith-filled community where each child is challenged
excel and grow in mind, body, and spirit as an image of God in our world.
Page 6 St. Joseph Catholic School
Benton/Franklin Department of Health Screening Flow Chart (03/21)
St. Joseph Catholic School is a dynamic, faith-filled community where each child is challenged
excel and grow in mind, body, and spirit as an image of God in our world.
Page 7 St. Joseph Catholic School
Screenings
All staff and volunteers will do a health check at the office prior to going to their classrooms.
SJS will provide a list that will help parents understand what to look for and how to proceed.
Parents will need to pre-screen their children every day before coming to school. (pg. 8)
Once students arrive, we will have temperature checks at school by school staff and volunteers
every day and throughout the day as needed.
If a student becomes ill during the school day, he/she will be cared for in our waiting area or sick
room depending upon the suspected illness and parents will be contacted by a phone call as
directed in the child’s registration information. We will have a room near the office specifi-
cally for when Covid-19 is suspected.
Parents are to follow current sign out procedures when picking up students at the office, during
the school day.
Please note: Students who come to school with even one symptom of Covid-19 that cannot be
attributed to another diagnosed cause, will be sent home for at least 10 days and the student
will need to have been fever free for at least 24 hours. Please do not chance bringing your child
to school if you think there is a problem. Our teachers will work with you to help your child
with class lessons. We are all in this together and there is no need to panic regarding school
grades.
If a student goes home due to a symptom but then is tested. The student needs to stay home
until the results are known. If the result is negative then the student may return once he/she
has been fever free for at least 24 hrs. without the use of medication to keep the fever down.
Students or staff who show any symptoms will not be admitted to the campus, including but
not limited to:
• Shortness of breath
• Sore throat
• Cough
• Fever over 100.4 degrees F
• Chills
• New loss of taste or smell
• Congestion (Not related to allergies)
• Runny nose (Not related to allergies)
• Has been in Close Contact with a positive-tested per-
son in the last 24 hours. Close Contact = within 6' for longer than 15 minutes. A Family
Member would be considered a close contact.
St. Joseph Catholic School is a dynamic, faith-filled community where each child is challenged
excel and grow in mind, body, and spirit as an image of God in our world.
Page 8 St. Joseph Catholic School
St. Joseph Catholic School is a dynamic, faith-filled community where each child is challenged
excel and grow in mind, body, and spirit as an image of God in our world.
Page 9 St. Joseph Catholic School
Process for positive test cases
Should a student or faculty member test positive with Covid-19 St. Joseph Catholic School will fol-
low the procedures listed on the “Covid-19 Exposure Flow Chart” document that will be availa-
ble from the Health department soon. This document will include information about when,
who, and how to Quarantine. Any students who have been in close contact (within 6 ft. of
confirmed case and more than 15 minutes) with a confirmed case will be notified, as well as
their family, by St. Joseph School.
Should a family member of a student or staff member test positive we will follow the procedures
listed on the “Covid-19 Exposure Flow Chart” (Forthcoming)
All areas in question will be cleaned appropriately.
The school will contact the Health Department and follow their guidance. The school will also
notify the Yakima Diocese Director of Schools.
Health Contract with Parents and Students
By attending St. Joseph Catholic School, parents and students are agreeing to abide by our safety
and health rules. Parents, staff, and students are expected to honor our PPE and social dis-
tancing requirements. Information will be posted in classrooms to remind students and staff
of safety guidelines.
Personal Protective Equipment
Students will be required to wear face masks at school. There will not be a “uniform” face mask.
Face shields will also be allowed as per state regulations. The CDC recommends facemasks for
students 2 years and older. There may be times when students need a break from their
masks. Classrooms will work on ways to help students so that they can remain safe if they
need a short break.
Teachers will be given protective eyewear as well as masks. Students will also be allowed to use
protective eyewear but not required to.
During recess students may have an area where they are allowed to remove their face masks
however at this time where that will be has not been determined.
St. Joseph Catholic School is a dynamic, faith-filled community where each child is challenged
excel and grow in mind, body, and spirit as an image of God in our world.
Page 10 St. Joseph Catholic School
Disinfecting and Sanitizing
We have purchased sanitizing stations and are placing them at each entry and in all hall-
ways outside of classroom doors so that students will have easy access to hand sani-
tizer.
Students will be taught proper hand hygiene.
Bathroom visits will be monitored so that students do not use the bathrooms at the same
time.
Classrooms will utilize open windows as much as possible and ventilation filters will be
kept clean.
High touch areas will be disinfected and sanitized throughout the day.
Teacher and Para Training
Teachers and Paras will attend training to help them with everything from classroom
health and safety to how to effectively teach hybrid and online instruction.
We will work to improve our use of our main online programs including Google Class-
room, Jupiter Ed, Google Meets, and IXL software.
Staff will be supplied with masks, face shields, and gloves
All staff will be trained regarding appropriate cleaning procedures and for cleaning when
classes change rooms.
A final note...
I believe that if we work together and with a spirit of charity, we will
overcome this difficult situation and become a stronger, more Christ cen-
tered community. We are blessed to have a committed faculty who give
of themselves daily to ensure student safety and a quality education.
We are blessed to have parents who are patient and who understand
how difficult it is to provide an affordable yet effective school. We have
children who are eager to learn and who look to us for guidance and
most of all, we have a God who loves us and blesses us with each other.
God Bless.
Sincerely, Perry Kelly
St. Joseph Catholic School is a dynamic, faith-filled community where each child is challenged
excel and grow in mind, body, and spirit as an image of God in our world.You can also read
