Frostig School Return to School Plans

On Oct. 22, students returned to Frostig School for in-person learning for the first time since the pandemic forced us to close our doors in mid-March. We were thrilled to welcome elementary school students who took their seats in newly configured classrooms, wore their masks and reveled in the opportunity to once again be in the same room with their teacher and classmates.

We were pleased with how smoothly the day unfolded, from drop off to pick up. Weeks of careful planning and cooperation with our families and public health officials paid off.

We were able to reopen under a policy of Los Angeles County and the Pasadena Public Health Department (PPHD) that allows K-12 schools to offer limited in-person learning and services for students with specific needs, with a cap of 10% of total student enrollment. PPHD permitted Frostig to bring back 10% of our student body, which is 12 to 13 students, after we showed that we complied with their COVID-19 protocols.

Our goal is to gradually bring more students back to campus. As we have shared previously, we anticipate adopting a hybrid model for middle and high school students that combines in-person and remote learning.

As elementary school families learned firsthand this week, we are implementing many new practices to protect the health and safety of students, starting with the cohort model. Cohorting forms groups of students and staff who stay together throughout the day to minimize exposure for others across the school environment. Each classroom is a cohort.

To learn more about our preparations for the re-opening of our Pasadena campus, please explore the tabs below and watch our short video.

Campus Preparations

CAMPUS:

Access to campus will be limited. No visitors (parents, alumni, or any deliveries including the US mail) will be permitted on campus. Parents and visitors will access campus remotely or by appointment only.

Mobile hand sanitizer stations have been installed throughout the campus.

Drinking fountains will not be accessible. A water bottle filling station has been installed so students may refill personal water bottles.

A touchless handwashing station has been installed near Gates Hall to encourage frequent hand washing.

Appropriate signage has been posted to encourage social distancing throughout campus.

Per CDC guidelines, all high touch playground equipment and areas will be closed to students. Students will be required to maintain strict physical distancing at all times including during Nutrition and Lunch.

There will be a designated quarantine area for students who test positive for fever or show other signs of COVID-19 to wait for a designated parent pick up.

Group events such as Parent Association meetings, faculty meetings, among others, will be held virtually.

CLASSROOMS:

Each classroom will be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected each evening by custodial staff. .

High-touch surfaces and bathrooms will be cleaned and disinfected throughout the day.

Teachers will disinfect classrooms between groups of students by wiping down surfaces including, desks, door handles, countertops, and any technology devices.

All classrooms will have hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes readily available.

Proper distancing of six feet or more has been accommodated in all classrooms.

Students, faculty and staff on campus will be required to follow one-way traffic flow in designated areas to allow for social distancing with signs to indicate direction of movement.

HEALTH & WELLNESS:

When students arrive on campus, staff will conduct a temperature screening while the child is in the car. Any student who displays a temperature of 100.4 degrees or higher will not be allowed to stay at school.

If a student is sick, they should not come to campus; there will be remote learning options for students at all grade levels who need to stay home.

All students, faculty, and staff will be required to wear a mask on campus at all times except while eating at lunch and nutrition.

Students and staff will have ample opportunities to wash their hands at regular intervals throughout the day, utilizing sanitizer when handwashing is not possible.

In addition to our regularly scheduled professional development, faculty and staff will be thoroughly trained on the new safety protocols.

In the event a student or faculty member shows signs or symptoms of illness, they will immediately be isolated and sent off campus. Others who may have been in close contact will be moved to an alternate location, screened, and any concerns would be reported to public health officials for potential contact tracing, etc.

COMMUNICATIONS

Email will continue to be used as the school’s main method of communications related to all COVID-19 related school updates.

All updates with be posted on the 2020-2021 Return to School section of the school website.

Frostig School, 971 N. Altadena Drive, Pasadena, (626) 791-1255 or visit http://frostigschool.org/