Dear Oakwood Community,
I hope this email finds you safe and well during this time of unprecedented uncertainty regarding the impact of COVID-19 on our community. Per my Monday email, I am writing to give you as much detailed information as possible about our plans for the remainder of the academic year and for end-of-year events.
Distance Learning 2019-20
On Thursday afternoon, Governor Cooper confirmed a Phase I stay at home order until May 8 with gatherings limited to ten people. If successful for two to three weeks, Phase II will then lift the stay at home order and allow a reduced capacity of people at gatherings over the next four to six weeks. As long as the state is meeting its testing benchmarks, Phase III will then go into effect with further increased capacity for gatherings.
Today, Governor Cooper announced plans for education and confirmed that public schools in North Carolina will not be physically returning to school for the remainder of the school year. As an accredited independent school, we do not have to follow the governor's decision regarding public schools, but we will do so as will most if not all of our peer schools in the interest of preventing the spread of COVID-19 and keeping our students and their families safe, which is our top priority. Along those lines, today I also received notice from the North Carolina Independent School Athletic Association that the 2020 Spring Season has officially been cancelled.
In light of the above, we will continue delivering our educational program through distance learning for the remainder of the school year in order to help our students complete their school year safely and successfully. Our intention is to continue providing a high-quality program that enables our students to continue the progress they have made so far this year and complete the requirements for finishing their current grade levels. The faculty, staff, and I had desperately hoped to be able to spend the last few weeks of the school year on campus with our wonderful students, but it is sadly not safe for us to do so. We love and miss being with our school community more than we can describe.
End-of-Year Events
Unfortunately the governor's order does not indicate a near-future date when it will be safe for large crowds to gather in close proximity to one another. Therefore, it is with a heavy heart that I announce many of our year-end events will have to be cancelled, including the Prom, Senior Luncheon, Senior Parent Social, The Great Kapok Tree, Author's Tea, Science Field Day, Spring Concerts, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, and Field Day. The Fine Arts Honor Society Inductions will be postponed until the fall. The following events will, however, take place in different formats:
- Athletic Banquet -- May 18 pre-recorded video
The Athletic Department and its coaches are creating a recorded video that will air on May 18th at 7:00pm on Oakwood's Facebook page and will be available continuously after that date on our website.
- Awards Day -- May 27 at 7pm via Zoom *NOTE DATE AND TIME CHANGE
The program for our awards day will follow the same program as our traditional awards day. Students earning plaques, certificates, or other prizes will be able to pick them up at Oakwood as soon as it is safe to do so. Look for invitations from advisors to ensure you are virtually present for your recognition!
Governor's School recognition
Boys/Girls State recognition
Junior Marshal recognition
DAR awards
Geography Bee and Spelling Bee winner recognition
American Math Competition winner recognition
World Language Competition winner recognition
National History Day winner recognition
Duke TIP recognition
PSA Community Service awards
Fine Arts Ambassador award
Jr. Eagle awards
Eagle awards
Scholar awards
Barbara Brown Founders award
Eileen Van Houten awards
Recognition of retiring faculty
Ringing of the bell
Honoring our Class of 2020
What is typically the highlight of the year -- a celebration of our "mission" accomplished as we send off our graduating seniors to college and beyond -- has been disrupted. I am comforted knowing the mission and spirit of Oakwood will continue even though we are not physically together. To celebrate our seniors, we have planned the following events:
- "Our Time" featuring Class of 2020 Fine Arts Students - April 26 via Facebook Live
Join us THIS Sunday, April 26 as the Fine Arts Department hosts "Our Time" featuring the Class of 2020 Fine Arts students!!!! The students will showcase their remarkable talents through dance, song, visual arts, and more! The show starts at 4pm LIVE on Oakwood's Facebook page!
- Class of 2020 Graduation Commencement Exercises - To Be Scheduled
Due to the unprecedented times and continued uncertainty in which we find ourselves with the COVID-19 pandemic, our graduation ceremony will necessarily look different, as we will have to be flexible with venue, format, attendees, and/or program of events. We are currently obtaining feedback from our wonderful seniors and their dedicated parents with a goal of safely making this year's graduation ceremony as meaningful an event as possible for our seniors, their families, and our community.
Although making the weighty decisions about the remainder of the school year and our year-end events has been incredibly painful and difficult, the safety of our students, parents, teachers, and guests is always our first priority. Thank you for your understanding, patience, and flexibility. This is a challenging time for us all, but we will continue to adapt to the needs of our community and persevere as we navigate these times together. My heart goes out to all of you, and I look forward to the day when we can come together on campus again.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.
Thank you and be well,
