Dear Parents,

Thank you to the 119 Senesh families and 50 staff who responded to the Passover break survey!

I am reaching out to share Senesh’s plans and expectations for Passover vacation and our return to school following the break. I will share the factors that guided our decision, what we learned from the data we gathered, and the plan that was created in direct response to your input.

The two major factors that guided our decision include:

  • The health and safety of our community.

  • Maximizing in-person learning for our students. 

What we learned from your input:

  • Half of our families plan to either travel or spend time with family or others for the holiday.

  • 65% of our families want the school to learn remotely following the holiday. 

  • A significant number of parents want an immediate return to in-person learning.

  • Many families who are not inclined to spend time with others over the holiday have concerns about an immediate return to in-person learning due to the behavior of others.

  • 95% of our staff want the school to learn remotely after the break.

The data above was quite informative as we finalized a plan for our community:
 
  • It is clear that due to Senesh families and staff planning to gather with others over the holiday, there will be a health risk to our community if we have an immediate return to in-person learning. 

  • It is clear that it is important for our students to return to in-person learning as soon as possible.

  • With an understanding that in-person learning is the best for our students, we also need to ensure that a safe return will not result in positive cases in school and a mass quarantine of our students.

Taking these factors into account, we have created a plan that balances these concerns and calls upon everyone to take action for the benefit of our community as a whole:

  • The first day of break is Friday, March 26 and school resumes for Senesh@Home Distance Learning on Monday, April 5.

  • Following the break, we will have one week of Senesh@Home distance learning. We will resume in-person learning on Monday, April 12.

  • All Senesh families and staff must return home in time to begin following our community guidelines on Friday, April 2. 

  • We acknowledge that this requires our community to spend Friday and the last two days of the holiday (Shabbat and Sunday) not gathering with others.

  • We will begin the community ten-day quarantine on Friday, April 2.

  • On Friday, April 9, all students and staff will be required to take a COVID PCR test. This will be offered at school by Citywide—hours TBD. Parents are also welcome to test elsewhere on that date or the day before, Thursday, April 8. A negative PCR test result is required to return to in-person learning.

  • Should your family not return to begin the ten-day quarantine on Friday, April 2, your child will not be able to return to school until after a ten-day quarantine period and receiving a negative result from a COVID PCR test taken on day 6 or 7 of the quarantine. Please contact Nathalie Cabot for more details at ncabot@hannahsenesh.org. 

During the past 11 months we have individually and collectively faced endless decisions that impact both ourselves and the community. During this time, our leadership has remained committed to listening to varied viewpoints, understanding and responding to the needs and desires of various constituents, and then making balanced decisions that benefit our students and keep our community safe. Along the way, each of us has experienced both joy and challenges by the decisions we have made. We are grateful to each of you for continuing to lean in as we navigate this very difficult time together.

In partnership,
Nicole Nash
Head of School