Dear Wilberforce Community,
As concerns regarding the spread of COVID-19 in our area continue to grow, we have been in contact with public health authorities as well as other schools in our area. We have no known cases of the virus in our school community. However, recent cases in Princeton have prompted several schools to close, including Stuart Country Day School (the site of our musical), Princeton Charter School, South Brunswick Schools, Princeton University and Princeton Seminary.
Unfortunately, Stuart's closure means that our musical, The Sound of Music, will not be happening this week. Our students, teachers, and so many parents have worked so hard on this show, and the news of the closure of the theater is very sad for all of us. We do not know when or where, but we are going to work as hard as we can to find a time and a place for this beautiful show to go forward, sometime after Spring Break.
We have asked ourselves what is the best and most proactive way to protect the health and safety of our school community. We have also asked what is our responsibility to the larger community, as a school that has large gatherings every day. Public health offices are recommending limiting public gatherings and unnecessary travel, as well as "social distancing" when in groups. There is also evidence that early intervention to stop the spread, once a virus arrives in a community, can significantly decrease the impact.
In light of these recommendations and the growing number of cases in our area, we believe the best course of action to limit the spread in our school and the larger community is to begin Spring Break early, after classes dismiss today. Thus, the school will be closed starting this afternoon at 12:30 pm. We will send our students home with all of their books when we dismiss at 12:30 pm today. Faculty and staff will stay, as planned, to continue to refine our plans for remote learning. For students who are out today, they can come pick up their books between 7:45 am - 10:00 am, Thursday morning.
What happens after Spring Break? We plan to begin remote learning at the end of Spring Break, on Monday, March 23. We anticipate this to continue for at least that week. We do not know at this point how long we will need to suspend physical gathering of classes. We will be monitoring the situation and keeping our community informed.
What does remote learning look like at Wilberforce? We will send a separate communication to give you an idea of what remote learning will look like. It will be different for different age groups.
Travel? Public health authorities are suggesting the limiting of unnecessary travel. Certainly travelers should avoid areas listed as high risk by the CDC. If you choose to travel, please know that, when we resume classes, families who have traveled in high risk areas may have to delay re-joining classes.
One final note: This pestilence reaches us during the season of Lent, a season of self-reflection, repentance and prayer. May this be a season in which we spend extra time individually and with our families in prayer. Pray for those who are sick; pray for grieving families; pray for our leaders and health care workers; pray that we would love our neighbors well in this situation; pray for people to come to know Christ. As our current "Hymn of the Month" declares: "Now is the Time to Worship." May this season be one of worship more than worry, as we look toward Easter - Resurrection Day - the day Jesus conquered sin and death on our behalf. He is our Rock and Refuge.
Sincerely, Howe --
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