● State and Local Covid-19 Information ● Screening Log Sample ● Vendors/Suppliers For Schools During Coronavirus Response ● Thermometer Cost and Comparison ● Disinfectant Sprayers Cost Comparison ● Long-Lead-Time Supplies ●
March 4th Updates
This month marks a year since our world ‘shut down' to prevent the spread and contain the Novel Coronavirus. When many of us left our schools in March 2020, we anticipated a month or so at home in which we would isolate, flatten the curve, incorporate Spring Break (and use the time for a thorough school cleaning), and return to business as usual. As we’ve learned, COVID-19 had other plans. After months of various states of shutdown and countless remote meetings, we are finally reaching a point where we can start looking and thinking ahead! We aren’t through this yet, but hope is on the horizon and we see the path that will get us there much more clearly.
As of this writing, case numbers are continuing to decline. We’re told to anticipate future bumps in the “curve” as a result of the variants and the relaxation of mitigation strategies. Our belief is that the downward trend will continue overall (with some bumps in the road) as more community sectors are eligible to vaccinate, those who wish to receive their vaccines are able to do so, and the supply continues to grow! Again, and at the risk of sounding like a broken record(!), we urge everyone to continue those mitigation strategies (well-fitting masks, social distancing, hand hygiene, avoiding gatherings) to protect our community until health officials advise otherwise.
Our next webinar is Monday, March 8th! We’ll cover these topics and more:
Mark Your Calendar for Upcoming Dates:
We’ll remind you: take a deep breath. An oft-cited Mr. Rogers quote says “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” This gentle reminder applies to many stories you’ve seen and that we’ve shared throughout the pandemic this past year. We’ve seen healthcare workers shine as the superheroes they’ve always been, we’ve seen educators and school administrations reinvent learning vehicles and reconfigure school campuses, and we’ve watched as scientists and researchers created and tested vaccines with seemingly lightning speed!
Most schools at this point, even those who have chosen to remain closed for classroom instruction for the 2020-2021 school year, have begun to create mechanisms to host athletics and extracurriculars on campus and/or within the community this Spring. While these have been thoughtful conversations internally, the science and justifications behind these decisions should continue to be communicated to the larger community, especially with regard to risk and reward for the students. Transparency is key, and will continue to build trust within the community.
Looking To (Spring) Ahead:
Post-Vaccine Symptoms
While some people experience side effects from vaccines, most symptoms are mild and dissipate quickly. It is important to remember that most common side effects are a sign that your body is starting to build immunity (protection) against a disease. Learn more about how vaccines provide immunity.
Vaccine Updates
There are now three approved vaccines. Moderna and Pfizer-both require 2 doses, and provide more or less the same efficacy and safety profile. Johnson & Johnson has recently been approved, and requires a single dose. There is no live virus in any of these vaccines.
There are also additional vaccines coming down the pipeline, notably Novavax, and AstraZeneca. These also contain no live virus, and are currently in various stages of trials in the U.S. Moderna and AstraZeneca have also begun children’s trials! Each vaccine is hugely beneficial in lowering illness and severity of infection. All good news!
Because of the rapidly evolving data of vaccines, and the new authorization of the J&J vaccine, we will be offering our Vaccines Train The Trainer again for the same discounted price this month! Learn more and register here to join us, and leave with a training deck and the talking points you need to educate your community.
Vaccines and Quarantine
Per CDC, fully-vaccinated individuals who meet the criteria will no longer need to quarantine after exposure to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19, and may safely interact with others who are vaccinated*
*(most, but not all, counties have adopted this from the CDC into their own guidance. Double-check that your local health department has adopted this change!)
As we continue the process of reopening with the goal of sustainably staying open, this is a great time to document the positive changes made in your schools (upgraded ventilation systems? Improvements in classroom technology? Professional development?) in the past year and to celebrate the heroes and helpers on and off campus who have played such an instrumental role throughout the pandemic.
Each school should take a moment to thank their trustees and parent associations for their support and partnership. Share thanks with the teachers who have come through time and time again to learn, grow, and support their students emotionally as well as academically.
Here’s your homework for this month (checklist format for those who prefer it):
We will continue to be here to support you through the transition to “the new normal”. We will help you plan for a variety of scenarios to finish the current school year, and prepare for the next one. As always, we hope you remain flexible, thoughtful, and grateful.
February 4th Updates
As we continue through this marathon, we will continue to share with you best safety practices, current data interpretations and guidelines, and the tools to formulate strategic planning scenarios. We are looking to the rollout of vaccinations as yet another factor to mitigate transmission of Covid-19, rather than an immediate panacea. Our new administration is holding regular press briefings and sharing promising updates on progress and setbacks. The latest case numbers and hospitalizations are both in decline, and we join you in cautious optimism about the months ahead.
Takeaway: The restrictions, mitigation strategies, and vaccines are working. This means it’s time to double down on them, not relax them.
(And yes, that means no Superbowl Party this weekend…)
Our next webinar is Monday, February 8th! We’ll cover these topics and more:
We’ll remind you: take a deep breath. Together, we will meet our next round of challenges and opportunities. We have weathered an attack at our nation’s Capitol, ushered in a new administration, and sifted through a new round of openings/closure and vaccine developments--in January alone! Following each news story and scientific breakthrough, we stay true to our efforts and continue to use science, experience, and data to plan for the continued safety in our schools and communities.
Mark Your Calendar for Upcoming Dates:
February Focus and Foresight:
Masks: Mandates and More
The CDC recommends that people wear masks in public settings, at events and gatherings, and anywhere they will be around other people. Effective February 2, 2021, masks are required on planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation traveling into, within, or out of the United States and in U.S. transportation hubs such as airports and stations.
There has been some renewed concern about the efficacy of cloth face coverings, particularly in light of the more transmissible Covid variants. The bottom line is that our understanding of masks has not changed: 2-ply minimum, 3-ply better. Good fit. Cover your nose and your mouth. Secure around your head or ears. Fit is of equal (or greater) importance than the type of material: this means that an individual will filter particles better if they wear a well-fitting 2-ply cloth mask 90% of the time (because of comfort, ability to breathe and talk comfortably, etc.) than if they wear an ill-fitting N95 mask 50% of the time.
We’ll discuss this more on Monday’s webinar!
Takeaway: Masks work.
Post-Covid Vaccine Symptoms
While some people experience side effects from vaccines, most symptoms are mild and dissipate quickly. It is important to remember that most common side effects are a sign that your body is starting to build immunity (protection) against a disease. Learn more about how vaccines provide immunity.
If we develop symptoms, we must respond as we would if we had gotten symptoms any other day: get assessed, get a Covid test, and assume we might be infectious. If your doctor, school, or local health department requires initiating isolation procedures, we’ll comply accordingly. It is physically impossible for the current vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna to “give us Covid”. It is however possible to get Covid on a Tuesday, get the vaccine on a Wednesday, and start showing symptoms of your Covid infection on Thursday - err on the side of caution and assume you may have been exposed prior to your vaccination.
Takeaway: The vaccines can't get you sick, but you might have been sick already.
Vaccine Updates
There are currently two approved vaccines made by Moderna and Pfizer: both require 2 doses, and provide more or less the same efficacy and safety profile. They are mRNA vaccines, and there is no live virus in either vaccine.
There are additional vaccines coming down the pipeline, notably Novavax, Johnson & Johnson, and AstraZeneca. These likewise contain no live virus, and are currently in various stages of trials in the U.S. Some are quite close to approval, and even for those who have lower efficacy rates than the Moderna and Pfizer, they will be hugely beneficial in lowering illness and severity of infection. All good news!
Takeaway: The vaccines will lower the overall impact of the virus on our bodies and our communities.
Recommendors (CDC) vs. Regulator (DPH)
There are distinct governing bodies that we have been looking to for guidance and guidelines throughout this pandemic. The CDC (Center for Disease Control) can make recommendations for mitigation such as mask wearing, travel restrictions, and testing. These are national recommendations unless indicated otherwise. The CDC does have the authority to implement mandates or requirements, which we often see in the context of travel and transportation. (Examples are the recent mask mandate and the travel requirements for testing.)
Conversely, we look to our Departments of Public Health (DPH) as regulators. They have the authority to guide local and regional business and school openings/ closures, and to guide local safety based on hospitalizations and testing numbers, which varies by city, county, region, and state.
Takeaway: we will always defer to our most local - and often most strict - guidance.
As we continue to make choices to protect our lives and the lives of those we love by being thoughtful, and paying attention to that which is in our control, our goal is to provide space. A safe space to ask questions, seek answers, and to feel connected to one another.
January 7th Updates
Happy New Year! We hope that you’ve had a restorative Winter Break. Our first webinar of the year is this upcoming Monday, January 11th! We’ll cover these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into the inaugural 2021 newsletter by asking you to take a deep breath. We have endured a challenging year, made it through the holiday season, and heck, we’ve gotten more than halfway through this marathon! Coronavirus aside, this week’s events in Washington, D.C. and across the nation have raised public safety concerns yet again. With all that in mind, please mark your calendars now:
Upcoming Dates:
COVID-19 has been top of mind for ten months now, but today--more than ever--our actions matter. We shoulder the weight of this pandemic - and the overall safety of our communities - collectively. In this moment, consider beginning with the basics: the ABCD’s.
ACTION: - The availability and distribution of vaccines has begun, albeit haltingly. It is too soon to require it for employees or students - not too soon to start conversations with our teams about what our policies will be. At this point, we are continuing to monitor the situation and lead our conversations with education and awareness. Internally, this is an ideal time to check off a few action items:
We’ll continue to discuss vaccine considerations as they evolve. In general, we can ensure we are taking actionable steps today that will set us up for success in this changing landscape: consulting with school advisors about best practices for the Fall, developing inclusive language in school forms and handbooks, and leaning into mental and emotional health support.
BALANCE: It may be difficult to strike a balance between “staying the course” and keeping your community safe using the same best practices instituted in 2020, while looking ahead to when schools and businesses fully re-open. At this point, and considering the nationwide surges, it is critical to stay current with local orders, adhere to public health mandates, and focus on our students (and faculty’s) mental health. The marathon continues, but we feel confident that the end is within reach!
COMMUNICATION: Continue to build trust with current and prospective families about your school’s response to COVID-19. Communicate schoolwide expectations to your community--not just “what” you are doing, but “why.” Lead with empathy, assuage fears (where possible), and contextualize the decision-making process to make it transparent. Families will want to have “open” or “re-open” dates for planning purposes, and that may not be possible at the moment. Being clear and realistic will bolster and facilitate trust in the long-term.
DATA: Use the data at hand to determine next steps and action plans. Above all, we must remain compliant with local public health mandates, which may institute guidelines that are stricter than what the CDC outlines. Here’s how we should be prioritizing our decision-making:
We have put together this flowchart to help you walk through this process with your team.
This pandemic has thrown us many curve balls, and we can anticipate more to come. But if we keep following the science and holding fast to the values that bring us together as schools, then our safety, health, and communities will be better and stronger for it. Together, we will look ahead to building a resilient and successful 2021!
December 17th Updates
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do at every Monday webinar: take a deep breath. You’ve made it through the year! Together, we have moved through the unique challenges that defined 2020. I have boundless gratitude to find myself surrounded, supported, and inspired by each of you. We have so many reasons to be optimistic for 2021, and we at Joffe hope that you take the time over the next few weeks to Rest, Reflect and Regroup so that you’re energized and ready to take on the new year! Our team will be ramping back up our support in the new year to help you through the surge, so you can mark your calendars now:
Upcoming Dates:
Where to go from here?
A few themes characterize actions we hope you’ll take over the next few weeks. We’ve done our best to articulate them here. Did we miss something? Let us know what else you’ll be doing!
REST: With many guidelines advising residents to curtail activities or shelter in place, this is an ideal time for you and your teams to rest and replenish. According to most projections from leading experts, we are expecting the final COVID-19 surge to last through early part of 2021, following the holiday season. Until the vaccine has been widely administered (which will take months), our populations continue to be vulnerable, and we must remain vigilant. We are at another mile marker of the marathon, and with the finish line still in the distance, will need a final burst in early 2021. Action: step away. Rest. Recharge. Take care of yourself.
Note: Joffe will be online and available over Winter Break. If you have a situation that requires immediate attention, please feel free to reach out!
REFLECT: Throughout this month, we encourage you to take this time to look back and celebrate your victories and accomplishments. Applaud your teams, administration, and staff for their flexibility, adaptability, and service. Send thank you notes to your first responders, healthcare workers and DPH contacts. Let them know that you see them and appreciate them. Share words of inspiration and encouragement with your team. The list of still-to-be-done will continue to grow, so we must actively choose to compile the list of done-and-dusted to maintain balance and perspective. These reads are helpful for leaders during these times:
REGROUP: As vaccinations become widely available, consider engaging counsel regarding the school’s position regarding vaccine requirements and handbook language. Also consider this: widespread vaccinations will not eliminate the need for mitigation strategies over the next six months or more. Prepare to have a modified school schedule and operations for the remainder of the school year and potentially for summer activities and even next Fall.
To aid in communications about the effectiveness of these strategies, we have put together this resource, a collection of studies, data, and articles about transmission rates in schools:
Reiterations: Holidays and Travel:
As we close 2020, I want to reiterate how grateful we are for the opportunity to work alongside you, and remind you to stay safe and healthy. We look forward to taking these steps together in the coming months that will propel us to finish this extraordinary marathon. Together, we will look ahead to building a resilient and successful 2021!
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
November 19th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering our next webinar on Monday, November 30th. If you're not already registered for our Monday series, we invite you to register here! We’ll dig into these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do at every webinar: take a deep breath.
A number of our schools have been asking about how to move forward as we continue to monitor our environment, battle “pandemic fatigue”, and work together for this next phase of keeping safe throughout the holidays and a typical cold/flu season. The silver lining?
While some school campuses have remained closed since March, 2020, some have opened partially, some are beginning to open, and some have opened fully. Whatever model your school or district has adopted, it is important to remain alert and be prepared for closure(s) in the coming weeks and months, as positive cases may surge and health departments and government officials create new safety mandates.
Wherever your specific school is, I'll remind you that we are collectively still running a marathon. This moment reminds me of mile 12 in my last marathon. I was closer to the beginning than I was to the end, but I was running out of gas. As I approached the halfway point, thoughts ran through my mind: "What if I just hopped on the shuttle to the end?", "What about walking the next couple of miles?", "Why did I think running this was a good idea?". What got me through that moment, was a simple lesson that I've learned from numerous coaches, advisors and leaders over time: Look down and that's where you'll fall, but look up, friend and that's where you'll go.
As hard as it is to do right now, in a moment where we're battling cases rising, hospitalizations increasing, and political dissent continuing, I challenge each of us to find hope in the progress that we've made as a country, and as a community. We are probably at the halfway point in this journey, and I know how hard that is to hear. I challenge us, though, to look ahead and recognize that when this marathon comes to an end, we will have a unique opportunity to build our future systems, models, and structures in a way that is mindful of pandemics and other emergencies that may face us.
We will make progress toward building a community that is safer and more resilient than it's ever been, and we'll do that because we hunkered in today, we 'followed the rules', and we led with empathy. I share your enthusiasm for "the end" of this pandemic, but above all else, I challenge you to care for yourself today, because our work won't stop when the pandemic does. In fact, that's really the beginning of redefining our practices, models and structures to be more resilient than they've ever been. Your community will need you then, more than ever before!
Vaccine News: As news has broken that current vaccine research is promising with two potential vaccines on the horizon, this is a good time to begin compiling a list of questions and considerations. Note which processes, protocols, and school publications/handbooks, websites, and (health) portals would be impacted in the 2021-2022 school year. When the vaccine is widely available, what will our school’s position be for those students, staff, and community members who choose not to vaccinate?
Something to keep in mind: even widespread vaccinations don’t mean we can stop using our mitigation strategies overnight. We should be prepared to have a modified format of education and operations for some time.
Toolkit 2.0:
Grant Opportunities. Recently, we shared this document compiling the latest information from the GrantStation database containing grant opportunities geared toward COVID-19 relief. Education and school-focused grants are highlighted in yellow. This is available to you now for free on our portal! You can take a look and download it here, or find it from your Library here, under "External Resources".
Building Confidence Training
Our next Building Confidence webinar will be Friday, December 4th. Click here to learn more about this training and register today! (up to 3 individuals from your school per registration):
Things happen. This year, more than ever, we see the value and importance of “learning by doing”. Our practical knowledge comes from experiencing specific, real-world incidents. In this skill-building session, we will learn how to facilitate a debrief, and walk away with incident debrief templates that you can use with your teams immediately, and to build your documentation for future professional development trainings!
Holidays and Travel:
Flu shots: If you have not done so already, the flu shot is currently widely available, and recommended by healthcare professionals for most people. If you have any questions, please consult your primary care physician.
As always, we are grateful for the opportunity to work with you, to grow with you, and to learn from each other as navigate this year, and plan to be prepared for the future. Together, our newfound collective knowledge, relationships, and partnerships will help us to not only survive, but thrive!
We will always be #StrongerTogether.
October 16th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering our next webinar on Monday, October 26th. We’ll dig into these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do at every Monday webinar: take a deep breath.
Airborne vs. Droplet transmission. As more information is being released about COVID-19, we continue to adapt our safety protocols and evolve our thinking. At the beginning of October, the CDC has stated the potential for airborne spread of the virus. They believe that based on current science, viral transmission is more likely when people are exposed in closer proximity and for longer times to an infected individual. They have noted specific instances where people have become infected who were more than 6 feet away or shortly after the COVID-19-positive person left an area. In these cases, “transmission occurred in poorly ventilated and enclosed spaces that often involved activities that caused heavier breathing, like singing or exercise.” Safety protocols continue to recommend ”staying at least 6 feet away from others, wearing a mask that covers their nose and mouth, washing their hands frequently, cleaning touched surfaces often and staying home when sick.” We still know that droplet transmission is the primary mode of transmission, so while it is good to be aware of the ever-shifting data, we are currently adhering to the same mitigation strategies we have been espousing for a number of months. We will continue to provide notable updates as they occur, and encourage you to take a look at some of our sources of information on our blog post here.
Holidays and Travel. Many of you have asked us for advice regarding Thanksgiving/holiday travel in November/December. In making and communicating travel guidelines or recommendations to your community, we suggest you lean into the following:
Flu shots. I would also like to remind you at this time to get your flu shot, if you have not done so already. It is widely available, and recommended by healthcare professionals for most people, as we enter a normal “cold and flu” season. If you have any questions, please consult your primary doctor.
Upcoming Training. We have officially announced our next Building Confidence Training! In the spirit of ‘building confidence’, we will be focusing this month’s session on skills building: How to Run a Tabletop, and How to Write an Emergency Operations Plan. These skills have relevance during the pandemic, throughout our recovery, and long after, and our goal is to impart you with some skills you can implement now and in the future to address any number of incidents and emergencies. Click here to learn more about this training and register (you can register up to 3 individuals from your school per registration fee)!
October 1st Updates
We are excited to share that we are offering a “bonus” webinar this Monday, October 5th at 9 am. If you’ve been a registered participant previously, you’ll automatically be registered for that session. If not, please feel free to register here!
This webinar will primarily be focused on a couple of big announcements:
November 3rd is Election Day and this is our opportunity to exercise our right to vote! Since March, there have been varying, evolving directives and recommendations in different parts of our country regarding staying at home orders. This could present some questions, so it is important to know your local options regarding voting in person, drive-by drop off, and mail-in or absentee ballots. We encourage you to visit this link to make the choice that is right for you. Further, we'd encourage you to talk with your community about the resources and options to vote available in your area.
As we look to the future and begin imagining and planning our school reopening, we have even more choices. Earlier in the summer, schools outlined various options for distance learning, in-person instruction, and hybrids of the two. We encourage you to refine plans for your next phase of reopening, with distance learning continuing to be an ongoing option for the school year. These plans should continue to be transparently shared through school communications, Town Halls, websites, and parent portals.
We hope that you are continuing to follow your local health directives, wear your face coverings, and explore your options for this season’s flu shot. As we approach cold and flu season, it is especially critical to monitor symptoms and encourage everyone in the community to stay home when they do not feel well. We're hearing from our schools that people are generally "following the rules" and for that, we celebrate!
September 17th Updates
While we have missed our weekly webinars and conversations each week, we want to remind you that we are still hosting regular monthly webinars. If you’ve been a registered participant previously, you’ll automatically be registered for the next session (September 28 at 9am PST). If not, please feel free to register here!
On the 28th, we're lucky enough to be joined by Megan Mann, from the National Association of Independent Schools, who will be covering a host of topics including:
We have also officially opened registration for our next live training. As a part of our pivot from sprint into marathon mode, we are launching a regular monthly training series called Building Confidence. The goal is exactly that: each month we will take a deep dive on a different topic, with the goal of building toward growth and confidence in All Things School Safety.
Our next offering will be October 2nd, 9:00 - 2:00 PST / 12:00 - 5:00 EST, and will be focused on Emergency Planning During the Pandemic: how do we plan for drills? What are considerations this year in particular as we juggle wildfires, storms and hurricanes, civil unrest, and more...all while the pandemic is still underway? Learn more about that training and register here.
The school year has officially begun! Now that everyone has returned to school--whether in-person, through a hybrid model, or 100% distance learning--we are back! We know that each family and each school or district has their own unique set of considerations with which to maneuver our current pandemic reality. For example, we know that a number of schools have been struggling with how to address poor air quality concerns while adhering to pandemic prevention strategies. To that end, we have developed some guidance about Air Quality During COVID-19 that you can access here.
As we navigate this and many other challenges, we still have compelling and sometimes critical reasons to continue professional development, health education, resource sharing, social-emotional support, and regular communication.
What does this mean? With continuous monitoring of the unpredictable COVID-19 pandemic situation and regional events such as wildfires and hurricanes, we are juggling multiple scenarios and creating best practices that work for institutions of all sizes and geographic placement. It continues to be critical today to communicate intentions, planning, and planned program execution with teachers, families, and the community to answer the rumbling “what if” scenarios that people begin formulating as soon as they wake up and digest the day’s news. School leaders know that it’s best to send communications that proactively address school plans before receiving 25 emails at 7:00 am.
The good news is that we are prepared. We have been preparing for a variety of emergency scenarios for years (if not necessarily all at the same time)--and we have contingencies for learning at school or from home. We have implemented plans and procedures to help protect our students, faculty, and campuses safe.
We posit that the key to reassuring the families and empowering the faculty are the 3Cs:
We are also fortunate to share resources with one another as we truly are all in this together. The school websites and parent portals that were created this Spring with COVID-19 resources can and should be updated with the most current topical information, such as how to discern whether symptoms are from the wildfire smoke exposure or from COVID-19. And as each resource is aggregated, these can now be shared through the school’s website link and hyperlinked on Family Handbooks, in addition to their inclusion in school communications.
Here are some actionable items to explore in the next 30 days:
Thank you for sharing this journey with us.
September 3rd Updates
First, a reminder that our weekly cadence has come to a close and as such, the next scheduled webinar we’ll be holding will be on September 28th at 9am PST/12pm EST!
If you’ve been a registered participant previously, you’ll automatically be registered for that session. If not, please feel free to register here!
Thank you so much for your partnership with us in the summer sprint. We can't tell you how much it's meant to have such a strong, engaged, and dedicated community of schools join us so diligently week after week. We hope the weekly format has helped you feel supported, and reminded you that we are, and always will be, stronger together in this challenging time.
Moving into the fall, we are transitioning our cadence - as are many of you - from 'sprint' into 'marathon'. We are adjusting from response to the Now into planning for the Next and the Later. Accordingly, we will be adjusting our webinars to a monthly cadence. While we will miss 'seeing' you all each week, we are looking forward to the new possibilities this will open up for us in developing our longer-term strategies for support.
Similarly, we will be sending out our newsletters on a monthly basis as well, rather than weekly. We will be alternating between the webinar and the newsletter, so you will hear from us in one or the other format biweekly.
We recognize that this may feel like a significant shift for some of you who have been weekly participants, so if you are interested in engaging with us more regularly we do have monthly fee subscription offerings as well:
If you have questions about training options, consultation, or more, please drop us a line at support@joffeemergencyservices.com and we will arrange a time to discuss your unique needs!
Please continue to send us your questions, share your victories and bring together our collective resources! We will continue to use your feedback to address specific topics during the webinars and newsletters, as well as formulate additional ways we can support you.
Finally, we are pleased to share that there are some additional communications templates available through our Foundations program! If you haven't already done so, get registered for that free program here Learn.JoffeEmergencyServices.com. Some of the new communications templates we are sharing out this week include the following:
Additionally, we are sharing out an example of a Template Vacation/Travel Protocol and Family Agreement through the portal at Learn.JoffeEmergencyServices.com
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always, I am but an email away. We are in this together, so please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
We will always be #StrongerTogether.
August 27th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9 am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig into these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do at every Monday webinar: take a deep breath.
Since the early days in January, when we first heard the whispers of a new and incredibly contagious “novel” coronavirus, schools have been in a constant never ending cycle of receiving and digesting information, critical decision-making, and continuous dissemination of news and updates to all constituencies.
We landed in this new, ever-changing landscape without a roadmap. We’ve adopted and popularized new vocabulary from “flattening the curve” and “physical distancing” to “distance learning” and “proper face coverings.” We’ve studied the latest data, learned medical terminology, and studied health recommendations to make thoughtful and informed decisions about how to run our operations without missing a beat. Behind the scenes, multiple scenarios were designed to protect our communities.
In this new “working from home” landscape, communications teams have created new pages and portals on their websites to inform current and prospective parents. Heads of Schools have hosted virtual Town Halls, and teachers have shared their personal phone numbers to reassure and support families when they weren’t teaching online. Schools have been under constant pressure to communicate with teachers, families, and the wider community to inform, comfort, and to be as transparent as possible about closures and reopenings.
Here are a few actions you can take to ensure your communication plan is doing what it should in the next 30 - 45 days:
One upside to the Zoom meetings and webinars, is that we’ve met partners throughout the country, united in ways we couldn’t imagine at the beginning of 2020. We have connected with peer schools locally, regionally, and nationally to share resources, stories, and innovative ways to educate our students.
Through this barrage of communicating, we’ve been reminded that we are stronger together. We have come together. Learned together. Grown together. We continue to care for each other, and focus on the heart of our institutions: the people.
Thank you for sharing this journey with us.
__
Below, I’m elevating a few items that I think would be worth a second glance (we’ve heard lots of questions around these topics, so I want to ensure you have this info handy):
August 20th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath.
Wherever you are in your journey to the resumption of education -- congratulations! Your work this spring and summer is paying off and you’re now getting to see smiling faces of students, whether that’s online or in person (in which case, I hope you’re just seeing smiling eyes - you know, because they have their masks on)! I’m so grateful for you, your leadership and your persistence. You inspire me every single day.
For schools that are resuming in person, I’ll share with you that in our network of schools, (1,800+), the theme that keeps emerging is that our students are more resilient to these changes than we are as adults. They’re “following the rules” and they’re happy to see one another and the adults on campus. I’ve heard from dozens of teachers, now, that the moment students arrived, the palpable tension that existed in planning was gone. It had been replaced by joy and excitement. I know that might not resonate with you, yet, especially if you yourself are mid-palpable-tension. That said, I hope you’ll keep an eye out for the moment that tension is replaced by joy. Even more, I hope that’s just around the corner.
For schools that are resuming virtually, congratulations! You’ve conquered the tough decisions that led up to this moment and you’ll get to see even more smiling faces soon (unless they’re back already!). One area that has surfaced for you all is the challenge of determining what on campus activity can/should occur as long as students are remote. Deciding (based on what is allowed by public health, etc.) which groups may return and which groups may not is a weighted and challenging conversation. In general, the theme I’m hearing is make your decision and be clear about that decision being in effect for 30 days at a time. We only know so much at this point, so let’s keep reassessing our decisions on a schedule to ensure we keep making the best decision for the community and for the moment.
Below, I’m recirculating a few items that I think would be worth a second glance (we’ve heard lots of questions around these topics, so I want to ensure you have this info handy):
August 13th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath.
I don’t know about you, but this week it’s catching up to me. I’m tired, I’m a little grumpy and most importantly, I still haven’t had a hair cut. If you’re anything like me, you have good days and bad days, or maybe good weeks and bad weeks through this experience. I wish I had something profound to say that would help you (or me) get through the bad weeks. The truth is, bad weeks happen, they suck, and we keep putting one foot in front of the other.
Not that everything has to come back to a running metaphor, but, it’s how you finish a marathon, right? One foot. Next foot. One foot. Next foot. 60,000 times. Some of those steps suck, some of them show you strength you didn’t realize you had, some of them are just steps. Wherever you are as you’re reading this, I want to remind you that our challenge is to simply keep stepping, keep caring and keep reinforcing the work we’ve done over the last 22 weeks. The protocols, policies, and guidelines will come into place. It’s the people we need to stay focused on.
These next few weeks might be a sprint for your community if you’re returning to on campus education. If that’s the case, please calendar NOW the end of that sprint (aim for 4 weeks at a time). Let’s get intentional about caring for one another by ensuring that we don’t ask our teams to sprint an entire marathon. We sprint when we have to, but we should be at a pace we can withstand for the whole year in other times.
Do You Need An Electrostatic Sprayer(s)?
We were pleased to connect with Marriott International and learn of the electrostatic spray equipment that their corporation has procured for their global portfolio of hotels. Marriott has graciously extended their support to offer priority to schools and community organizations who have urgent need for a COVID-19 sanitation resource. We're incredibly grateful for Marriott's willingness to support our schools and we thank the school who facilitated this introduction in the first place! If you would like a sprayer, click here for more information! Note: We will be placing an order on August 21st, so if you’d like to receive yours in September, please submit by then.
A New Opportunity For Learning:
You asked, we’re ready! In response to popular demand, we have created a shorter and more accessible version of our Pandemic Coordinator Training course. This 4-hour course will help you ensure you and your team are on track as we close out the Summer and gear up for the Fall. Learn more about the course content and structure here.
Making “Data Driven Decisions” For Our Schools:
One of the biggest hurdles we've been running into time and time again since the start of the pandemic is the question of data. How do we develop policies that are specific enough to alleviate anxiety in the community? At what point do we decide to close? At what point is it 'safe' to open? How many cases of illness is our decision point to shift models?
As schools, we are not responsible for or expected to develop our own quantitative metrics. We are responsible for accessing and interpreting the metrics and recommendations provided by epidemiologists and public health departments, and developing an internal plan for responding to that data. We don't want to codify percentages or numbers that might shift and change, and that don't necessarily take into account all of the nuances. We want to codify our strategy for planning and response.
Our plans should be specific to the outcome, not specific to the input.
For example: Rather than stating in your plan, "If illness rate in our school reaches x%, we will immediately shift into our distance-learning model," what would it look like to say, "The school's pandemic response team will meet on an x basis to assess illness levels in the community, and will consult with public health regularly to determine the need to shift learning models. If there is a determination to close the school, our community will be notified through y means, and our status will be reassessed on a z basis." You'll see that there are in fact numbers in the second example - they are just numbers that we can be confident about committing to.
The bottom line is: whatever we put in our policy, we should be confident about. We may not know what leading experts will recommend in terms of metrics for closure, but we do know our team's plan for responding to that data.
Do you have vendors lined up for testing?
Good news! We’re crowdsourcing a sheet, as we’ve done with other commonly needed resources to compile a list of testing options for you. Join the dialogue here and add to the sheet, take vendors from the sheet and help us grow this to provide a cohesive list of options for you and schools around you!
August 6th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath.
For some, this week marks a decision to move to a virtual environment for the start of school, for others, this week has been focused on double checking strategies for on campus education to return. For others, yet, this week marked the return of students to hallways. Wherever you are on that decision making spectrum, congrats! Final decisions should still be in pencil, but they should be celebrated!
Having seen some of the news coverage of the most challenging return to school environments, it’s easy and appropriate to reassess what you were thinking about your own return to school.
These are important questions. Questions that many of our schools have been reckoning with all summer. Questions you may well already have the answers to!
I want to remind you that there are schools in parts of our country choosing to open and doing so in a way that is consistent with the guidelines and orders that are in place. Similarly, there are schools choosing to remain closed because they’re not ready to adhere to those guidelines right now. Of course there are others, still, who are complying with orders requiring off-campus learning to take place. None of these scenarios are inherently wrong. We posit that if you continue to lead with the items below in the forefront of your mind, you can make the best decision and be prepared to pivot when needed:
One piece of clarity that I’d encourage you to leverage is the poster at the bottom of this note (feel free to recreate it if you’d like to with your own logo). There are both organizational and individual principles to adhere to. Something as simple as this image might help ground your community in those pillars or principles.
Additionally, I want to take a moment to remind you of a few key resources that are available on our Covid-Support Site:
July 30th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath.
As we continue to navigate through some uncertainty, the word I keep hearing used in our dialogues with school leaders is “overwhelmed”. I want to first acknowledge that many of us are feeling that -- together -- and many of us are developing strategies to continue to lead through that and empathize with others in our respective communities who share that burden. At the start of the Coronavirus Response, I clung to a set of principles that was shared by one of our regional associations of independent schools. Simple, almost poetic, and freeing: Now, Next, Later.
As we shift in and out of moments of being overwhelmed, I encourage you to come back to those principles again today.
It’s unrealistic to have the perfect plan. As leaders, we tend to put an exorbitant amount of pressure on ourselves to have the whole plan, communicate the whole plan and avoid change. Instead, in this moment, the most successful leaders are communicating paradigms of decision making:
Maybe your statement is as simple as “we’ll resume education”.
Whatever your choice, we’re all going to be a messy work in progress for a while. Prioritizing safety, upholding guidelines and listening to our communities, we posit, will be the strategies that the most successful communities elevate in the weeks ahead.
Reminder: Enroll as (at least) a free member at Joffe's Covid-Support Site. This will provide all resources in a single place. Our aim is to create a "cut through the noise, all angles support infrastructure".
July 24th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST/12pm EST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath.
As we see guidelines for reopening updated on a daily basis, we recognize that schools across the nation are looking for resources to provide teachers with options for coronavirus tests. For testing sites, check the Dept. of Health and Human Services website here, or your local health department.
Depending on your area, there may be requirements around or priorities made for testing of "essential workers". You can use this resource to find out if your state has outlined school employees as essential workers (pro-tip: search documents for 'school' not 'teacher'!).
For our California schools, you’re being asked to test routinely. We anticipate that some other states will fall into this category too. There are 2 general strategies that you can choose to use (again, assuming that your local City, State or County hasn’t said otherwise):
Whichever you choose, it’s important to ensure that you’re documenting your strategy for testing within your Covid-19 Response Plan, Operations Plan or Playbook (using those three names, but whatever you choose to call your "big document” that houses your response strategy). Additionally, while you should consult with your legal team for the "how", it’s important to determine a method you’ll use to track when people have been tested so you can ensure you remain compliant.
Finally, a few of our schools have suggested that faculty and staff have had concerns about testing. While we can’t and won’t speak to privacy issues (it’s just not our lane), we will address the root “why” here. You’re invited to copy and paste to folks who are pushing back!
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Testing is one of many strategies that municipalities are implementing as a part of the effort to stop the spread of Covid-19. Testing alone is indeed not a solution. There’s no secret that a “negative/Covid-19 free” test result is only as good as the moment it was taken. That said, like Batching, Monitoring and Reducing Time & Exposure, testing is used as one theme that enables municipalities to have high-quality data on the number of people testing positive and the efficacy of the myriad of simultaneous strategies being implemented.
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Reminder: Don’t forget to enroll as (at least a free) member at Joffe's Covid-Support Site. This will provide all resources in a single place. Our aim is to create a "cut through the noise, all-angles support infrastructure".
July 17th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
If you haven’t yet, please help us to expand our data by completing this short (>2min) survey on testing.
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath.
New guidance has been released in many cities, states, and counties within the past week. Have you checked to see if there are changes for you? As you are working with your team to build your plan towards reopening I would encourage you to assign someone on the team to check for updates at a minimum once a week (I’m strongly encouraging schools to do this on Monday from 9-9:05 while we do the webinar intros!) Fortunately we are getting these helpful resources with more regularity. Unfortunately, distribution/notification of when something has been updated or released isn’t as regular. Sometimes it takes rereading them to find nuance changes that can have a great impact on our plans.
Johns Hopkins has collaborated on an excellent resource for tracking state guidance and policies as they are updated. Access that here.
This coming week, as referenced above, we will dive into lessons learned from locations where students are back. We will be joined by two Health Coordinators from opposite sides of the country to tell us about their experience being on a campus with students present. They will share what’s working, what’s been hard, and what has surprised them. Do you have questions about how masks really are working for young children? They can’t wait to share their experience with you.
As a reminder, a resource you should be checking in with is the Joffe's Covid-Support Site. Enrollment to the site is free. Recently we have added a Pandemic Response Plan Example and a Screening Application Comparison document. Just today we added the first of what will be many free to use sign templates that you will be able to print yourself and place around your school. Below are two such examples.
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always, I am but an email away. We are in this together, so please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
July 13th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
Additionally, we shared a few key resources on the call today, those are offered below:
Want to access past webinars? All past webinars and slide decks are now easily accessible on Joffe's one-shop-stop COVID-19 school portal at learn.joffeemergencyservices.com.
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
July 9th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
Please help us in preparing for the webinar by completing this short (>2min) survey on testing.
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath.
There is a lot going on in the local and national news this week about schools and reopening. How are you and your teams digesting it? What is really happening and what will affect our plans? Refreshed/updated guidelines are sure to be coming, we have been expecting this. You’ve been ready for this. I encourage you to plan with what you currently have access to, while checking regularly for those updates of local, county, state, and federal. Work in pencil, not pen. This is a marathon and we will keep going on creating the healthiest environment possible.
As we work on our plans for this coming year, one thing we should all plan for is training. It is my firm belief that to create the safest environment possible, we must clearly articulate our expectations for all community members. With that being said, you should have training for faculty / staff, students, and families as part of your process for the start of the year. But what needs to be covered? To get you started we have generated an outline of topics we suggest you include during those training sessions. These are just a starting point, make sure and cover your community specific expectations for the coming year.
Above all else, your training should be anchored in the idea that we are transparently building confidence. Talk about the risks. Inform and engage people in authentic conversations. Talk about all that we can do to make school the healthiest environment possible. Smile. Breathe.
Faculty / Staff Training
Student Training
Family Training
All training presented to students with the addition of:
Again, these are starting points. I’d encourage you to work with your team and make sure you get anything and everything covered to give clear expectations for everyone in your community. These training sessions are a strong resource in helping prepare your community to be as safe as possible.
Speaking of resources, we have just added two new resources to Joffe's Covid-Support Site. We have added a Pandemic Response Plan Example and a Screening Application Comparison document to the resource section. Please log in to access these as well as the many other resources. Not a member? Join! It's free!
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always, I am but an email away. We are in this together, so please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
July 6th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
Additionally, we shared a few key resources on the call today, those are offered below:
Want to access past webinars? All past webinars and slide decks are now easily accessible on Joffe's one-shop-stop COVID-19 school portal at learn.joffeemergencyservices.com.
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
July 2nd Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath.
I know it was only a few weeks ago that I was able to congratulate you on making it through graduation and the end of the year, but the countdown to the start of the school year has started. If your heart rate and breathing just went back up again by that statement, I encourage you to take another deep breath. We have work ahead of us to make sure our schools are as safe as they can be for this coming year. What we are planning to do right now can seem unreachable because of the size and scope of the challenges, but we can do it.
To reground your thoughts on the work we have ahead of us I invite you to watch a 12-minute video by Dr. Prabhjot Singh as he discusses what our planning should look like for this coming year.
Did that help calm some anxiety? It helped me. To reinforce what Dr. Prabhjot Singh said: you have done this before, we have done this before. While risk can’t be eliminated, we can work to reduce it. Batching, reducing exposure, and monitoring. Three things that are present, I would wager, in all the guidance that we have been using to help us plan. By embracing those concepts we can reduce the risks within our community.
A quick summary of resources you should be checking in with:
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always, I am but an email away. We are in this together, so please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
June 29th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
We know that the budget year comes to a close tomorrow, folks have reached out and asked to sign up for our next Pandemic Coordinator training before that deadline. We have accelerated the sign up process for our July (July 28-31, Aug 4-5) training to make sure those of you that wanted to or needed to could do so ASAP. To sign up please visit this link.
Want to access past webinars? All past webinars and slide decks are now easily accessible on Joffe's one-shop-stop COVID-19 school portal at learn.joffeemergencyservices.com.
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
June 25th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath. (By request, I tweeted out the GIF we’ve been using so you can use this in your own presentations). I can’t underscore enough the importance of checking in with ourselves. As we are progressing into reopening schools and the time crunch is ever present, I want to remind everyone that if this were easy, we wouldn’t be having these thoughtful conversations. There is a quote by Colin Powell, that I think fits so perfectly with the current time. “There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning...” This is exactly what each and everyone of us is doing every day, preparing, working hard, and essentially and eventually we will be learning from some challenges.
I’m acutely excited about a resource that will be on our call on Monday. Rahel Rosner, Chief Strategist at The St. Paul’s School, together with her son, Ari, developed a unique, interactive tool to help plan for the use of nearly any space on your campus. This model originated when Ari, a mechanical engineering major at Cal Tech, witnessed his mother tackle the Herculean task of space planning in the age of physical distancing. He created an Excel-based tool that allows users to automatically calculate student/person capacity, including desk layout. Rahel and Ari will explain the tool and demo it in action, before taking extensive Q&A. All registrants will receive a copy of the tool!
Further, as places begin to open up far and wide, and we see things such as outdoor dining proceeding in a normal fashion, please continue to be vigilant. To limit transmission, continue to perform the basic practices recommended by health officials over the past three months: Wear a mask, practice social distancing, wash your hands and, most importantly, stay home if you are sick or have symptoms.
A quick summary of resources you should be checking in with:
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always I am but an email away. We are in this together, please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
June 22nd Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
Additionally, we shared a few key resources on the call today, those are offered below:
Want to access past webinars? All past webinars and slide decks are now easily accessible on Joffe's one-shop-stop COVID-19 school portal at learn.joffeemergencyservices.com.
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
June 18th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath. I can’t state enough how important I feel it is to check-in with ourselves. We are well into our marathon and I can’t emphasize enough that pacing ourselves, breathing and staying grounded in the now are incredibly important. At this point, many of you have just had your graduations and are truly into summer. Congratulations! Do you have a vacation planned? Are you going to take it? As an outside influence I am here to encourage you to take that vacation! We are all in planning mode and will be for some time. But we must take time to step back and take a break.
“Rest and self-care are so important. When you take time to replenish your spirit, it allows you to serve others from the overflow. You cannot serve from an empty vessel.” - Eleanor Brown
As you have seen so far in this message, I’m being a little more forward in my suggestions this week. I am going to continue that with being prescriptive below on ways to make sure you have access to all the latest resources. With that, everyone should:
Our greatest risk (beyond Covid-19 itself) continues to be leadership fatigue. Please prioritize what you can to care for yourselves, your staff & faculty and your communities as a whole.
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always I am but an email away. We are in this together, please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
June 15th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
Additionally, we shared a few key resources on the call today, those are offered below:
Want to access past webinars? All past webinars and slide decks are now easily accessible on Joffe's one-shop-stop COVID-19 school portal at learn.joffeemergencyservices.com.
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
June 11th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here.
This coming Monday we will be joined by our friend Dr. Baila Drucker, LCSW, founder and director of Project:Camp, an organization that empowers communities to foster resilience during and after disasters, for a training on considering the social-emotional resilience of your organization. Emerging data is indicating that COVID-19 has spawned a mental health crisis that may well outlast the virus itself, and Dr. B will talk about how you can protect yourselves, your employees and your students from developing toxic, traumatic stress. You will leave this training not only with an understanding of the underlying effects of this emerging crisis, but actionable steps that you can take within your school community to address them.
Please help us in preparing for the webinar by completing this short (>2min) survey from Project:Camp.
We will also dig in to what drop off might look like with the addition of screenings, any new guidance that have been released, and have plenty of time at the end for rapid Q & A.
Welcome to our next weekly check in! As always, let’s pause and take a deep breath. We know reopening is going to be a daunting task, however as we always say, the constant collaboration only makes reopening that much easier. I am sure there will be some kinks along the way and some edges to smooth, however our community continues to come together ready to support each and every school throughout this process.
The WHO (World Health Organization) has emphatically stressed that much remains unknown about COVID-19. This week’s news cycle really highlights the ever changing knowledge and guidance that is being shared. This is not to say that when guidances are released or new pertinent information is shared we should not utilize them in our thinking and planning. It is more to say that we should be working in pencil, not pen. We greatly value the various safety measures that are being suggested, and we must keep abreast of the ever changing environment we are currently living in and plan for change. As President Eisinhower once said: "Plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”
One last piece: We just launched Learn.JoffeEmergencyServices.com which is the new portal for resource access and a built-in community forum. If you're not registered for that, yet, I'd love to invite you to do so. The baseline program is completely free and an easier way to stay on top of newly released resources than us sending you 300 emails as we produce them :).
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always I am but an email away. We are in this together, please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
June 8th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
Please help us in preparing for next weeks webinar by completing this short (>2min) survey for our friends at Project: Camp!
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
June 5th Updates
Well, it’s officially happening: Joffe is virtual!
We’ve talked with you over the past 15 weeks about your collective needs, concerns, challenges, questions, and (above all else) emotions related to navigating the Coronavirus pandemic. What we’ve heard is: You need someone to help cut through all the noise AND You need this service accessible virtually.
We have been hard at work trying to figure out how to deliver on our promise to support your communities through the summer, into this coming school year, and beyond. We are delighted to share with you the release of our online platform!
(Because we wanted to get you resources quickly, we are releasing this in two phases. More on the second phase below.)
First and foremost: What was free to all is still free to all. We stand by our commitment that cost should never be a barrier to safety, so our online resources are still available to anyone! Once you set up an account with our free - yes, free! - Foundations Program, on our new platform, you will additionally gain access to our complete library of past recorded webinars.
Second: Registration is now open for our first Pandemic Coordinator Training! This will be happening virtually from June 23 - July 1. In this training, your school representative will gain all the tools and confidence they need to set you and your community up for success, as well as earning your school a Joffe Pandemic Coordinator Certification. If you are interested in learning more about the training, see more details here. Please note: We are capping this training at 75 participants, so register soon! (Payment will hold your place, and you can decide on your school designee at a later date.)
Additionally, in July we will be releasing our brand-new monthly Membership and Coaching Programs! These programs will allow different levels of engagement and support to match different budgets and needs. You can find out more about these programs and sign up to receive updates on the launch dates from our main page.
Finally, we want to say thank you. Thank you for all the work you have been doing and continue to do. Thank you for your feedback, questions, challenges, and ideas. Thank you for your patience as we implemented a new mode of engagement, which we are extremely excited to get to share with you first, as cherished members of the Joffe community.
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out as always.
June 4th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
Mental Health Amid the COVID-19 Crisis
This coming Monday we will be joined by Dr. Baila Drucker, LCSW, founder and director of Project:Camp, an organization that empowers communities to foster resilience during and after disasters, for a brief discussion on considering the social-emotional resilience of your organization. Emerging data is indicating that Covid-19 has spawned a mental health crisis that may well outlast the virus itself, and Dr. B will talk about how you can protect yourselves, your employees and your students from developing toxic, traumatic stress.
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Welcome to weekly check in number 13 (I think). As I have mentioned many times before, I am constantly in awe when observing the collaboration of the many brilliant minds working to create policies and protocol that will suit most if not all communities. We are heading into a new normal, and what seems to be a new world.
We are making huge strides towards the physical planning and restructuring of schools when that time comes, however, we have not spoken much about the mental impacts that quarantine has made. Coping with not being able to find joy in normal routines, and also grappling with the current climate of the country regarding social affairs can really take a toll on our collective mental health.
I want to list some ways to cope and self care:
On a deeply personal note, like many of you, I've endured the protests and civil unrest of the last several days. As a black man, I feel the pain of an entire community and deeply value the work of so many -- of all colors -- who are working to cause change in our greater community. I am all too familiar with the cyclical nature of our collective attention span and I want to challenge each of us -- as we've done at Joffe -- to commit to an ongoing dialogue about these issues. To allow the momentum that's been created to diffuse itself in the weeks and months ahead would be a mistake. So, as we're doing with Coronavirus, I challenge you to tackle racism as a marathon and not a sprint. Don't burn out. Lives depend on our persistent efforts there, too.
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always I am but an email away. We are in this together, please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
June 1st Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
Additionally, we shared a few key resources on the call today, those are offered below:
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
May 28th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
Before we go any further: let's take a deep breath.
This is I believe, weekly check-in number 12, and yet it feels like we're just getting started. I’d like to begin with a thank you to everyone who participates in the weekly webinars and the constant collaboration with amazing leaders from across the country. Although opening campuses countrywide is not a one size fits all solution, we have created a forum to piece together something that fits for each community. Every community has offered a piece of the puzzle, and soon enough we will have a complete picture that benefits each school in their own way.
As I am sure everyone has noticed, many government issued restrictions are beginning to loosen globally. This also means that we are going to notice many school campuses opening for summer programs or for some type of schooling, in whatever way that may be. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases urged, “localities to make decisions based on the dynamics of the COVID-19 outbreak in their area.” Inevitably this means that schools will reopen at different times and in different ways in the days, weeks and months ahead.
We believe students will be on campus in some facet in the coming months, and returning to a new normal after completely altering their daily routine to incorporate online learning. I want to bring attention to an uncomfortable topic, that will present itself as we begin to return. We must work to make sure that our students, faculty and staff are not only physically safe on campus, but mentally and emotionally safe. We will have to pay special attention to challenges such as bullying, stereotyping, or harassment of those who were diagnosed with COVID-19, exposed to someone with COVID-19, or even those with identities which have been associated with COVID-19.
Below are some recommendations to engage in productive conversations in the classroom:
Time for another breath.
As we wrap up another week, recognize that this journey we are all on has been a lot to take in and process. There is going to be burn out. Give yourself permission to acknowledge it and feel it. Check in with yourself. Check in with your team. Ask yourself what are three things you can do for yourself or for your team to give people a chance to refocus and rebound?
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always I am but an email away. We are in this together, please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
May 26th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
Additionally, we shared a few key resources on the call today, those are offered below:
Something I did not share today, but I found as a great resource is collection of articles from McKinsey & Company. If you have a moment please check out; Leadership in a crisis: How leaders can support their organizations during the COVID-19 crisis and recovery.
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
May 21st Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Tuesday morning at 9am PST. This change from our normal Monday is because of Memorial Day. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
Before you go any further: Take a deep breath!
As we continue to make headway as a country and it seems as though things are changing every hour, if not every minute, I want to touch on some news that has been elevated and may well have been on your mind. News coverage of COVID-19 has been largely focused on its impact to at risk populations. Until recently, children were thought to be not significantly impacted. Within the last few weeks, clusters of children have come down with Pediatric Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome (PMIS). This syndrome has a very similar resemblance to Kawasaki Disease. Symptoms that would indicate elevated concern include:
Pediatric Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome (PMIS):
Kawasaki Disease:
Many of the patients with PMIS or Kawasaki disease have been found to also carry the COVID-19 virus. Further, a significant number of patients were exposed to someone with COVID-19. I share this to express that we should monitor our students and children as schools begin to re-open and continue to take stringent measures to prevent the spread of the illness.
I want to challenge you to continue to expand your awareness without elevating your own or your community's anxiety. As a community, I feel it’s worthwhile to reiterate: The sky is still up there. The future is still hopeful. We must take this, and the future challenges we’ll inevitably hit, in stride.
While we don’t know everything, we do know that consistent hand washing, social distancing and disinfection of high touch surfaces is going to become part of our routine as we make our way into our new normal. With that in mind, I want to share with you the possibilities for disinfection systems and tools for your campus.
Disinfection Sprayers for Your Campus
This list is not exhaustive, nor the only set of options for your campus. This is simply a snapshot of what could be used for your school, and some ideas you might use to cater to your campus needs.
I want to snapshot what we are seeing worldwide with the rolling reopening of schools:
These are examples of what we may begin to see in schools near us. I encourage everyone to stay willing to flex with the ebbs and flows of what is being recommended everyday from the multiple resources that are leaning in from around the world. I encourage us to prioritize the concept of flexible predictability.
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always I am but an email away. We are in this together, please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
May 18th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
Additionally, we shared a few key resources on the call today, those are offered below:
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next week! As a reminder next week we will hold the webinar on Tuesday at 9am PST instead of Monday because of Memorial Day!
May 14th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
Before we jump into this week’s thoughts, please take a moment to help us think through busing for the new normal! Please fill out this survey so we can crowdsource what schools are thinking about their busing futures. We will share what trends we are seeing in an upcoming webinar.
I’d like to start this note with yet another quote that has resonated with me in the past month. "Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less." We are now collaborating, learning, and gaining understanding from one another. To be frank, it is a scary time, there is a lot to fear, however, by joining forces and leaning into the unknown together, we will get through this, stronger and more prepared than ever before.
As we approach opening campus doors again, I want to strategize and provide some expectations for the multiple hurdles and bumps in the road that we are going to need to overcome. There is not yet a cut and dry set of guidelines to follow for next year. I want to address two key questions that have come up over the course of the past few weeks.
1) There is not a definitive answer as to whether after school programs are going to be safe for parents who need to return to work, or are deemed “essential workers.” However, if there is an absolute need for an afterschool program due to the necessity for after hour care, the CDC and WHO organization have given the following suggestions:
2) Social distancing is the solution for essential activities. I want everyone to keep this in mind as we contemplate having students return to campus, if even for a brief period of time, such as retrieving belongings from lockers.
Here are some helpful guidelines:
I want to encourage everyone to continue collaborating and working together through these difficult times. We are in a large learning curve, and must continue adapting each and every day. Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always I am but an email away. We are in this together, please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
Above all else, kudos for the progress you've made already in pivoting, reimagining and leading with your heart.
May 11th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
Additionally, we shared a few key resources on the call today, those are offered below:
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
We've seen many quotes we liked and wanted to close with this one: “Resilience is accepting your new reality, even if it’s less good than the one you had before. You can fight it, you can do nothing but scream about what you’ve lost, or you can accept that and try to put together something that’s good.”
― Elizabeth Edwards
May 7th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I wanted to start off this newsletter with a deep breath as we start every webinar. I am in continued awe over the amount of collaboration and the abundance of brilliant ideas that each and every one of you has shared over the course of the past 8 weeks. We are undoubtedly: Stronger. Together.
As Safer at Home Orders are lifted in some cities and states, I want to remind everyone to check their local city and state ordinances frequently (at least once per week) to make sure you are up to date. You can find this information at State Mandates on COVID-19. Further, a simple google of [yourcity].gov/coronavirus will give you any updates regarding COVID-19 mandates in your city. Both of these websites are great sources of information, and will aid you in future planning.
This week I want to delve into specifics towards re-opening, and maintaining a safe and healthy campus. Many of you have inquired regarding supplies that should be stocked for campus reopening. Below is a list of "long-lead-time" items that can be purchased for school. This was a collaborative effort, and a rough framework of some supplies that could be useful on campus. It is not intended to be inclusive of revised cleaning supplies or requirements that the CDC or other public agencies may release. Additionally, we've linked a "crowdsourcing" spreadsheet we're encouraging you to add to and take from as we work to find vendors who have these supplies available.
The CDC shares that when searching for cleaning products for your school, look for a label that states that the product combats against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. When looking for a product you can go to the website EPA List of Disinfectants Against SARS-CoV-2 and type in your products EPA Reg. No, and see if it is an effective product against COVID-19. Many of these products have caustic properties and must be used in a safe manner.
The CDC Gives 6 Steps for Safe and Effective Disinfectant Use:
Remember normal routine cleaning with soap and water removes germs and dirt from surfaces. It lowers the risk of spreading COVID-19. Disinfectants kill germs on surfaces. By eliminating germs on a surface after cleaning, you can further lower the risk of spreading illness. If disinfectants on the EPA list are in short supply, alternative disinfectants can be used, for example, 1/3 cup of bleach added to 1 gallon of water, or 70% alcohol solutions.
As discussed in each webinar, we must instill predictability while promoting flexibility. With rolling reopening of schools, we must continue to prepare for more people on campus. Not only will we be cleaning and disinfecting more frequently and more stringently, but we must also evaluate the screening community members directly prior to on to campus. This is to ensure that no sick individuals are coming onto campus, and that we maintain a safe and healthy environment. Some possibilities for screening prior to entry are:
Screening Possibilities:
→ OBSETECH
Below is a sheet of the cost and comparison of the multiple types of thermal cameras or infrared thermometers you can purchase for your campus.
Thermometer Cost and Comparison
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always I am but an email away. We are in this together, please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
This week, look out for end of year burnout, but also look forward to that
May 4th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
Additionally, we shared a few key resources on the call today, those are offered below:
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
In the meantime, here's to a healthy and safe week. As you lead this week, lookout for resilience. Hearing stories of your students strength, resilience and capacity continues to leave me awestruck.
Apr. 30th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath and check in with yourself.
For many of us, we’re at around 40 days of staying Safer at Home. We’ve picked up new hobbies; cooking, painting, baking and maybe even some tie-dying. If there is something to say of this quarantine it's that our community has held together committed to keeping schools safe, healthy, and running. As a colleague mentioned over a webinar this past week, “We are not stuck at home, we are at home sticking together.”
This week we're digging into some ideas around reopening that have been discussed with some brilliant minds. We touched on these topics during Monday’s Webinar, and will continue to elaborate and refine these in the coming weeks.
Through much discussion, most have come to the consensus that dividing the school population into smaller groups or, “cohorts,” is the best way to tackle bringing schools together, and students back to campus. This of course will vary from school to school, however, the idea remains the same: ensure as much physical distancing as possible.
Extended Schedule: Creating an extended schedule so that the day is longer than typical with fewer kids on campus at the same time to ensure social distancing.
Hybrid Learning: Those classes that benefit from in person learning are conducted on campus, and those that operate well via online continue online.
Staggered Schedules: Students only come to school on designated days; creating an X number day work week, where students only come to school on their assigned day.
In each of these scenarios:
The above are brief snapshots of what could be instituted at your school. They are not by any means the only options and we, like you, will continue to listen, learn and iterate. I encourage everyone to think about the best fit for their school. I believe that the three words which characterize the months ahead are adaptability, agency, and communication.
Some food for thought from this week’s webinar; in what ways can we not only support our students, but support our faculty and staff? As much as our focus is on students and returning them to some sort of normalcy we must also consider that our faculty and staff are in need of support as well. Without them and their incredible efforts to keep schools running smoothly, we would not be able to have these amazing productive conversations and discussions. Teachers in many ways are on the front lines as well, we were asked to start with some ideas as to how we can best support them during this transition and time. I couldn’t think of a better group to lean in for.
I want to link a collaborative document down below and ask that we brainstorm ideas on how to best support our teachers and resist burnout and other challenges:
Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always I am but an email away. We are in this together, please don't hesitate to reach out for support. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
Apr. 27th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). We've learned that many of you are forwarding these notes to listservs and local schools - thank you! If someone forwarded this email to you, first we're grateful!, second, please feel free to register for our updates here.
A few resources for each of you:
Additionally, we shared a few key resources on the call today, those are offered below:
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
In the meantime, here's to a healthy and safe week. As you lead this week, lookout for resilience. Hearing stories of your students strength, resilience and capacity continues to leave me awestruck.
Apr. 23rd Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I’d like to launch into this note by asking you to do what we do on every Monday webinar: take a deep breath and check in with yourself. It is surreal to think that we have sheltered ourselves in place for somewhere around 35 days now; but our community of schools are holding strong and doing our part. I applaud each and every one of you for that.
This week we’re aiming to share some broad scenarios around how others around the world have re-entered school. This is NOT to say that the United States, or any of our States will re-open in this way, but instead to offer some perspective as inevitably some of these strategies will indeed be a part of our shared work soon.
Denmark
Denmark has implemented its first phase of entry back to school with social distancing in mind. There are regulations that are being strictly enforced in order to ensure that limiting the spread of Coronavirus is still at the forefront of everyone's mind:
New South Wales
New South Wales schools plan to allow students to return to school 1 day a week starting mid May. They are retaining only a quarter of the student population on campus on a given day. There are highly urging grades 11 and 12 to return to school, as these are pivotal academic years for college. With that in mind, New South Wales schools state, “If parents don’t feel comfortable sending their kids to school, for whatever reason, they will not be obligated to do so.”
An article for a deeper dive: NSW students to return to school one day a week from mid-May
Around The World:
Many schools have considered thoughts of temperature screening of all employees and students prior to entering the school. This may be a hard task to implement, and would take a considerable amount of time each school day. It may be in some of our cards and we'll be here to support you if it is.
I want to plant a seed into everyone's mind to start thinking about ways to celebrate the many activities that seniors were not able to partake in this school year. I am going to link a google doc. down below where everyone can share ideas of ways we can recognize the senior class, and make their last year of high school or college as special as possible. Take an idea, give an idea - we’re in this together!
For Your School
For now, I’m encouraging you to continue to stay grounded in the “Now” and the “Next”. Our States, Counties and Cities will release guidance for our schools to reopen. When they do, we’ll be here to support you as you work to adhere to it. In the meantime, consider the ideas above and use them as scenarios in your leadership team dialogues. We know we won’t come back exactly the same way as other countries have, but pieces from each country’s re-entry will likely be in our shared future.
For now, we will continue to strategize together and learn from other countries and other schools. I am thankful to each and every one of you for the thoughts and ideas you have shared. Together we will solve the hurdles in the “later”. As always I am but an email away. We are in this together, please reach out for assistance. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible.
I wish you health this coming week and resilience too!
In strength,
Chris Joffe
P.S. I know you're already short on time. If you can spare 3 minutes, I'd so appreciate your feedback on this survey about our work and how we'll evolve it next year. Dozens of you have already completed this - THANK YOU! I'm hopeful to get into the hundreds.
Apr. 20th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!).
A few resources for each of you:
Re-share by request: This document articulates so many of the questions we merely scratched the surface on today and last week. First and foremost, thank you, Mike! Please feel free to "Make a Copy" of this doc to design a conversation for your own school.
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
In the meantime, here's to a healthy and safe week. As you lead this week, lookout for strength, be ready for angst and embrace each with empathy, care and compassion.
Apr. 16th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
This week we reflect and recharge with a Mr. Rogers quote that really resonated with me. “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, 'Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.'” Indeed, as we look around today, we are seeing people -- almost everywhere -- helping.
I want to remind everyone that in so many ways by staying home and self-isolating we, too, are helping. It’s not an easy task, but every effort helps. Further, I want to touch on something that we talked about in our earlier newsletters; as Mr. Rogers stated, how to help. As we head further into the shelter in place orders, which for so many of us have been extended to mid-May, I want to reiterate just some of the many ways you can make an impact from your dining room table:
Check on Your Neighbors: A simple text or call to those across the street, can make all the difference. Ask them what they need? It could be a simple request of a stick of butter for the muffins they’re baking that morning. If you have it, leave it outside their front door, limiting any direct contact.
Feed the Children: Works with thousands of partner agencies across the country including food pantries, shelters, soup kitchens and churches. You can make a cash donation here. If you want to donate food or hygiene items call 1-800-627-4556.
Take care of yourself: I mentioned this on Monday's call, but want to reiterate a few pieces of this critically important puzzle. As leaders, we're pretty good about talking about self-care. We're less good about going forward with it. Do it. This coming week marks the 5th week for many of us in some form of self-isolation. This is absolutely not a sprint any longer, it's a marathon. It's critically important that we find ways to care for ourselves to ensure we can be there for our community today, tomorrow and the next day.
Take care of your community: For many of us, it's time to expand the dialogue about self-care. Gratitude is a great way to start. Share gratitude for teachers, administrators, parents, even children who are doing something great. Beyond that, celebrate self-care. Hear of someone taking a break? Tell them how it inspired you, too, to recharge. Again, we're in this for the long haul. The more we can practice self-care and sustainable leadership and connection, the more we'll be able to support one another.
The CDC Shares:
Folks with COVID-19 who have stayed home (home isolated) can stop home isolation under the following conditions:
As always I am but an email away. We are all in this together, please reach out for support. I or my colleagues will get back to you as soon as possible. For quick responses and to stay up to date, follow me on Twitter: @JoffeChris or ask questions through our form.
Apr. 13th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!).
A few resources for each of you:
I got a few emails with the request for the screening/sampling tool, so I want to reiterate that tool. This is a sample/starting point (thank you, Debbie!) that you may consider. Note: There are two tabs, second one with instructions.
Additionally, a few of you shared various links to rules and expectations around masks and temperature screenings. A few core thoughts for the current moment:
A few have shared resources around the idea of reopening. Most notably, this document articulates so many of the questions we merely scratched the surface on today. First and foremost, thank you, Mike! Please feel free to "Make a Copy" of this doc to design a conversation for your own school.
Finally, someone pointed out that in Los Angeles, there is now a requirement for organizations that are 'open' to post their social distancing and modified work experience requirements in a public venue. LA's checklist may be found here. Thank you, Janet! That said, wherever you might be, it's a good idea to frequently review your Mayor's "Stay at Home" orders to ensure that you're staying compliant with updates like these. As always, if you're struggling to find those, please don't hesitate to let us know. (We'll try to post a clear list of these in the weeks ahead).
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
In the meantime, here's to a healthy and safe week. As you lead this week, lookout for unexpected innovation within your student community!
Apr. 10th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. Next week, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
I want to start this week with a friendly video that will hopefully brighten your day as it did mine. Take a look to put a smile on your face. We'll Get Through It :)
A quick reminder of the social distancing expectations in place:
While at home I encourage everyone to try something a little different this week. Cooking has always been an outlet of the co-author of this note, Amanda, and a way to not only express creativity, but a way to destress as well. In your spare time I challenge everyone to share a recipe of their liking to this page and share from what region you are from:
The page, Cooking at Home in the Time of Coronavirus takes pride in helping the at home cook, stir up something special with what is hidden in the pantry. Cooking with 5 ingredients or less, recipes that freeze well, and meal prepping for the week are essential during the current time.
Note: You may have missed the subtle emphasis on self-care in the "cooking" section above. Let's be very clear, this is an uncomfortably exhausting time for us. Whatever you choose to do - cook, exercise, read a book, meditate, pray - choose to do something for you.
Back to business:
As of April 3rd, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, recommended that we all wear "non-medical, cloth masks" to help stifle the spread of the Coronavirus. The cloth mask should be worn in places where there is a gathering of people from outside our homes (read: the market, etc.). A few notes:
The CDC has given guidance on how you should wear your face cloth coverings. Cloth face coverings should:
Mask Etiquette:
I hope you have a safe, healthy, restorative weekend. I look forward to seeing many of you on Monday. In the meantime, please don’t hesitate to ask questions on my Twitter: @JoffeChris, or through our form.
Apr. 6th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier this week (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). Apologies for the delay in this email!
A few resources for each of you:
The question came up yesterday about what tools we might be able to use to screen essential personnel who are coming to campus. This is a sample/starting point (thank you, Debbie!) that you may consider. Note: There are two tabs, second one with instructions.
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
In the meantime, here's to a healthy and safe week. As you lead this week, lookout for joy within your community!
Apr. 2nd Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. On Monday, we’ll dig in to these topics and more:
While you’re worrying about everyone else in your community, I want to remind you that I’m thinking about you. One thing we know we have control over at this moment is our own well being. Take a moment to decompress and check in with yourself. We can only take things week by week and control the days ahead. Let’s use this weekend to recharge and refuel!
With the Safer at Home Orders in place through April, new questions have popped in. Below are some of the most common questions we’re fielding:
Mar. 30th Updates
Thank you for joining our call earlier today (or aiming to for those who weren't able!). A few resources for each of you:
As an action item, we'd encourage you to prepare for a direct exposure within your community. To help you with this process, we've included a template letter.
Some communities are finding themselves struggling to stay focused on the distancing and new protocol. Thank you, Barbara, for sharing this video from a physician in New York who's sharing a bit about the experience he's had and doing so in an educational, authentic way. Here's the link!
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
In the meantime, here's to a healthy and safe week. As you lead this week, lookout for resilience within your community! It's happening, so might as well get to appreciate it!
Mar. 26th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here.
As we lean into new routines and balance what feels like a new way of life, I implore everyone to take a moment to self reflect and prioritize their own wellness. As I shared in our last note, responding to Coronavirus is a marathon, not a sprint. Take a moment to disconnect; turn off the phones, turn off the computer, take a moment.
Leaning into next week, I’m mindful that we can begin to accurately project what the next 2 weeks will look like. From now through the end of the week of the 6th, it’s conceivable that we’ll remain in a state of ‘Social Distancing’, whatever that might look like for each of our respective communities (Safer at Home, Safer Inside, Stay Home, Quarantine, etc.). It’s tempting to look beyond that horizon and some may make the choice to. I’d encourage each of us to stay focused on what we can see clearly for the time being.
As we work to conduct business as usual (albeit in our slippers, and our new office at the dining room table), I am inspired by the creativity and innovation that our communities are pioneering. To add to the list of efforts that have been implemented already, I’d like to share a couple of new ones that have resonated with me and ones where you can step in as well.
I hope you have a safe, healthy, restorative weekend. I look forward to seeing many of you on Monday. In the meantime, please don’t hesitate to ask questions on my Twitter: @JoffeChris, or through our form.
Mar. 22nd Updates
A few resources for each of you:
As an action item, we'd encourage you to proactively prepare for a direct exposure or secondary exposure to Coronavirus within your community. To help you with this process, we've included a template letter to notify your community of an exposure. We'd encourage you to wordsmith that in the next day or two (again, likely proactively at this time).
Additionally, we'd encourage you to proactively contemplate a change in leadership. Given the volume of people impacted, it's a reasonable assumption that a leader will become sick (Coronavirus or otherwise). Should that occur, are you equipped to manage through as a team and community? If not, build out 2 - 3 alternate leaders and build capacity within them.
We will continue to monitor updates and share resources as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, invite you to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris for more regular Q&A and updates!
Hope to see you again next Monday at 9am PST!
In the meantime, here's to a healthy and safe week. As you lead this week, lookout for people who may need an extra dose of empathy!
Mar. 20th Updates
First, a quick reminder that we’ll be offering a low-stress, high-impact webinar on Monday morning at 9am PST. If you’re not already registered, please feel free to do so here. We've transitioned to this format as we're acknowledging the response to Coronavirus is a marathon, not a sprint. To that end, I'd encourage you to contemplate how you're holding up right now. Can you adjust your pace to ensure you have the endurance you'll need in the weeks ahead?
Over the past couple of weeks I have been continually awed by the creativity, generosity, patience, and hard work of people across all sectors as we develop new routines and adjust to new ways of connecting in the world. In particular, I am reminded daily of the resilience of our school communities. Because of the vital role that schools play in families’ lives, we have seen the intersection of community services joining together in new ways.
Food banks are working with school districts to think about creative ways to provide nutritious meals to students. Cox, Comcast, and Spectrum (among others) have taken initiatives to boost internet speeds and provide low-cost and in some cases free access options to support at-home learning and working. Most inspiring to me is the work that all of you have been doing and continue to do every day: implementing distance learning plans, supporting your employees, building redundancy into business systems, and maintaining that all-important line of communication and connection with your families.
This last point is often the most important thing that we can do as school leaders; please remember that by staying in regular communication with your families you are extending an invaluable service. I have seen hundreds of excellent school communications this week, and wanted to share two examples, one from an East Coast school and one from a West Coast school. My hope is that these inspire you and support you as you draft future communications to your families.
Across the nation, all of us now face either the reality or the possibility of an extended period of school closure. To that end, I’d like to share some new resources we’ve found that could be of value to you and your communities:
Finally, I want to share with you a quote I have been thinking about a lot this week: “Everything we do before a pandemic will seem alarmist. Everything we do after will seem inadequate.” (Michael Leavitt, Former Health & Human Services Secretary)
As you finish up this difficult week and gear up for each new one, please remember that what you are doing is adequate. It may never feel like enough, but it is invaluable. Whatever it is you can do, it helps. Take care of yourself, take care of each other, and take a deep breath.
We are here as a continued resource for you as we work through these challenges together, and we look forward to hearing more about all of your victories (big and small).
Mar. 13th Updates
First a quick reminder that our team will be holding a weekly update call, free for all schools to join, starting this Monday, March 16 at 9:00AM PST. You can register to get the link here.
Next, as a follow-up to yesterday’s communication about preparing for possible pandemic-related school closure, I’m writing another quick note today in order to pass along an additional resource released last night by the CDC.
In case it’s valuable in your decision-making process, the CDC has published these Considerations for School Closure. This document outlines a decision tree on Page 2, and reviews some considerations for and against school closure on Pages 3-7.
Additionally, a number of folks have shared with us some great articles that could be helpful to share with parents as they also prepare for the possibility (or now, reality for many) of their students being home for an extended period.
We will continue to monitor updates and share valuable resources such as this as they become available. I have also been regularly tweeting updates and information, and you are welcome to follow me on Twitter at @JoffeChris.
Mar. 12th Updates
This email is intended to provide school communities with resources, support, and updated information related to coronavirus (COVID-19). Today’s communication is focused primarily on the topic of school closure, as this has been a concern at top of mind for schools across the nation this week. While this is a difficult and stressful time for all of us, we want to remind you that your community is capable and resilient. Together, we will come through this challenge.
As many of you know, the World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared a coronavirus pandemic as of Wednesday, March 11. To be clear, according to the Director-General of the WHO, this designation “does not change WHO’s assessment of the threat of the virus.” Rather, it is a continued reminder to governments and organizations around the world that mitigating and containing COVID-19 requires urgent and aggressive action.
In light of that, health officials are increasingly emphasizing ‘social distancing’, the practice of limiting our close-range engagement with others (particularly in larger groups). Here are some ideas for ways to encourage social distancing within the framework of traditional education (from Page 7 of the CDC’s School Flu Toolkit K-12, a great resource):
Some schools around the nation are choosing to close as a precaution or are being requested to close by their local or state department of health. We want to provide you with some additional considerations relevant to questions around school closures and what that process should look like. As a reminder, in lieu of guidance from local, state, or federal authority, this decision rests with your leadership team. Here are some guiding questions for your team as you contemplate the need for closure:
As you think about what level of response is required, we recommend clearly outlining what each level of response would look like and what would trigger each level. The following are some examples of levels of response schools have already taken or are contemplating:
At each of these levels, ask yourself the following questions:
As ever, be sure to keep your families and staff apprised about developments and decisions. Below are a few key components that we recommend you include in any message you send to families informing them that school will be closed for a period of time.
We also would like to share some direct resources that schools can utilize:
Mar. 4th Updates
We want to provide schools with a status update and some new resources related to coronavirus planning as of this Wednesday morning, March 4.
While the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S. remains relatively small, that number is likely to grow as additional testing is performed and more individuals seek care.
As you may be aware, on Tuesday, the World Health Organization informed the public that the coronavirus does not appear to be easily spread by people who are not experiencing symptoms themselves. This is good news, as it means there is greater likelihood of containing the virus. This also means that the best strategies for prevention and mitigation at this point remain the ones already discussed at length, such as thorough hand washing and staying home when sick.
We know many schools are focused on these prevention steps, but are also thinking about the steps that need to be taken to mitigate the impact of coronavirus, should it affect the local community. If you have not already, we recommend sharing a message with your families as a first step, updating them on how you are dealing with things like campus cleaning, travel planning, school closures, and talking to students about coronavirus. We’ve provided a fresh letter template to serve as a starting place here.
Additionally, as you think about the items you need to consider related to a potential school closure, we have developed a list of key considerations and questions that may be a helpful guide in this process. It includes questions across a variety of topics such as remote learning, employee policies, childcare, business continuity, and others that will ensure you are prepared for any eventuality.
Finally, I want to share a few resources that may be helpful as you continue to navigate this situation:
Continue to stay up to date on the most recent developments, from your local department of health as well as the CDC.
Feb. 27th Updates
As a follow up to our initial communication on Tuesday evening, this email is intended to provide some additional information that may be helpful as your school is considering next steps related to the coronavirus (COVID-19).
As we shared initially, the United States is not currently facing a coronavirus pandemic. However, as you are aware, the situation continues to evolve, and we want to empower schools to plan for increased concern in their communities.
In an attempt to create a space for school staff and leadership to ask questions that are on their minds, our team will be posting a list of Frequently Asked Questions to our website tomorrow, outlining questions we have been hearing over the past few days related to safety and emergency preparedness planning in the context of coronavirus. We will offer some guidance and suggestions for you to consider as you’re working on a plan for your school. We will be updating and adding to this FAQ regularly as the situation evolves in the coming days and weeks. If there are specific questions you would like to see addressed, please share them with us by filling out this Google Form.
Additionally, for schools with staff members currently attending the National Association of Independent Schools conference in Philadelphia, we will be addressing coronavirus planning at the conference tomorrow morning as part of a session entitled “Active Assailant Risk Management - Strategies for Managing Your School’s Risk”. In partnership with Ronald Wanglin from Bolton & Company, we’ll discuss ways schools can protect themselves from both of these threats. The session is taking place at 8:00AM in Room 120A, and we welcome anyone interested in joining the discussion.
Finally, we wanted to share this list of relevant resources that may be helpful as you are thinking about next steps at your school:
