After carefully considering the feedback from parents and staff and consulting with other boards we are making some changes to the St. Paul Education School Re-Entry Plan. All of our decisions continue to be guided by the advice from AHS and the Chief Medical Officer.
1. Lockers
Student lockers will be available for use (please note change room lockers will remain closed). Each school will create a plan using staggered break times or other means to support physical distancing at lockers. Having the lockers open means that students will have access to a place to store their personal items and will reduce clutter and crowding in classrooms.
2. Staggering First Days of School
The first official day of school is Wednesday, September 2. While we have not made any overall changes to the approved 2020-2021 School Calendar, we are adjusting the first two days of school. Approximately 50% of students will start school on Wednesday, September 2. Those students will not attend school on Thursday, September 3. The remaining students (approximately 50%) who did not attend on Wednesday, September 2 will attend on Thursday, September 3. All students in grades 1-12 will attend together on Friday, September 4. Each school will inform parents about which day their child(ren) is expected to attend. Elementary schools will also be providing a plan for staggered kindergarten entry.
Staggering the first days of school will allow students, staff and families to become familiar with and adjust to the many new health measures and routines that have been implemented to ensure everyone’s safety and well-being.
3. Sports
Under the guidance of AHS, the Alberta Schools’ Athletic Association (ASAA), an organization that governs high school sports in Alberta, has provided guidelines for the safe return of athletics. This return to sport falls within current government health guidelines and restrictions. See the Alberta Government Guidance for Sport, Physical Activity and Recreation. With this announcement, St. Paul Education will be allowing both junior and senior high sports to resume. As school sports are extracurricular, please be aware that the final decision to coach/volunteer will be at the discretion of the coach. St. Paul Education respects the ability of individual coaches to make decisions in the best interest of both their own and players’ health and well-being. In addition to following all health measures that have been identified for schools, teams will be expected to follow the Guidelines for the Safe Return of High School Athletics in Alberta. The following are some of the highlights from the document:
In school athletic practices only are permitted at this time; this means no league or tournament play.
Cohorts of up to 50 people are allowed, however no cohort can interact with another cohort.
A person can only participate in a second/different cohort if they complete activity with one cohort and then not participate with another cohort for 14 days (applies to school sports and community sports/clubs).
A team official will be appointed for each team to maintain attendance records for all gatherings of the cohort, including meetings and practices.
Spectators (excluding parents and guardians where necessary for player support) should be kept out of participant spaces (e.g., fields of play, courts, ice surfaces).
For more details see the Guidelines for the Safe Return of High School Athletics in Alberta.
The St. Paul Education 2020-21 Re-Entry Plans will be updated to reflect these changes.
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