CGPS Reopening Information

What to Expect Fall 2020 at CGPS

A message from the Head of School, Dr. Bill Donohue:

CGPS has developed a comprehensive plan that keeps our community’s health and safety as our first priority, as well as providing an academic plan that maintains the essence of a CGPS education: a student-centered learning experience that focuses on nurturing the interests and talents of all your children.

We know that, given the unique nature of this school year, our parents and students will have many questions. To help answer them, we have provided information by division and category on such wide-ranging topics as health and safety, academic excellence, social-emotional health, transportation and dining. We will continue to update the plan and this webpage, as needed.

CGPS is an extraordinary community and I am confident that, united together, we will navigate these extraordinary circumstances and that our students will have a successful and enriching year.

THE CGPS Health & Safety pledge

In our collective fight against COVID-19, we know that our individual actions have a direct impact on the health and safety of others around us. Every member of our community must take personal responsibility for their own health and that of others.

We ask that every member of our CGPS community pledge to:

Adhere to the current New York State and City public health guidelines
Abide by the specific health and safety instructions provided by the School, including but not limited to conscientiously completing the daily health screening before arriving to campus, taking COVID-19 tests when administered and staying home when feeling ill or having failed the daily screening
Wear face coverings and maintain physical distance on and off campus
Follow best practices regarding regular hand washing and sanitizing
Observe capacity limits in educational and social settings both on and off campus as directed by the State, City and School
Adapt to new protocols and procedures as they arise
Be compassionate and helpful to everyone in our community who may be experiencing increased fear and anxiety due to these new protocols

OUR GUIDING PRINCIPLES

Health & Well-being: Safeguard the physical and mental health of students, faculty and staff through new safety protocols, technology tools, facility improvements and support mechanisms.

Teaching & Learning: Maintain the integrity and excellence of our academic program across multiple learning modalities.

Equity & Access: Address the needs of our community by meeting them where they are and ensuring a sense of wholeness and belonging.

Live our Values: Stay true to our core values of balance, integrity, curiosity, unity and excellence. Especially in these challenging times, create a space that is welcoming and safe for all community members.

Flexibility: Prepare for the uncertainty of the moment through nimble processes and protocols that are responsive to the broader environment.

The School Day: What You Need to Know

Heath & Safety

COVID Testing

Daily COVID screen via RUVNA

Parents and students are responsible for a morning health screening through a link that will be sent via text every morning at 5 a.m. By 7 a.m., all families must click on the link and complete the screen, which includes your student's temperature.

If your child has no symptoms of illness, you will receive a QR code that can be shown on a mobile device or a print-out at drop-off. If your child has symptoms, he or she will fail the screen and will receive a call from your divisional Nurse after 7:30 a.m. Children with failed screens must stay home from school.

Please complete the screen every morning. Children with incomplete screens will not be given access to the campus.

Details on how to use the Ruvna screen can be found on our COVID-19 Daily Screen FAQs below (login required).

Covid-19 daily screen FAQ

Attendance

If your child will be absent, or will be late for any reason, please:

Grammar School: notify the student's teacher(s) via email or voicemail.

Middle School and Prep School: email the Assistant to the Director for your division as early as possible.

If your child has failed the Ruvna screen, stay home. You will receive a follow-up call from a nurse after 7:30 a.m.

Travel-related quarantine

physical distancing

Class schedules and space configurations have been devised to ensure that all individuals on campus will maintain at least six feet of physical separation during instruction. In small spaces where such distancing is not possible (e.g., elevators), reduced occupancy and physical barriers will be used and face coverings will be required. Signage will also be used to help maintain appropriate social distancing. Faculty and staff will coach students to maintain proper social distancing on an ongoing basis.

Face Coverings and Physical barriers

Face coverings will be required at all times in classrooms -- but your child will be given opportunities for mask breaks, as well as time to remove masks during snacks and lunch. Your child may wear any non-gaiter style mask -- that is, the mask must be fitted to the face. If a child needs a new mask during the school day, CGPS will provide one.

When masks are off, each student will be provided with a transparent, tri-fold desktop barrier.

Nurse's Office Protocols

CGPS has instituted new nurse's office protocols to maximize health and safety. These new procedures have been carefully considered by our nurses, our school pediatrician and the outside medical experts on our COVID-19 Task Force.

Any student who needs to visit the nurse for suspected COVID-19 symptoms during the school day will be evaluated by the nurse, and may be administered rapid COVID-19 and Influenza A + B tests. Parents and caregivers will be called as soon as the child is on the way to the isolation room to pick up the child from School: no child with suspected COVID-19 symptoms will be sent back to class after a visit to the isolation room. When parents arrive, the nurse will escort the child outside of the building to meet them and give the parents further instructions.

Your Division Director will provide specific details about nurse's office protocols for their division.

Contact tracing

Contract tracing is a crucial tool in combating the pandemic. CGPS's three designated contact tracers, who have been trained by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, will be responsible for identifying exposure to potential COVID-19 cases. They will communicate their findings to the Division Directors and Head of School who will determine the best course of action for the School. Please note that any positive COVID-19 case must be reported to the City's Board of Health.

What if my child feels sick?

If your child feels sick before leaving home for School, please keep your child home until symptoms subside. Please also contact the school nurse with your child's symptoms.

If your child feels sick at School, he or she will be taken to the nurse's office, where the nurse will determine whether the child needs to have a rapid COVID-19 test administered. If that is the case, you will be called to pick up your child from School.

What if my child needs to be picked up due to illness?

What if my child tests positive for COVID-19?

If your child tests positive for COVID-19, you must notify the School. The School will consult with the Department of Health on the next steps. The School will advise as to testing requirements for a return to campus. During the quarantine period, if your child feels well enough to engage in learning, he or she can participate in class via live streaming (in the MS or PS) and remote learning (in the GS).

What if the school has a positive case?

what if school has to close?

If the School has to close, parents will be notified by the Head of School. Instructions about pick-up will be included in the Head of School's communications.

In accordance with City and State guidelines, should the School have to close, all classes will move to distance learning immediately (the subsequent school day). Division Directors will engage their teams to communicate with students, families, faculty and staff to ensure a smooth transition to online learning. Class schedules have been devised to allow for delivery of instruction either in-person or online without disruption or delay.

Return to campus after closure

Campus Life

Staggered drop-off and pick-up

Transportation

Food Service

Cleaning & Hygiene

High-traffic and high-touch areas of School are cleaned by a dedicated team 3-4 times per day. Deep cleaning and disinfection occur at the end of each school day. Hygiene, cleaning and disinfection protocols at the School are aligned with CDC guidelines. All materials used are in keeping with the guidelines of the DOH and the CDC.

Specialized areas like nurse's offices and the adjacent isolation rooms will have a deep cleaning every night and, as needed, during school hours. Isolation rooms will be cleaned according to CDC-approved processes and using CDC-approved cleaning and disinfecting materials. Cleaning crew will wear PPE when cleaning.

Classrooms will be equipped with ample cleaning supplies.

common areas

CGPS Athletics

The winter season will begin on November 30. The first week of the season will be fully remote. Starting on Dec. 7, for a select few sports, we will be offering some in-person meetings as they correspond to your group (sky/navy).

All in-person meetings will be small groups with modified play and will require the use of face masks, social distancing, and frequent hand washing.

Here is a list of all sports being offered for the winter season.

Virtual Sports (All meetings will be online)

7th & 8th-grade Coed Winter Track

7th & 8th-grade Coed Fitness

9th - 12th-grade Coed Strength & Conditioning

9th - 12th-grade Coed Swim

9th - 12th-grade Boys Ice Hockey

Hybrid Sports (Some meetings will be online and some will be in person)

9th - 12th-grade Coed Winter Track

9th - 12th-grade Girls Basketball

9th - 12th-grade Boys Basketball

Students interested in participating must sign up by 5 p.m. on Friday, November 20. Complete schedules with days, times, and locations to follow. Student athletes will not be allowed to participate without completed athletics forms on file.

updated winter team schedules

required athletics forms

Extracurriculars

Before & After Care

Teaching & Learning

Grammar School

Balancing our belief that younger learners benefit greatly from in-person instruction with a thoughtful, deliberate approach to reopening the School, the Grammar School began the school year in remote learning and then transitioned to in-person learning five days per week.

Following CDC’s health and safety guidelines, Grammar School students will attend classes in small cohorts. CGPS will accommodate those families who prefer a fully remote learning option.

Middle School Grade 5

Middle school grades 6-7

6th and 7th grade students will be assigned a color (Navy or Sky) designating which days they will report to School. Navy will come to School on Mondays and Wednesdays; Sky will come to School on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with each group attending in person on alternating Fridays.

CGPS accommodates those families who prefer a fully distance-learning option. Those students are able to attend School remotely by live stream.

Prep School

Prep School students attend School on a hybrid schedule. Specifically, for any given Prep School class, a portion of the students will be on campus in a physical classroom and the remaining students connect to that physical classroom from home remotely. 8th through 12th grade students are assigned a color (Navy or Sky) designating which days they report to School. Navy attends School on Mondays and Wednesdays; Sky attends School on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with each group attending in person alternating Fridays.

CGPS accommodates those families who prefer a fully distance-learning option. Those students are able to attend School remotely by live stream.

Live Streaming

CGPS accommodates families who prefer a fully distance-learning option.

In the Grammar School, those students are able to attend School with other students who are also choosing a fully remote-learning experience.

In the Middle and Prep Schools, students who wish to learn entirely from home attend on-site and hybrid classes by connecting to the physical classroom remotely via Zoom.

Technology

faculty professional development

The summer period is usually a time for our faculty to dive into professional development activities, and this past summer was no exception. In particular, faculty members have focused on mastering the Zoom platform, teaching from a hybrid classroom set-up and creating more engaging online and project-based learning experiences. In addition, there is a school-wide focus on diversity, equity and inclusion this year, which this summer has included reading Blind Spot: Hidden Biases of Good People and attending a day-long workshop with an outside diversity consultant. This important work is a top priority and will be ongoing throughout this school year.

Community & Wellness

Social-Emotional Well-Being

The foundation of a CGPS educational experience is social-emotional well-being.

The Grammar School is hosting grade-banded parent talks, focused on health, safety and emotional well-being. We discuss the impact of COVID-19 on families, children and school communities, review health and safety precautions and discuss social emotional considerations. It is our hope that we can partner together to support our children, while building a clear, shared understanding of our safety procedures and health precautions.

In the Middle School, we remain firmly focused on creating safe (virtual) spaces, establishing warm, supportive community connections and encouraging meaningful conversations. Our Student Advisory and Meeting Class programming is central to supporting this effort. Within these forums, our students work to build a strong emotional vocabulary and to develop critical skills for effective coping, social problem-solving and communication. In addition, psychologist Dr. Tracey Leigh Murray and Nurse Sue Redgen are working collaboratively to provide support to our community as a whole, and to highlight self-care as we continue to adjust to new medical information, safety protocols and ongoing shifts in our daily routines.

In the Prep School, students have ongoing meetings with their Deans, who are focused on their students' academic and emotional life. Our counseling team goes into grade-level classes in an effort to know all students; the Issues curriculum has been expanded to include COVID-related concerns.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Throughout the planning process for the reopening of School, we have worked to ensure that all students have access to a whole and consistent educational experience and that all students feel a sense of belonging and connection to the School. Particular care has been taken to ensure that all students have access to the equipment they need to fully participate in the program, in whichever form it takes. In addition, all students have access to their teachers and specialists outside of their scheduled class times for extra help as needed.

visitor policy

Visiting the campus is strictly limited. Visitors, including parents/guardians, will generally not be admitted to campus buildings. Exceptions are limited to essential delivery workers and those with express approval from a Division Director, Nurse or the Head of School. Parents must have a pre-scheduled appointment to be welcomed on campus. We expect those exceptions to be rare. All visitors will be required to have their temperatures taken at the reception desk and be logged in to the School’s security system, which is accessible at every entry point.