Dear Janney Community,

The bulk of my newsletter this evening will provide an update on our reopening planning process.

As I have mentioned in previous communication, DCPS has tasked all schools to form a Reopen Community Corps – a group of parents, teachers, and staff who will focus on providing recommendations on the next phase of our reopening plan.  The LSAT is serving as our Reopen Community Corps.  We hosted our second meeting this evening and took a closer look at the possible instructional models that could be used to begin to return students to the building for in-person learning.  A high-level overview of the models can be viewed here.

It is important to note that the safety protocols and procedures, including the adult to student ratios in classrooms, has not changed since the Advisory 2 in-person learning plans were released.  PK and K in-person classrooms are still capped at ten students and two teachers per class; 1^st-5^th grade in-person classes are capped at eleven students and one teacher per class. These ratios automatically limit the number of children who can be in our building at any given time regardless of how many teachers and staff are able to report in-person.  We also have additional safety considerations such as limiting movement in hallways, limiting the amount of students using specific restrooms, and ensuring we are able to rotate students safely through our outdoor spaces.  I share this information because our physical building capacity will not be able to meet the demand for in-person learning from our community for Advisory 3.

Thank you to the parents and caregivers who took the recent DCPS family survey.  I am linking a high-level overview of the data we gathered here.  Over 60% of responding families indicated a preference for a return to in-person learning – or roughly 400 of enrolled students.

AP Barnhart and I will host two community reopening information sessions next week that are tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, December 16 and Thursday, December 17.  We are in the process of finalizing the time for both meetings; a recording will be shared following the meeting.  Please note that we will most likely ask families to engage in another survey or feedback session as we move forward with our reopening planning.  I am committed to exploring ways for students to have the opportunity for in-person interaction at Janney even if we are not able to meet the full demand for in-person learning for Advisory 3.

We begin hosting small groups of students tomorrow at Janney.  We welcome our 5^th grade CARE class for their first day, and we begin to host our 4^th and 5^th grade outdoor lunch club groups.  We will host over one hundred 4^th and 5^th graders in small groups across the week and are excited to pilot this opportunity with the hope of including more grade levels and students as we move forward.

Beginning tomorrow, visitors must make an appointment to visit Janney.  We are limiting the amount of people who enter the building each day.  Additionally, the playground will be closed from 8:00a-3:30p Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays and on Wednesdays from 8:00a-1:30p.

Thank you for your continued support and patience as we navigate this challenging time.

Best Regards,

Alysia Lutz, Principal