Dear Valley Catholic families,

I hope you have enjoyed a restful summer and have a few more adventures planned before the 2021-22 school year begins on September 7. We look forward to welcoming your children back to school!

As we shared with families last spring, this year Valley Catholic will be returning to in-person learning, five days per week. A distance learning option will not be offered. In preparation for the new year, our Ready Schools, Safe Learner blueprints have been updated to closely adhere to all Oregon Department of Education guidelines, with the following safety procedures in place:

• Face coverings will be worn indoors at all times by students and adults, both vaccinated and unvaccinated; face coverings are optional outdoors.
• 3 feet of physical distancing will be maintained.
• Students will be kept in stable cohorts in the elementary school and, in the middle and high schools, student interactions will be closely tracked using seating charts, assigned lunch rooms, etc. This will allow for accurate contact tracing in the case of a COVID exposure at school.

Later today, the elementary, middle and high school principals will be communicating with families to share additional safety precautions specific to their school. As you review these safeguards and procedures, you will see that we will be returning to a more normal school routine while at the same time keeping most of last spring’s safety precautions in place. Please note that many factors can impact these plans and know that we, as your school administration, stand ready to adjust our plans/procedures in this ever-changing COVID climate.

I’m sure many of you share my feelings of excitement for the new school year, tempered by concern over the presence of COVID in our local community. As an educator, I know that students learn best in a classroom setting under the guidance of excellent teachers. As an administrator, I have confidence that the lessons we learned last year will support Valley Catholic in continuing to maintain a safe and healthy environment for learning. And I assure you, we will continue to err on the side of caution in every decision we make.

Enjoy the last few weeks of summer, and we’ll see you – in person – on September 7.

Sincerely,

John Matcovich

VCS President