Hello all,
Thank you all for your goodwill the last few weeks. When we made the decision to move to virtual learning on March 11, there was a great deal of uncertainty on the best way to deal with COVID-19. Since then, we have seen a great mobilization–locally, nationally, and internationally–to help slow the spread of the disease.
Today I want to share that Cary Academy will do our part in these efforts by continuing to teach and learn virtually for the foreseeable future. While there is a chance we may find opportunities to gather together in May or June, it is best if we all set expectations right now to finish the trimester virtually.
Let me follow up on my video above with some more detail:
- The campus will remain closed until further notice. Tech support will remain available by appointment (or virtually).
- All in-person, school-related trips, activities, and athletics scheduled through May 15 will be canceled. Where possible, some events may take on a new life virtually.
- Regularly scheduled school holidays will be observed as normal (Spring Break April 10 and Memorial Day May 25).
- Pending final approval from the state, all previously scheduled end-of-year standardized testing, with the exception of AP exams, will be canceled. The College Board is still considering options for testing this year, including at-home exams.
- The Upper School Discovery Term and the Work Experience Program will be canceled, and that time will be given back to T3 classes to allow coursework to be spread more smoothly.
- While we do not know the status of events and celebrations usually scheduled at the end of May and early June, we should be ready for some postponements.
Despite these changes, we do expect to provide the necessary curricular programming to complete the school year by June 5. We expect that students who complete their work this term will be prepared for success in their next-level courses in the 2020-2021 school year. In addition, we will be looking for ways to add other important opportunities for community building and social/emotional growth into our virtual programming.
To best operate in this new reality, both divisions have been gathering feedback on potential modifications to the schedule in the coming days or weeks. As we continue to gather feedback and assess progress, you can expect other changes over the course of the trimester as well.
I am sorry to have to share this news with you all, but I am confident that learning will continue in familiar and unexpected ways and that our community will emerge stronger and more resilient than ever.
Best,
Dr. Ehrhardt