As we open the school year in August and until circumstances merit revisiting this policy, all students and all teachers will wear masks indoors, including inside classrooms. Teachers may wear face shields either as a substitute for the mask or in addition to the mask only while teaching. Students are NOT permitted to wear face shields as a substitute for a mask. It is the responsibility of the family to provide masks for their children every day. The school has a limited supply of masks for emergency situations. Other FA employees will also be expected to wear masks while on campus.
The wearing of masks, while inconvenient and uncomfortable, dramatically reduces the chances of a “high-risk exposure” as defined by the CDC in its 6-15-48 rule. High-risk exposure is defined as anyone who has been less than six feet apart for upwards of 15 minutes with someone with COVID-19, including up to 48 hours prior to symptoms presenting themselves. Student desks will be stationed six feet apart in every classroom, but invariably over the course of a period, a day, a month, or a semester, students will unknowingly or unintentionally violate the six-foot standard. Wearing cloth masks more safely allows for brief incidents of closer contact and decreases the need for extensive contact tracing within any given classroom.
Our plan is designed to support uninterrupted education for healthy students and timely recovery for ill students. Simply put, mask wearing increases the likelihood of continuously operating our on-campus schooling option.
Mask wearing in all classrooms by all students also better protects teachers from contracting the virus. Decreasing the health risks of faculty is incredibly important because some teachers are in a high-risk category and/or have family members in a high-risk category. Their level of exposure is significantly higher teaching as many students as they teach. The pool of quality substitutes is shallow, so if multiple teachers contract the virus at the same time, the school will be challenged. Keeping our teachers virus-free is a pursuit definitely worth the inconvenience.
All students and all teachers are required to wear masks to every indoor gathering with the exception of lunch, even if the six-foot separation standard can be enacted.
All students and teachers need to wear masks in transitional moments between classes, especially in the hallways of buildings, but even outdoors unless a six foot separation is guaranteed.
When outside, students do not need to wear masks when interacting more than six feet apart. This includes lunchtime, recess, physical education classes, and any designated “mask free” opportunities allocated for students to responsibly unmask.
The large tented areas are ideal for events or activities that would be enhanced in a sheltered space from either sun or rain; but again, “mask breaks” under the tents require six feet of separation as well. Teachers are encouraged to conduct classes outside either under the tent or anywhere else on campus that is conducive to imparting their lessons. Masks do not have to be worn in outside classes if students remain six feet apart during the class.
Lower School students will need to keep a plastic baggie in which to store their masks when not in use. Middle and Upper School students will be trained on how to properly clean and store masks.
Students are responsible for providing their own masks and should arrive on campus each morning wearing them. Mask guidelines for students and adults are as follows:
- Disposable and cloth reusable masks are acceptable. Cloth masks should be frequently washed.
- Face coverings attached behind the ears and head as well as tubular masks (e.g. neck gaiters) are permitted.
- Solid color masks are permitted. Masks with print, stripe, or geometric patterns are permitted. Examples of print patterns are floral, plaid, paisley, polka dot, etc.
- Masks with the FA logo are permitted and are being sold by the FA Booster Club. Click here to view images of the masks and click here to order the masks online.
- Masks with collegiate logos are permitted.
- Masks with other branding, graphics, text, or logos are NOT permitted.
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When appropriate, teachers may wear face shields while teaching so that students who have auditory issues may better process a teacher’s lesson. Students are NOT permitted to wear face shields as a substitute for a mask. The CDC does not recommend use of face shields for normal everyday activities or as a substitute for cloth face coverings. Click here for more information.
For children who have not regularly worn masks this summer, it is recommended that they transition to gradually wearing masks between now and the start of school. Again, no student may exit a vehicle in the morning without a mask.
All visitors to campus must check in with Catherine Holt in the Administration Building or Ashley Lavallee in Corn Hall, have their temperature taken, and must wear a mask. The mask must remain on until they return to their car to leave campus. This includes visiting parents, parent volunteers, tutors, community coaches, and vendors.