Blueprint for Fall 2020

List of 10 items.

• Safety Protocols and Measures

  • Implement a consistent, daily screening procedure
    
  • Expect face coverings for everyone on campus
  • Encourage and reinforce behaviors that prevent the spread of COVID-19 such as frequent hand-washing, physical-distancing, and remaining home when sick
  • Designate two campus sick spaces to isolate ill students during the school day
  • Design and post signs and other messages throughout campus to clearly communicate the appropriate protocols and procedures to follow when someone is at school
  • Offer extensive training to faculty, staff, and students
  • Purchase equipment and other resources to support these safety measures
  • Clean, sanitize, and disinfect all spaces daily
  • Modify and rearrange classrooms and other learning spaces to enable social distancing while continuing to offer interactive class experiences.

• Modified Campus

  We will utilize all of our larger buildings as learning spaces, including the Chapel, the Library, the Gym, and our beautiful outdoor spaces when weather permits. The Task Force has mapped how masked students will travel from classroom to classroom while minimizing contact but allowing them to move so they remain active. Students will not be confined to a single room or isolated with a small cohort. By following these procedures, students will be able to safely interact with other students and faculty during the day, which is an essential aspect of a healthy educational experience.

• A Wide-Ranging Academic and Extracurricular Program

  York aims to provide a learning environment where students explore new interests, focus on learning, and participate, where practical, in a valuable array of extracurricular activities. We are offering;
  
  

  • Modifying our master schedule to imitate a normal course load and class rotation for our students
  • Prioritizing community building and extra-curricular activities
  • Preserving a weekly late start Wednesday
  • Emphasizing safe human interaction such as collaboration, discussion, and small group participation when on campus while teaching the key skills and knowledge in each discipline
  • Crafting a predictable two-week academic and extracurricular cycle for students and families

• A Flexible, Hybrid Program

  We are designing a schedule that can be used on or off campus, in the event that the county orders schools to shelter in place anytime in the fall. We believe it is essential for us to be able to easily toggle between an on-campus experience and distance learning. Of course, we intend to offer our program on campus in the fall. The strength of York School resides in the relationships it builds with each other in the classrooms, on the commons, on the athletic fields, and on performance stages. However, if forced into distance learning, we want to transfer as many of these school strengths to our students’ off-campus experiences by offering the same schedule of activities. Likewise, for families of students who for health or other reasons choose to learn from home, we want to ensure connectedness and continuity of high-quality learning.

• Committed to Excellent Teaching Toward an Exceptional Student Experience

  York's faculty have always been committed to professional development and a robust process of continuous improvement. As a member of the One Schoolhouse consortium of schools, for years York has been exploring and readying itself for online and hybrid learning. 

  
  This summer we will deepen our commitment to exceptional teaching and learning as our entire faculty and academic administrative team will complete a comprehensive multi-week professional development course in hybrid learning, so we can ensure the best possible student experience for the 2020-2021 school year. York School is the only school in the Monterey Bay area that will complete this highly sought after professional development course.

• Focusing on Connectedness and Well-Being

  York recognizes that adolescence is a critical time in a student’s maturation and it is natural for emotions that stem from the pandemic and distance learning to vary widely; therefore, we are prioritizing wellness. 

  
  

  Our approach to learning promotes students’ wellness in a number of ways, including reducing stress and anxiety; providing opportunities for coping with stress; creating opportunities to engage in joyful experiences with peers and teachers; reducing homework load; providing more time to complete homework and study during the day; providing opportunity to experience music and clubs; providing late start days for increased sleep, personal time, down time and family time; ensuring a balance of activities.

  
  

  We recognize that lowering stress and anxiety at this time may lead to higher student engagement.

   

  Above all, we are fostering a climate of connection, care, and balance that is so critical to student health and well-being right now.

• Building Community and Social Emotional Learning

  Research tells us that adolescent brains literally grow, or undergo positive changes, during social interactions. We also know that social-emotional intelligence and awareness are essential to success in the 21st century. 

  
  

  Our 2020-2021 programs afford students dedicated time for clubs, allowing for deepening interactions around mutual interests, as well as time to practice leadership skills. Maintaining PATH, our advisory period, as an opportunity to go deeply into discussions on topics of character, ethics, life skills, and goal setting remains a priority. Students have ample study time during which they can engage in group work, meet with teachers, or work independently. Through this experience, students have the opportunity to develop time management skills that will serve them well in college and beyond. In addition, they will have room for more essential personal time, down time, and family time later in the day.

  
  

  Grade level deans lead regular class meetings, track student progress, host parent meetings, and communicate regularly with families. Our Dean of Students is available for 1:1 sessions and to provide expert advice as to how students can best cope and manage their social, emotional maturation.  

  
  Faculty PATH sherpas lead regular advisory meetings for small multi-grade cohorts of students. Our Academic Coach continues to provide targeted support so students can find academic success.

• The Gold Standard of College Counseling

  In the fall, York School will continue to offer a gold standard college admissions program: extensive and individualized support for students and families. The Director of College Counseling will continue to offer grade level specific college counseling sessions. Individual and family meetings will continue, and the always valuable Pathways 12 will be available for seniors throughout the first semester. As the landscape for college admissions has evolved quickly during this time, the Director of College Counseling will continue to monitor and communicate changes in standardized testing (AP, SAT, ACT, PSAT), financial aid, admissions requirements, and institutional hardiness to students and families. York School’s college counseling support will continue to be all embracing, up to date, and individualized.

• A Smart, Healthy Schedule

  Our 2020-2021 modified schedule, informed by a convergence of research on how adolescents best learn, features an intentional balance of academic and community time and supports York’s mission guided by the following values: 

  
  

  STUDENT HEALTH AND WELLBEING

  The schedule prioritizes sleep (8:30 start time), a rotation of classes in the schedule, PATH advisory, study periods, physical fitness, music and arts during the day.

  
  

  A BALANCE OF PROCESS AND CONTENT-ORIENTED LEARNING EXPERIENCES 

  The schedule features academic learning periods emphasizing process and content in accordance with recommendations from educational research.

  
  

  THE IMPORTANCE OF ARTS, ACADEMICS, AND ATHLETICS

  The schedule ensures continuity of all programmatic experiences 

  
  

  COLLABORATION TIME

  The schedule prioritizes collaboration time for students, teachers, and families

   

• Safe, Reliable Technology and Creative Teaching

  York recognizes that students learn best through a variety of creative teaching methods, activities, and assessments. 

  
  

  York’s forward-thinking faculty is teaching with a thoughtful use of technology. We ensure all teachers and students have the hardware, software, and training needed to experience a personal and active learning experience. We are maintaining a safe and effective learning environment with innovative technologies. 

  
  

  Our classes feature inspiring and creative digital assignments. Students develop engaging research presentations, create music videos, and design digital art using algebraic equations. 

  Experts from around the world, including a NASA astronaut, a Google researcher, a New York Times journalist, and others, join our classrooms to dialog with students. 

  
  Our community continues to use use breakthrough technology to help serve our broader community in need. Students and teachers collaborate to design a variety of personal protective equipment currently in use at our local hospitals. Some students are creating hand-sewn masks for Meals on Wheels, while others connect with our increasingly isolated elderly population by conducting and archiving interviews using StoryCorps.