Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update & Reminders – January 15, 2021

Happy New Year and Happy Aloha Friday Saint Mark Parents!

I hope and pray you all enjoyed a wonderful holiday break.  I’m happy to report that the students seem to have adjusted nicely to life back at school and have picked up where they left off in terms of COVID-19 preventative measures.   I am writing with the latest updates & reminders. 

COMMUNITY CONDITIONS 
The current numbers (which are available on the Hawaii Data Collaborative) have increased since before Christmas but the good news is that they seem to have stabilized and decreased a bit in the past week.  Let’s all please do our part to keep ourselves safe and prevent the community numbers from spiking again.

Current Numbers
The 7-day state average of reported daily new cases is 154 (111 on O`ahu) and the 7-day state average of the positivity rate is 2.8% (3.4% on O`ahu). 

December 17 Numbers
The 7-day state average of reported daily new cases is 117 (89 on O`ahu) and the 7-day state average of the positivity rate is 2.4% (3.1% on O`ahu). 

IMPACT/ALERT LEVELS
The state of Hawai`i is at impact level YELLOW (Act with Care – Minor Disruption) of its Reopening Navigator; the City and County of Honolulu is in TIER 2 (ORANGE) of its Honolulu Reopening Strategy; and Saint Mark is at level GREEN in its Reopening Campus Plan.

VACCINATIONS (NOW AVAILABLE FOR EDUCATORS)
Now that the COVID-19 vaccination is being distributed in Hawai`i and educators have been classified as prioritized essential workers, it’s important that we understand the science of the vaccine and do all we can to support its distribution.  I am fortunate to have just received the vaccination myself and am now on a quest to encourage others to do the same.

I realize there is a certain amount of fear and uncertainty surrounding the COVID vaccination which seems to stem primarily from the fact that the vaccine is very new and was produced so quickly.  Fear aside, it’s important to look at the science and realize that vaccines are in fact safe and that the new COVID-19 vaccine is no exception.  For those not familiar with the science behind the COVID vaccine, it uses messenger RNA (mRNA) in a brilliant and elaborate biochemical process that I personally find fascinating.  This process (which is explained in the videos below) safely signals our bodies to create (and remember) an immune response that will destroy the COVID-19 virus should we ever be exposed in the future.

Here are two very good videos that explain the vaccines and the science behind them. The first video is a short 4 minute animated overview of the science of the vaccine that I encourage all to watch.  The second video is a detailed and more complex 45 minute explanation of how the vaccine was manufactured, how it was tested, and how it works in our bodies.  This video is for those who are particularly interested in the specifics of the vaccine and its functionality.
1st video – Quick and easy
2nd video – Very Detailed explanation

Currently, the Pfizer version is available on island, and we expect that the Moderna version will be available in the near future. The only significant difference between these two is the Pfizer booster is taken 3 weeks after the initial shot whereas the Moderna booster is at 4 weeks.

We are blessed to live in an exciting time of emerging modern genomics, and I hope you will consider getting the vaccine as it becomes available.  More vaccination information to follow.

READY TO PIVOT BACK to DISTANCE LEARNING
Saint Mark Lutheran School remains very attentive to the fluidity of this pandemic and will continue to carefully monitor the daily data.  While we will not be overly reactive to expected variance in community conditions, we need to be ready to quickly pivot back (cohorts or larger groups) to distance learning should a student or staff member test positive or community conditions dramatically worsen again.  

Mahalo for your continued patience and commitment in these challenging times and please do not hesitate to contact the school office should you have any questions.

Mahalo, Blessings and Stay Safe this Martin Luther King Jr. Day Weekend,

David Gaudi
Head of School