Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update & Reminders – March 12, 2021

Happy Aloha Friday Saint Mark Parents!

I hope and pray you all are doing well.  I am writing with the latest updates as we head into spring break. 

COMMUNITY CONDITIONS 
The current `Oahu numbers (which are available on the Hawaii Data Collaborative) have continued to remain low for the past two weeks.  Let’s all please do our part to keep ourselves safe and continue to keep these metrics low as we enjoy the spring break. 

Current Numbers
The 7-day state average of reported daily new cases is 51 (26 on O`ahu) and the 7-day state average of the positivity rate is 1.2% (1.0% on O`ahu). 

February 26 Numbers
The 7-day state average of reported daily new cases is 47 (25 on O`ahu) and the 7-day state average of the positivity rate is 1.2% (1.0% on O`ahu). 

February 12 Numbers
The 7-day state average of reported daily new cases is 43 (31 on O`ahu) and the 7-day state average of the positivity rate is 0.9% (1.0% on O`ahu). 

February 4 Numbers
The 7-day state average of reported daily new cases is 85 (60 on O`ahu) and the 7-day state average of the positivity rate is 2.0% (2.4% 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 now in TIER 3 (YELLOW) of its Honolulu Reopening Strategy; and Saint Mark is at level GREEN in its Reopening Campus Plan.

NOT the TIME to LET DOWN OUR GUARD
On behalf of the faculty and staff of Saint Mark, I want to thank our families for all of the sacrifice and patience it’s taken to get us to this point.  Because of your hard work and diligence in following the guidelines and staying safe, we are just 11 weeks away from successfully completing an amazing school year in which we have been able to give all of our students an exceptional on-campus educational experience with minimal interruptions.

Now the big challenge is to remain vigilant!  As Hawaii’s COVID numbers continue to decline and vaccination rates go up, it is easy to grow complacent feeling that the threat has significantly subsided. However, the reality is that the threat still exists.  In fact, earlier this week a fellow school head told me that one of his teachers had just tested positive for COVID-19.  The good news is that because of their strict adherence to their safety protocols (which are the same as ours), there was no on-campus transmission and all students tested negative.

This anecdote is a great reminder that the possibility of having COVID positive people on Hawai`i campuses remains very real and that we must continue our steadfast commitment to all of the safety protocols (daily health screenings, PPE, hand hygiene & sanitation, distancing, ventilation, cohorting, etc.) that have kept our campus safe to this point.

Please reinforce with your children the importance of these safety measures as we move into the home stretch of this school year.  Mahalo!

SPRING BREAK OUT-OF-STATE TRAVEL
For those families who are planning to travel out-of-state over the Spring break, we kindly request that all parents complete the Travel Form to notify us of travel plans and return dates.  As has been shared previously, our school policy requires all returning out-of-state travels and household visitors from out-of-state to get a negative result from an additional test taken a minimum of 5 days after landing in Hawai`i. So, if you are traveling, please consider returning to Hawai`i no later than March 22nd which will hopefully give you enough time to take and receive test results before school resumes on Monday, March 29th.  

We had a number of students who had to miss multiple days in January due to mainland travel, and as we are quickly nearing the end of the school year, we would prefer that the students not miss any class time.

POSSIBLE REVISIONS TO TRAVEL POLICIES 
While Saint Mark does not currently have any plans to revise its out-of-state travel policies, we will continue to closely monitor the latest developments throughout the community as more people become vaccinated and will consider revisions that reflect with the latest updates and guidelines from government and health officials. 

LET’S VACCINATE
Saint Mark continues to encourage all those eligible to get the COVID-19 vaccine to please do so.  We understand that getting vaccinated is our best chance of getting Hawai`i’s kids and teachers fully back-to-school and resuming more normal/traditional school activities.

In the meantime, we will all continue to wear face masks and face shields during the school day and follow other guidelines according to our policies.  As I am sure you understand, we don’t want to create an environment where the virus is more easily spread within the student body and then potentially taken home to families.

DISTANCE LEARNERS
We need all families who participated in our Case Specific Distance Learning program in the 3rd quarter to confirm their plans for the 4th quarter with their respective teacher(s) and Mrs. Kaha`ulelio if they haven’t already done so.  

DAVE’S ICE CREAM FUNDRAISER 
You should have received an informational parent letter and order form earlier this week detailing our all new Dave’s Ice Cream Fundraiser.  With the forced cancellation of our all school annual fundraiser (Benefit Gala/Family Fun Fair), we are excited to have partnered with Hawaii’s own Dave’s Ice Cream in support of our important Financial Aid and technology programs.

We are selling two pints of Dave’s Ice Cream for $10 with each family being asked to sell 10 orders (20 pints) for a total of $100.  Pints can be mixed or matched (five delicious flavors to choose from) but must be sold in pairs. The sale runs to April 7 with pickup on April 24.  Thank you for your support!

SPIRIT WEEK FUN
The students, faculty and staff have enjoyed an exciting 2021 Spirit Week!  It’s nice to see that we can still have some fun and show our class & school spirit in the midst of COVID-19. If you haven’t done so already, please check out the Spirit Week photos on the Saint Mark Instagram page.  Below are a few photos below from Mis-Match Monday, Sports Day and Class Color Day. 

READY TO PIVOT BACK to DISTANCE LEARNING
Saint Mark Lutheran School continues to remain 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, commitment and compliance in these challenging times and please do not hesitate to let us know should you have any questions.

Mahalo, Blessings and Stay Safe & Fun Spring Break,

David Gaudi
Head of School