COVID-19 Updates
Important Forms
-
Please complete this form to consent to your student being tested for COVID-19.
-
All parents and students over the age of 18 must sign this waiver: Health Screening and Liability Waiver.This form is also available in Family portal under the School Heading, then web forms on the left side. This is very important!
-
COVID Exposure / Potential Exposure Notification Form:Please complete this form to provide notification to WCHS of a person who has been on campus who:
- Is feeling ill with COVID Symptoms
- Been exposed or potentially exposed to COVID
- Tested positive for COVID
Protocols & Mitigation
Students with a last name of A through L enter through the front, main entrance.
Students with a last name of M through Z enter through the entrance next to the science labs.
This is for the 9:00 AM drop off only. Students who are dropped off early, or who come at other times throughout the day, may enter through the main entrance.
Upon Entrance:
- Students must be wearing a face covering. If a student forgets theirs, they may ask for one from the front desk where we have ample stock.
- Students will be visually screened for signs of illness.
- Students may be asked how they are feeling, and when warranted, we may take their temperature.
- Students should be prepared to have both hands sprayed with hand sanitizer.
- Students are to go directly to their class without lingering in the hallways.
Locker use is not permitted at this time.
- Passing periods between classes are three minutes.
- Hallways will have directional arrows indicating the flow of traffic.
- We are asking that students do not use the restrooms during the passing period, as they will not have enough time.
- Teachers will allow students to use the restroom during class time and will be released one student at a time.
- Restrooms can safely have up to five students in them and still maintain appropriate social distancing.
Here is the process for Westside Christian High School Lunch:
-
Freshman, Sophomore, Junior grade levels will rotate weekly to have lunch in the commons together.
-
The other 2 grade levels will be divided among 9 classrooms. There is a sign-up form for students to reserve their spot.
-
Students can preorder meals via Sign Up Genius or bring a lunch from home. Please be aware preorders close 2 days in advance.
-
Lunch is cashless. Purchased meals will be charged to FACTS Prepaid account. (You can see instructions in Family Portal)
-
All meals will be delivered directly to each student's classroom or distributed in the commons.
-
Microwaves will be available in the hallway and commons for students to use.
-
Storage for lunchboxes will be available by the science rooms and in the commons.
-
Seniors have the option of off-campus lunch Monday through Thursday. They will be able to have lunch in the commons if they return to campus early or choose to stay on campus. Seniors must sign release forms available on Family Portal to leave campus.
-
Fridays students will have lunch with our Focus Groups.
For the safety of all, each classroom will have no more than 16 students. If you do not sign-up for a specific classroom, you will be assigned a classroom for the week.
Lunch Offering Updates: Remember to sign-up for lunch here
-
MONDAY: Casa del Pollo. Choice of chicken burrito or three chicken tacos - $12.00
- TUESDAY: Bento. Choice of two salads or Chicken teriyaki and white rice - $8.00
- WEDNESDAY: Costco Pizza. Choice of cheese, pepperoni, or combo - $2.50 per slice.
- THURSDAY: House of Teriyaki. Choice of chicken and Yakisoba noodles, or vegetables and noodles. $11.00 for a full, $8.00 for a half.
- FRIDAY: Jimmy John's. Choice of Turkey or Ham, both with double meat - $11.00 for a full, $8.00 for a half.
Email Updates 2021
Dear Westside Christian Families:
School will resume tomorrow, Tuesday, March 2nd. It will be a Red Day.
Thank you for your understanding about today. We have concluded a thorough contact tracing, and families have been notified via email if their student was potentially exposed. If you did not receive an email, then your student was not exposed and you are free to attend in person classes tomorrow. This is only the second time this year that we have had to shut down school due to a potential Covid exposure risk. As with the last incident, we do not expect this one to produce any major issues due to the effective protocols in place on campus. We will continue to monitor carefully as we proceed through the remainder of the school year, and will keep you apprised of any future problems. With Google classroom, and teacher updates, we will continue to always provide distance learning should another day like this occur.
Some things this week to be reminded of:
- Tomorrow morning is the launch of our new Math lab. Mr. Ball sent an email out on this last Friday. From 8 to 9 AM on Tuesday and Wednesday of each week, we will be providing free math tutoring. Students just need to show up and we will take it from there. Please take advantage of this opportunity.
- Holly Migas and Delia Coker will be available on Tuesday and Friday this week, since we missed today. They will be available for one-on-one or small group emotional and mental support in The Nest from 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM.
- Pastor Jarin Oda will be here during lunch time on Wednesday. Rumor has it, he may even have free pizza with him!
- Wednesday we will be conducting a brief student assembly led by Holly Migas. This will be to debrief the events from last week's tragedy and introduce the strategies for going forward. This will occur right before lunch and students will be asked to simply tune in from their second period classes. Please see your email for the altered Bell Schedule.
That's it for now. Again, I thank you for your patience and support as we forge ahead.
Blessings,
John Hynes
Head of School
SAFETY PROTOCOLS FOR IN PERSON SCHOOL
As I mentioned last week, I would like to share with you the safety protocols we intend to implement for the start of school. The guidelines in the Ready Schools Safe Learners document (here) were updated on Tuesday. We have reviewed these new guidelines and are confident that we can adhere to each requirement that pertains to safety on campus. The first important bit of information is that in order to be fully prepared for the opening of school, we have decided to delay the start by two days. This will provide more time for us to train, clean, and prepare for students full time.
THE FIRST DAY OF THE SECOND SEMESTER WILL BE WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD
I pray this does not create too much of an inconvenience for you, but we really want to make sure we do this right so that future shutdowns are rare if not non-existent. There is a lot of information here, and rest assured we will send reminders, but I wanted to share some key safety protocols so that you can be comfortable about sending your student to school full time next month. Please feel free to respond with any further questions or concerns you may have.
Morning Drop Off:
Because of the nature of the block schedule, it is important to note that very rarely will the entire student body of 194 be on campus all at once. And when they are, it will be for a limited amount of time. Many students have late starts or early dismissals and will be coming and going throughout the day.
We will be asking that for the morning drop off, students with a last name of A through L enter through the front, main entrance, and students with a last name of M through Z enter through the entrance next to the science labs. This is for the 9:00 AM drop off only. Students who are dropped off early, or who come at other times throughout the day, may enter through the main entrance.
Upon entering, students must be wearing a face covering. If a student forgets theirs, they may ask for one from the front desk where we have ample stock. They will be visually screened for signs of illness. They may be asked how they are feeling, and when warranted, we may take their temperature. Students should be prepared to have both hands sprayed with hand sanitizer. They are then to go directly to their class without lingering in the hallways. We are still not able to issue lockers at this time.
Class Time:
Each classroom will be pre-arranged to allow for the required social distancing between students. The rooms are also thoroughly sanitized daily, and surfaces will be sanitized in between each class throughout the day. This will be accomplished by students, who will be issued a paper towel and asked to wipe down their tables after the teacher sprays it. The HVAC system will be providing fresh airflow in every classroom throughout the day. Students should wear their face mask throughout the class time. However, a teacher has discretion to allow the removal of the mask for various purposes. Also, for students who just need a break, the teacher may issue them a face shield to be worn during class. This shield will be theirs to keep should they ask for one.
Passing Periods:
Passing periods between classes will be three minutes. Hallways will have directional arrows indicating the flow of traffic. We are asking that students do not use the restrooms during the passing period, as they will not have enough time. Teachers will allow students to use the restroom during class time and will be released one student at a time. The restrooms can safely have up to five students in them and still maintain appropriate social distancing.
Lunch:
We will be providing lunch service to students who want it. Because of the complexity of this time, we are still ironing out the details. There will be further communication next week regarding how lunchtime protocols will work. There will be opportunities for students to sit with friends of their choosing, as well as their entire grade level throughout the week. We will also be allowing outdoor space as well. More details to follow.
Dismissal:
We are going to ask students to not linger in the halls or other areas on campus at the close of the school day. If they wish to socialize, we will encourage them to do so outside. Students who have after school activities related to Westside Christian may go to the commons while waiting for their activity to begin. Otherwise, we ask that you please arrange to have your student picked up at the end of class if they do not drive.
Other Items:
Should a student demonstrate signs of illness during the day, they will be asked to go to the front office where they will be placed in isolation. We will be working with a company that provides for testing, and a student may be tested at that point. Parents will be communicated with prior to this test administration. The test is a simple nose swab test and produces results within about 15 minutes. If the student is negative, they may return to class if they wish. A positive test will mean they have to leave campus as quickly as possible.
I ask that each family please ardently adhere to the COVID-19 policy we asked you to sign at the start of the school year. This includes making sure that if your student or anyone in the household exhibits signs of illness, to please keep the student at home until there is certainty that the household is COVID-19 free.
Finally, it is our wish that every student will decide to attend in person classes. However, we will definitely respect those who choose to not come to campus due to COVID-19 concerns. Coming soon will be a short form that will need to be filled out for each student who is choosing to stay home. Once this choice is made, we will ask that the student not come to campus at all without prior approval. Teachers are prepared and willing to work with students remotely who make this choice.
I am certain there will be plenty more information in the coming week, but hopefully this is enough for now. Please continue to pray for Westside, as we launch into face-to-face instruction, that we may be safe and that we are able to finish the year strong.
Blessings,
John Hynes
Head of School
We continue to plan for the start of the new semester, and the opportunity to host on site instruction for the entire day. My team and I have devised a schedule that we believe provides for a great deal of safety in both the number of total students who are on campus at any one time, and the amount of transitions each student makes throughout the day, thereby decreasing the chances of exposure. THIS SCHEDULE IS ATTACHED BELOW, and I wish to focus on a few key elements:
You will notice that there is a 9AM start time each day. Our hope is that this will be a welcome addition to the busy schedule of our students and provide for some extra sleep as they focus on their academics in the second semester. While we hope that most students take advantage of this extra time, we understand that for parents this may be an inconvenience. For this reason, we are offering a safe, indoor, supervised opportunity for students to be on campus from 8 to 9 should they need to be dropped off early.
This is a traditional block schedule, with each class meeting every other day for 75 minutes. Meeting classes every other day allows for a great deal of freedom and planning on the part of the student. In addition to a much more effective teaching period, the block schedule enhances the opportunity for students to take control of their week through planning and strategizing on when to complete assignments.
On Fridays, classes are 65 minutes long to allow for chapel and focus groups. Focus groups will view chapel together and then eat lunch together, which not only builds community, but decreases the transition of students going to an alternate location for lunch.
Students with a free period either first or last period, will be allowed to come late or leave early if they choose. This decreases the total number of students on campus at any given time. Should a student have a free period in the middle of the day, we will provide a safe, socially distanced, supervised environment for them to study or complete homework.
It is important to note that the days transition from RED day to BLACK day with different classes on each day. Furthermore, there will never be an instance with back-to-back Red or Black days. This means that Monday, for example, in week one will not be the same as the Monday in week two. The key is to look at this schedule as a two-week transition of classes. The days will of course be posted in Family Portal, but it is imperative that students keep track of which day it is so that they are sure to bring the correct supplies to class each day.
On that note, we are still unable to utilize lockers, so students will need to bring their supplies each day they arrive.
I could overwhelm you with more information regarding this new schedule, but for now, I simply wanted you to take a look at it so as to plan ahead for carpools and such. Individual student schedules have not been completed, so please do not rush to Family Portal to see what your class schedule is.
Here is a timeline of future communications as we roll out the second semester:
Early next week - You will receive detailed information regarding all of the numerous and thorough safety precautions we are undertaking. This will be an extremely safe campus, certainly safer that having students out and about in the community. Both the CDC (Center for Disease Control) and the NIH (National Institute of Health) have claimed that schools are the safest place for students to be during this pandemic. We agree with this and will share with you exactly what we intend to do. Please note, it will take a great deal of cooperation on the part of parents and students to maintain this safety and therefore keep our doors open all semester.
Later next week - Student schedules will be complete. Mr. Ball will be communicating to you when and how to access your schedules. This will provide you ample time to make any changes to your schedule that are necessary.
Also later next week - You will be receiving a detailed email from Ms. Streimer regarding lunch services. We do intend to provide lunch services through local vendors. Due to the nature of eating on campus, this period of time will be highly regulated. Details on how we will conduct the lunch period, and how students may sign up will be sent out at this time.
Most of all, we cannot wait to minister spiritually to the lives of every Westside student in person, all week. Please continue to pray for the safety of each and every individual as we make this major transition to full time education.
Blessings and Peace to you in the New Year,
John Hynes
Head of School
Happy New Year Westside Christian Families!
Our prayer is that the Lord bless you and your family abundantly this year, even now in the first month!
As you recall, when we started this year, we launched a schedule that utilized the Flipped Classroom model while implementing on campus cohorts. This model has allowed us to travel safely through the first semester and continued to allow students to come to campus on a daily basis. On December 23rd, Governor Brown announced that schools are free to make their own plans for re-opening, provided they follow the prescribed safety protocols that were originally set forth in our "Blue-Print for Re-opening." In fact, all safety guidelines established in this protocol have been ardently adhered to all semester and will continue to be followed, even as we open up the school for more full-time education.
Yes, you heard that right - full-time education! We fully intend to re-open, and I would like to share with you our plans:
LEADING UP TO FINALS:
Over the next two weeks (from January 11th to January 21st), we will be conducting intensive on campus study/review sessions for every core course we offer with faculty supervision. Bible is not included in this schedule, as these instructors felt more time was needed for subjects where students may have greater struggles. Should a student wish to have some extra time to prepare for their Bible final, please contact their instructor directly and they will be happy to arrange that.
Given the short period of time we have until the start of the second semester, this is what we figured would be the most effective and least obtrusive way to both benefit students and offer more on-campus opportunities. It has been a challenging semester to say the least, and certainly there are students who have significant gaps in their learning. These sessions will be conducted by the instructor at prescribed times and are an opportunity for students to ask questions, review areas of weakness, and prepare for their finals. No new material will be introduced, and these gatherings are still optional. However, every student, especially those who are struggling in a class, are encouraged to attend one or more throughout these two weeks. Attached is a detailed schedule for when each session will be held. There are no sign-ups necessary, just show up. Faculty have been informed that if the total number of students begins to exceed 18 to 20, they will move their class to an alternative location.
These sessions will occur in the afternoons, following the regularly scheduled cohorts. As such, students are welcome to remain on campus. Please note, we are unable to offer lunch services during these two weeks, so please plan ahead for nutrition. Finally, these are intended for Monday through Thursday each week, and Fridays will remain the same with chapel and focus groups.
SECOND SEMESTER:
In the second semester, starting February 1st, we will be providing full-time education, on campus, all day, all week! Praise the Lord! I hope it feels as good for you to read that as it did for me to type it.
Over the next two weeks, we will be working fervently to contrive a master schedule that best meets the needs of every student. The disruption of the first semester has not come without a few obstacles as to how we should open the school full-time. As such, for now, I can only tell you that we will be open and students will be on campus all day. That said, COVID-19 has not gone away, and still poses a concern, for some more than others. We will continue to maintain a very safe environment, with small class sizes and regular cleaning and disinfecting. I will provide many more details on all of this in the ensuing weeks. Finally, it is our goal to provide some form of lunch service to the students for the second semester. More details on this will follow as well.
We continually pray for your health and safety, and are so blessed that you reciprocate those prayers for our on campus Westside Community. I am looking forward to an exciting and productive second semester.
Many Blessings,
John Hynes
Head of School
Head of School