Last week Lima Christian School submitted its re-opening plan to the New York State Department of Health (DOH) and the State Education Department (SED). The plan has met or exceeded the public health guidelines provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), DOH and SED. The re-opening plan was designed with recommendations and guidance provided by public health experts at both the federal and state level, as well as education experts at the State Office of Religious and Independent Schools (SORIS) and Lima Christian’s Board, Administration, Faculty and Staff. This week, the school anticipates receiving final approval from Governor Andrew Cuomo (D-NY) for a September 8, 2020 re-opening. (Parents should note that this is a change from the earlier announced date of September 2, 2020, allowing more time for teacher orientation and to maintain a consistent calendar with other area districts.)
Mr. John Reese, the Principal of Lima Christian School, said, “Prior to the completion and submission of the plan, parental input was sought to make certain that our return to campus met not only the mandatory public safety measures, but also the expectations of our parents.” Polling, with representation from every grade level and a vast majority of current LCS families, conducted between July 17-24, 2020, yielded the following results:
- Over 97% of Lima Christian School parents reported feeling either “extremely comfortable” (31.43%), “very comfortable” (34.29%) or “somewhat comfortable” (31.43%) in sending their child(ren) back to LCS this September.
- When asked, “Thinking about instruction this fall, are you most comfortable with: In-person instruction, a combination of in-person instruction and distance or remote learning or all distance or remote learning”, 65.22% of parents chose in-person instruction, 31.88% picked a combination and 2.9% preferred remote-learning only.
- Regarding daily temperature checks of students, faculty and staff, 88.57% of parents were comfortable with this level of health monitoring.
- Parents were also asked, “Are you comfortable with students being required to wear face masks when they cannot practice social distancing (such as on buses or in the hallways), but not during instructional times?” 77.14% reported that they were “okay with this.”
Mr. Reese stated, “At Lima Christian School, we serve as partners with parents in the education of their children. Accordingly, Lima Christian’s re-opening plan incorporates all of the mandates that the state has listed for a return to campus, but it is also consistent with the concerns and the comfort level of our families.” Reese continued, “As such, alternative, on-line options will be provided for students who may have underlying health conditions or are otherwise hesitant or unable to return to campus.”
To maintain a minimum of six feet of social distancing in each classroom, Lima Christian School will be capping the number of students it can enroll for the 2020-21 Academic Year. Some of those classes are already at or nearing capacity, families considering an LCS education should contact our admissions office as soon as possible,” Reese concluded.
Principal John Reese can be reached at 585.624.3841 ext. 152 or at JReese@LimaChristian.org. Admissions can be reached at Admissions@LimaChristian.org.