COVID-19: Planning & Preparedness

Thursday, April 2, 2020

Dear Loyola High School Community,

We continue to pray that you and your family are safe during this current coronavirus outbreak.

Today, April 2nd, we have additional information to share with you that relates specifically to our school year and distance learning. The information is as follows:

School Year Update

Governor Whitmer announced today that schools will remain closed for the remainder of the year. In addition, the Archdiocese of Detroit (AOD) has given authority for schools under its jurisdiction to address the length of the school year in a way that best meets the needs of the community it serves (see AOD letter below).

Based on that, the administration of Loyola High School met today and has made the following decision:

Parents, you made a commitment to entrust the education of your student to Loyola High School. Rest assured, all of us at Loyola remain committed to providing a quality, Catholic education in the Jesuit tradition to your child and to all of our young men.
That means, specifically, our distance learning instruction will continue through May 29th.
During this time, students will continue to receive instruction and assignments and are expected to complete their assignments.
To our Seniors specifically, this will be our 10th year in a row of 100% college acceptance. We are immensely proud of you and are committed to providing you with some of the celebratory events for your Senior year. Timelines and calendars are still being worked out. But as updates become available, we will share them with you.

Letter from Archdiocese of Detroit:

Distance Learning

First, an important reminder:

Please make sure your student puts his name on all work completed from his “Learning Packets.” We’ve had several students turning in assignments with no signatures, and teachers are unable to give credit for the assignment. So PLEASE, make sure your student puts his name on every assignment. It’s a good practice for parents to check that the name is on the homework before it’s turned in.

Additionally:

Beginning Monday, April 6th, we will transition to online learning. Teachers and counselors are ready to assist you in this transition.
For some students, “Learning Packets” will still be made available. For those students, we will be contacting the parents directly to arrange drop off and pick up.

Parents, we thank you for all of your hard work, cooperation and dedication throughout these challenging times. We are continually grateful for the trust you have placed in us and remain steadfast in our commitment to care for the spiritual and educational needs of your child.

Please know that Loyola High School continues to follow developments regarding the coronavirus, and the official updates concerning its spread and containment. We will continue to update you regularly regarding its impact on the school community.

Yours in Christ,

Wyatt Jones III

Friday, March 27, 2020

Dear Loyola High School Community,

We continue to pray that you and your family are safe during this current coronavirus outbreak.

Today, March 27th, we have the additional information to share with you as follows:

Distance Learning

For the safety of parents, guardians and staff, a new procedure has been put into place to drop off and pick up “Learning Packets” each Monday. This procedure will be in effect Monday, March 30th when you come to the school.

On Monday, March 30th, parents are required to drive up to the main parking on Monte Vista and a staff member will come to your car to pick up the packet you received last week, and to deliver the new packet to you.
Packets delivered on March 30th are due to be returned on Monday, April 6th.
The drop off and pick up time remains the same: 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Pick-ups and drop-offs will still be logged in by a school administrator. There will be nothing for you to sign.
Beginning April 6th, we will be transitioning to online learning. More details will follow next week.

Meals

If you ordered food for the week, you will need to pick up the food separately. Please follow this procedure:

Food will be available only between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 2:45 p.m. If you ordered food last week, please make arrangements to be at the school during those hours. If you cannot be there during this time, you can designate someone else to pick up the food for you.
Please park on the Pinehurst side of the school and pick up food at the table outside the Commons door. There is nothing for you to sign. Just give the staff your son’s name.

Food will also be available for the entire neighborhood and community at Loyola High School as follows:

Food will be distributed to the community Monday – Thursdays.
Pick up times are from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
People do not have to order in advance.
On Mondays and Tuesdays, we will be distributing three days of meals.
On Wednesdays and Thursdays, we will be distributing four days of meals.

Please share this information with other family members, friends and neighbors. In addition, food is also available through the Detroit Public Schools at Mumford High School and other locations. Please contact Mumford High School for more information or check here for details:

https://www.detroitk12.org/grabngo#Grab-n-Go%20Breakfast%20&%20Lunch

Yours in Christ,

Wyatt Jones III

Thursday, March 26, 2020

Dear Loyola High School Community,

We continue to pray that you and your family are safe during this current coronavirus outbreak.

Today, March 26th, we have the following information to share with you:

A Message to Parents from the President:

Dear Parents,

These are challenging, and often uncertain, times. Our goal, first and foremost, is to continue to provide the young men you have entrusted to us – your sons – with a quality Catholic education in the Jesuit tradition.

We also want to make sure that we are communicating effectively with you. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or our principal, Wyatt Jones III, directly for information and assistance. You can reach me by emailing: dsmith@loyolahsdetroit.org. Or you can reach Principal Jones at: wjonesIII@loyolahsdetroit.org.

In Christ,

Dave Smith

President

Loyola High School

Counseling Resources and Counselor Availability:

The Loyola Counseling Department has taken several steps to move our services to a remote platform while trying to maintain our professional counseling standards. Please refer to this page as it will have all the links and information you may want to access for the next few weeks as we practice Distance Learning together.

Both counselors have set up google voice phone numbers in order to be accessible via phone and text messages, as well as through traditional emailing. Below are the contact numbers and email address for both counselors should you need to contact them:

Jennifer Fox- 313-444-4884

Jfox@loyolahsdetroit.org

Angela Hunter- 248-987-8664

Ahunter@loyolahsdetroit.org

These contact numbers may be used by students or parents in need of accessing your counselor.

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR SON IS ADDING HIMSELF TO OUR COUNSELING REMIND GROUPS. This is the only way our counselors have to get in touch and to send information out to students directly.

Remind Codes to add:

9th grade students: @2023co

10th Grade Students: @bg6gfc

11th & 12th Grade Students: @loyola2020

**FOR STUDENTS**

Counselors have also set up space using the Zoom Meeting App to continue their face to face interactions and socialization with each other and classmates. Zoom Meet is an app available in the App Store as well as online. Counselors will be available in the meeting chat room for “virtual office hours” and will send out Remind Messages five minutes prior to meeting times.

It’s important for students to check in throughout this time we are away. Students, please access the meeting using the below links:

Fox Counseling Zoom Code

Freshmen Meeting Code:

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us04web.zoom.us/j/734424334

Meeting ID: 734 424 334

Sophomore Meeting Code:

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us04web.zoom.us/j/653718053

Meeting ID: 653 718 053

Hunter Counseling Zoom Code

Juniors & Seniors Meeting:

Join Zoom Meeting

https://zoom.us/j/7492477721

Meeting ID: 749 247 7721

Loyola Community Time Zoom Meeting

There will also be Loyola Community Zoom Meetings for any staff and students that want to join on Thursdays from 3-345pm. Use the meeting code below to join:

https://us04web.zoom.us/j/483015502

Meeting ID: 483-015-502

During this time away from school it is important to take care of your mental health. Here are a few things you can do to make sure you are taking care of yourself.

Calm App Meditations

The Calm app blog is a great resource for teachers and students. It gives great, easy to follow, free meditations for anxiety, better sleep, etc.

https://blog.calm.com/take-a-deep-breath

Additional Resources:

Yours in Christ,

Wyatt Jones III

Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Dear Loyola High School Community,

We continue to pray that you and your family are safe during this current coronavirus outbreak.

We have additional information to share with you as follows:

Distance Learning:

The hours we announced yesterday for parents to drop off and pick up packets have been modified. The procedure for dropping off and picking up packets remains the same, as follows:

Parents are required to drive up to the front of the building (at the main entrance on Pinehurst) and a staff member will come out to pick up the packet from you and deliver the new packet.

The date for drop off and pick up remains the same – Mondays. The new, current time for drop off and pick-up, is:

12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

We hope that by staying open continuously for six hours it will make the process easier for parents and guardians.

For this week, “Learning Packets” that were picked up on March 23rd are to be returned on March 30th. At that time, you will receive next week’s “Learning Packet.” Those packets are due back on Monday, April 6th.
Pick-ups and drop-offs will still be logged in by a school administrator.
Teachers will continue to use the Remind system to communicate office hours and other information.
Student grades can still be accessed by parents or guardians through the Synergy system.

Prayer Services and Resources:

Fr. Adam DeLeon, SJ, together with other Loyola staff, will continue to lead online, daily prayer services during the building closure. In addition, Fr. Adam has provided the following prayer resources:

Archdiocese of Detroit: Mass Livestream Schedule

Links for daily and Sunday Masses online and on TV:

https://www.aod.org/livemasses

Pray as You Go

“Pray as You Go” is a daily prayer session, designed to go with you wherever you go, to help you pray whenever you find time, but particularly while traveling to and from work, study, etc. A new prayer session is produced every day of the working week and one session for the weekend. It is not a ‘Thought for the Day’, a sermon or a bible-study, but rather a framework for your own prayer. Lasting between ten and thirteen minutes, it combines music, scripture and some questions for reflection. This is a podcast that can be downloaded onto your phone if you search “pray as you go” in whatever place you listen to podcasts.

- https://pray-as-you-go.org/

Jesuit Prayer Site

This website offers daily scripture passages, reflection and prayer.

- https://jesuitprayer.org/

Examine for Life During COVID-19

The Examen is a traditional method of prayerful awareness that is a bedrock in Ignatian spirituality and Jesuit education. It’s a short, easy way to reflect on your day and become more mindful about where you are experiencing grace or goodness and where there is room in your actions and life for growth. Especially in times of uncertainty and rapid change, taking time to reflect becomes essential.

- https://ignatiansolidarity.net/blog/2020/03/14/examen-covid-19/?fbclid=IwAR1UBx2e8ks1Vamo_DgLAmKfDWVyIGLFypyJa6591aJLYaGkMaeVHLeRNEI

Yours in Christ,

Wyatt Jones III

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Dear Loyola High School Community,

We continue to pray that you and your family are safe during this current coronavirus outbreak.

Recent updates have required us to adapt and update some of the plans that were put into place last week. We also have additional information to share with you as follows:

Yesterday evening, it was learned that a parent of one of our students has tested positive for COVID-19 and is in the hospital. We are praying for both parent and student during this difficult time and know that the entire Loyola family joins us in prayer.

In addition, yesterday morning Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced a Stay Home, Stay Safe Executive Order for the State of Michigan for the next three weeks. Part of the order reads: “For at least the next three weeks, all Michigan businesses and operations must temporarily suspend in-person operations that are not necessary to sustain or protect life, and all Michiganders must stay in their homes unless they are part of that critical infrastructure workforce, engaged in an outdoor activity, or performing tasks necessary to the health and safety of themselves or their family, like going to the hospital or grocery store.”

As a result, effective March 24th, here is the new schedule:

School Access:

Only critical Loyola staff will be allowed in the school. This includes:

Staff designated to receive and hand out new “Learning Packets,” security and cleaning crews. (Our building continues to be deep cleaned on a daily basis.)
Administrators who need to return to retrieve files; they are allowed access for no more than one hour.

Distance Learning:

Given these new developments and restrictions – and to ease the burden on parents and staff – “Learning Packets” will now be delivered and returned in the following manner:

Parents are required to drive up to the front of the building (at the main entrance on Pinehurst) and a staff member will come out to pick up the packet from you and deliver the new packet.

Dates and times for pick-up remain the same, Mondays at the following times:

12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

For this week, “Learning Packets” that were picked up on March 23rd are to be returned on March 30th. At that time, you will receive next week’s “Learning Packet.” Those packets are due back on Monday, April 6th.
Pick-ups and drop-offs will still be logged in by a school administrator
Teachers will continue to use the Remind system to communicate office hours and other information.
Student grades can still be accessed by parents or guardians through the Synergy system.

Updates from the Archdiocese:

Two letters were sent out recently by the Archdiocese’s Superintendent of Schools, Kevin Kijewski, J.D., regarding the school year. The first letter was sent last week and addressed whether or not this education year would count for students. It read, in part:

“Archbishop Vigneron and I are especially proud of the thousands of Catholic educators that spent all of last week developing detailed, methodical, and effective distance learning plans so that all of our schools are well prepared to meet this challenge starting today. As this situation is dynamic and given Governor Whitmer’s new executive order issued today, please know that the Department of Catholic Schools and all of our 87 Catholic schools are also ready to complete this academic year via distance education technology, along with thousands of universities and other educational institutions. As I shared with you this past Friday, all distance learning instruction will count toward our instructional requirements.”

We want you to know that that remains the same: All distance learning instruction at Loyola High School will and does count toward our instructional requirements.

In addition, yesterday another letter was sent out by the Archdiocese which read, in part:

“Recognizing your personal needs and as Superintendent of Catholic Schools, I am permitting chief administrators at our local school communities to shorten their respective academic year if and when called for by the local situation. Any decision by a school to take this action will be communicated by your school’s chief administrator in the coming weeks.”

We want you to know now that Loyola High School currently has no plans to shorten the school year.

In summary, all distance learning at Loyola High School does count toward this school year. Additionally, Loyola High School currently has no plans to shorten the school year.

Yours in Christ,

Wyatt Jones III

Monday, March 16, 2020

Dear Loyola High School Community,

We pray that you and your family are staying safe and well during the current coronavirus outbreak.

Loyola High School continues to follow developments regarding the coronavirus and the official updates concerning its spread and containment. This page will provide you with official updates regarding the current status of the COVID-19 outbreak and its impact on the school community.

Please note: The pandemic situation is evolving rapidly, which may require changes or updates to these plans over the next several weeks. So please check here regularly. We will also alert you each time an update has been made to this schedule. In addition, some directives are mandated by the Archdiocese and the Governor’s office. We adapted our plan as best as possible to serve the needs of the Loyola community.

Outlined below is the schedule for Loyola High School for March 17 through April 13:

Distance Learning:

Our faculty and administration met on Monday, March 16th to address challenges for distance learning, and to assess the best process for student education during this closure. With reliable internet access a concern for some of our families, it was decided that detailed “learning packets” would be made available to each student on a weekly basis. These “learning packets” are to be picked up by parents or guardians every Monday. Here is how the procedure will work:

- Packets will be prepared and available each Monday for parents or guardians to pick up (and then subsequently return the following week with completed assignments) beginning on Monday, March 23rd.
- Parents or guardians may pick up and return packets at the 1st floor main office during the following times:
  - 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
  - 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
  - 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
- Packet pick-ups and drop-offs will be logged in by a school administrator.
- Teachers will be using the Remind system to communicate their office hours and additional information.

Student grades can still be accessed by parents or guardians through the Synergy system.

Nutrition:

After consulting with our food service providers, Loyola High School will continue to provide two meals (breakfast and lunch) plus a snack to every student each day for every full week (seven days) during the closure. The full week of meals will also be available for pick up by parents or guardians each Monday, beginning March 23rd, at the same time student “learning packets” are available for pick up.

Please note: An email will be sent to parents or guardians each week regarding student meals for the following week. To receive the full week of meals, parents and guardians must reply to the email and elect to receive the full week of meals for the upcoming week by responding no later than Wednesday of the current week. For example, the first email will be sent to parents and guardians on Tuesday, March 17th. If you elect to have the full week of meals prepared for your student and ready for pick-up on Monday, March 23rd, you must let us know by email no later than 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 18th.

Starting the second week (March 30th), these emails will be sent out every Monday during the closure.

Counselor Availability: Ms. Hunter and Ms. Fox will be available for counseling during the closure. Their hours will be posted later this week.

School Access:

No students are allowed on the school campus during the closure. Parents or guardians are allowed on campus to pick up/drop off “learning packets” and for weekly meal pick up.

Faculty and staff will be working from home but will have access to the school for lesson planning purposes. Limited members of the school administration team will be here on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays to distribute/receive “learning packets,” to distribute weekly meals and to attend to essential school matters.

All employees of the school and parents or guardians who are entering the school are required to follow current Center for Disease Control protocols (e.g., covering sneezes and coughs, social distancing practices, etc.) while on school grounds.

Our cleaning service will be in the school daily to perform deep cleaning services.

Prayer Services and Resources:

Fr. Adam DeLeon, SJ will provide online prayer services during the closure, as well as provide additional prayer resources for students and our entire Loyola community. Additional details will be made available later this week.

Calendar and Projected Return to School:

The State of Michigan has ordered that all schools close through Sunday, April 5th.

Students do not need to report virtually or physically to school this week, March 16 – 20.

Distance Learning will commence the week of March 23rd.

Loyola’s Easter Break will remain as scheduled – from April 6th through April 10th.

Provided there is no extension or modification of Governor Whitmer’s order, students and staff will return to school on April 13th for their first full week of school.

All sports practices and contests are cancelled through April 13, 2020.

All sports fields and courts are off limits to students.

All student activities are cancelled through April 13, 2020.

We will be updating you as additional information becomes available.

Yours in Christ,

Wyatt Jones III