Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update & Reminders – December 17, 2020

Aloha Saint Mark Parents!

I hope and pray you are doing well as we head into our Christmas Break.  I am writing with the latest updates & reminders. 

COMMUNITY CONDITIONS 
After several weeks of stability, the current numbers (which are available on the Hawaii Data Collaborative) have increased over the past week. Let’s all please do our part to keep the metrics low during the two week break.

Current 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). 

December 11 Numbers
The 7-day state average of reported daily new cases is 87 (64 on O`ahu) and the 7-day state average of the positivity rate is 1.6% (1.9% on O`ahu). 

December 4 Numbers
The 7-day state average of reported daily new cases is 80 (63 on O`ahu) and the 7-day state average of the positivity rate is 1.7% (2.1% 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.

UPDATES to SAINT MARK’S REOPENING CAMPUS PLAN (**subject to change**)
Governor David Ige has signed a 17th COVID-19 emergency proclamation reducing the state’s mandatory self-quarantine period for travelers entering the state and traveling between counties from 14 to 10 days (without a test). This change is based on updated recommendations issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the State of Hawaiʻi’s Department of Health (DOH) earlier this month.

With that, Saint Mark has updated its Reopening Campus Plan Policy and Procedures to reflect the change.  Please understand that this revision does not affect the school policy requiring a negative result from an additional test taken a minimum of 5 days after landing in Hawai`i.

• The exact wording is as follows: “If a Saint Mark student or any member of a student’s household returns from (or has visitors from) out-of-state and is not subject to a State-mandated quarantine because he/she took a 72-hour pre-travel COVID-19 test, the student must still remain off campus for 10 days unless he/she receives an additional negative COVID-19 test taken at least 5 days following his/her arrival on O’ahu. Families are strongly encouraged to avoid any non-essential out-of-state travel.” 

HOLIDAY TRAVEL REMINDER
For those families who are planning to travel out-of-state over the Christmas 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 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 December 28th which will hopefully give you enough time to take and receive test results before school resumes on January 4th.

DISTANCE LEARNERS
We need all families who participated in our Case Specific Distance Learning program in the second quarter to confirm their plans for the third quarter with their respective teacher(s) and Mrs. Kaha`ulelio if they haven’t already done so.  We currently have some students slated to return to campus while others preferring to continue the distance learning.

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 over the Christmas break.  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.  

CHRISTMAS MUSIC VIDEOS
As was reported earlier, we are happy to share that Mr. D.J. Caoile has created a series of videos to help celebrate the art of music during this special Christmas season. If you did not get a chance to watch the videos, we invite you to do so by clicking on the links below.  
K –  2 Choirs
Gr 3 – 5 Choirs
Gr 6 – 8 Choirs
Beginning Band
Advanced Band
We know that videos do not replace the excitement of an in-person event, but we nevertheless hope that you enjoy this opportunity to share in a little musical fun.

MERRY CHRISTMAS & MAHALO
As we bid farewell to a very challenging 2020, the faculty, staff and administration of Saint Mark profoundly thank our families for their patience and overall commitment – especially in these extremely difficult times – and pray that every one of you are able to slow down this Christmas season long enough to relax and enjoy the full splendor of our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Mele Kalikimaka me ka Hau`oli Makahiki hou!

Mahalo, Blessings and Stay Safe over the Christmas Break,

David Gaudi
Head of School

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6)