Is Notre Dame School supporting distance learning?
Yes.
In September of 2020, Notre Dame applied for a waiver to reopen for in-person instruction. While many of our families chose to return in person, some of our students did not. With cases ebbing and flowing into the winter months, more families chose to keep their students at home. In grades 3-8, students can "Zoom in" for most of the learning during the day and receive their assignments via Google Classroom. For grades Kindergarten to 2nd grade, the students participate in largely independent home assignments through printed packets, work in their textbooks, and through Seesaw. They meet with faculty one or more times per week.

Do I continue to pay my full tuition even though I have chosen remote learning?
Yes. 
Notre Dame School continues to be open and providing a robust education for your child. While families may not choose to have their students on campus,  curriculum and instruction is delivered through various platforms (Zoom, Google Meet, Google Classroom) and the 1-1 iPad program. Your child is staying connected to their friends as well as to their teachers. 

Can NDS apply for a waiver to open in-person instruction?
Yes.
The Notre Dame School applied for a waiver in September 2020. We have been operating in person for Preschool - 6th grade since late September. We opened for in-person instruction for our middle school on November 30 and will be welcoming back additional students to in-person instruction from the middle school on January 20. 

Is Notre Dame Preschool and PK operating in-person?
Yes, with safety modifications in place.
Notre Dame's preschool and PK program are a state licensed preschool program with different guidelines from K-8 schools. The program is currently open in person with a limited enrollment and various safety modifications in place. These include daily temperature checks, outside check-in, individual toys and supplies, assigned seating and nap areas, and predominant instruction outdoors.

Will we have to go to 100% online learning again?
It depends.
At this time, it does not appear that any school who was approved with a waiver will have to return to exclusively online learning. However, with the ever-changing nature of COVID-19, we are always ready to move back to an online environment if need be. We are blessed with a 1-1 iPad program that allows us to be responsive and flexible in this environment. 

Even if you are allowed to be open in-person, would you choose to move to online learning?
Sometimes.
In an abundance of caution, we are instituting 2 weeks of online learning from January 6 to January 19 following our 2 week long Christmas Break. This is due to the high nature of travel and tourism that happens in our city during Christmas (despite travel warnings and bans) as well as the acknowledgement that some exposure may happen in our community during the break. The hope is that this 2 week mandatory online learning will allow for any and all exposure possibilitites to diminish and we can again return as a community to outside learning on January 20.