Hybrid/Distance Learning & COVID-19 Information

De La Salle High School returned to on-campus learning on October 26th with our Hybrid Learning Schedule. De La Salle will continue with its hybrid learning model as long as the County and school continue to meet the guideline requirements.

We are excited to have many of our students back on campus, but we know that it is going to take our entire community--students, parents, faculty, and staff--to make sure it is successful. This landing page will continue to house all relevant Hybrid/Distance Learning information, as well as all “COVID-19” related information. For your reference, all previous correspondence is also archived on this page.

Hybrid Learning Plan By Department

Academics

English Department

Health, Physical Education and Recreation Department

Mathematics Department

Religious Studies Department

Science Department

Social Studies Department

Visual and Performing Arts Department

World Languages Department

Hybrid Learning Resources

Online Learning Class Schedule

To view the academic schedule, please go to the De La Salle High School Master Calendar for all academic schedule information.

2020-21 Bell Schedule

Time	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
8:15 - 9:35	Period 1	Period 4	Flex Day Students can have social engagement and meet with teachers and staff, in-person or virtually. Each week, one grade level will come to campus for on-site activities. The other three grade levels will access resources from home. *When all students return to campus, Wednesday will become a 0-7 bell schedule.	Period 1	Period 4
9:35 - 9:55	Break	Break		Break	Break
9:55 - 11:15	Period 2	Period 5		Period 2	Period 5
11:15 - 11:20	Announcements	Announcements		Announcements	Announcements
11:20 - 12:00	Lunch	Lunch		Lunch	Lunch
12:00- 1:20	Period 3	Period 6		Period 3	Period 6
1:20 - 1:35	Break	Break		Break	Break
1:35 - 2:55	Period 7	Period 0		Period 7	Period 0

80-minute blocks
**If we can only bring 50 percent of our students back to campus at a time, students will be divided into two stable cohorts by last name A-K and L-Z. A-K will be on campus Mondays and Tuesdays, while L-Z will be on campus Thursdays and Fridays.

Resources and Tips for Parents

Learning Center Tutoring

De La Salle High School Return-To-Campus Protocols

De La Salle Communication Updates

Our sincere thoughts and prayers go out to everyone affected by the outbreak of the coronavirus known as COVID–19. In an effort to keep our community safe and informed, we are sharing the very latest information about how COVID–19 is affecting the De La Salle community.

We thank you for your continued patience and understanding during this challenging time. As the situation progresses, updates will be available here and will be shared via email as well. Should you have specific questions that are not noted below, please email us at dlscommunications@dlshs.org.

2020-21 COVID-19 Community Communications

April 29 - Community Update from the President's Cabinet

April 29, 2021

Dear De La Salle Families,

As we enter the final month of the 2020-21 academic year and look forward to finishing the year strong, De La Salle and Carondelet administrations have also been working on plans for the 2021-22 school year. You will be receiving more information in the coming weeks, but we wanted to briefly update all of our families about our current planning.

Planning for the 2021-22 Academic Year
Based on the current California Department of Public Health guidance, both De La Salle and Carondelet are developing a new bell schedule as we plan on being back in school full time, five days a week for all students. There will be no virtual class options for next year, as students will be expected to be on campus every day. We are absolutely delighted to welcome all of our students back.

There have been a number of questions from families about student vaccinations. We know many of our students who are eligible for the vaccine have been scheduling/receiving their shots. Both De La Salle and Carondelet strongly recommend and encourage all of our students and families to be vaccinated but are not mandating it at this point. We will continue to work with Contra Costa County Health Department in regards to vaccinations. In addition, both schools will continue to follow all State/County guidelines in regards to COVID protocols and procedures on campus and for school sanctioned activities.

COVID Testing
De La Salle and Carondelet will continue to offer COVID testing each Wednesday, but all COVID testing has been moved to the Carondelet campus for the remainder of the academic year. Appointments are required for Wednesday tests.

Masking On Campus
We are sure that many of you will see the new guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on masking for fully vaccinated people, and we are getting a number of questions about whether or not masks will be required on campus. The criteria that the CDC has issued relates to those that are vaccinated and are in small groups outdoors only. The environments at both schools, with a large number of students and adults and indoor learning, do not meet those guidelines; in addition, both De La Salle and Carondelet campuses have many students who are still not vaccinated. Masking is still required at all times for all students, faculty, staff, and visitors to the De La Salle campus.

St. John Baptist de La Salle, Pray for Us.
Live Jesus in our Hearts, Forever.

We thank God for your ongoing partnership.

De La Salle President’s Cabinet

December 4 - COVID-19 Weekly Update from Spartan Spotlight

De La Salle Weekly COVID-19 Update

First and foremost, THANK YOU for your support and adhering to last week’s safety guidelines during Thanksgiving - it is much appreciated by everyone in our community.

As you may have heard by now, Governor Newsom presented new “Stay-at-Home” orders for California yesterday, and our Contra Costa County Health Officers implemented a new Stay-at-Home order for the County that will go into effect on Sunday, December 6th. Regardless of the restrictions that the Bay Area region has imposed, schools that have already opened (such as De La Salle and Carondelet) will be able to remain open. We will be allowed to conduct in-person and other previously allowed models of hybrid and small group instruction without modification. Schools that have not reopened must adhere to the stay-at-home order and may not open.

We will return to updating our school “Report Card” next week, but we did want to share some information with you. During the break last week, one student reported a positive case to us and no students have reported a positive case to us this week. The student who tested positive was not on campus and contracted COVID-19 from a family member. Currently, as a school community, we have a positivity rate of .09% - we would take action if that rate reaches more than 5.0%. Our goal is to stay open and stay the course, but it will take our entire community to remain vigilant to do so.

For the safety and well-being of those that are coming on campus, we ask that families be upfront with information regarding positive COVID-19 cases within your family. This allows us to send a consistent message regarding possible isolation or quarantine. We understand it can be a lot of information to process all at once and we want to be here to help you through that process. We have been working closely with county and state officials to ensure cases are managed appropriately. Please contact Kent Mercer (mercerk@dlshs.org) or Doug Bauman (baumand@dlshs.org) with any questions or to report positive cases regarding COVID-19.

Another major announcement that came this week was the California Interscholastic Federation’s (CIF) announcement to push back the start of return to play until after January 1st. Click here to read the press release. The CIF will be releasing more information in the coming weeks. Each of our head coaches will be in contact with their student-athletes as they receive more information.

It's important for each of us to remember that our ability to hold in-person instruction, camps, and cohorts largely depends on the choices and actions made by the members of our community. Your choices to wear a mask when outside your house, to wash your hands frequently, and to not engage in close interactions with individuals outside of your family make us all safer.

Let's keep up the good work!

The De La Salle President’s Cabinet and the De La Salle COVID-19 Task Force

November 20, 2020 - Thanksgiving Letter to the De La Salle Community

Dear De La Salle Community,

This is the time of year we were to gather with family and friends to share in a feast. This is the time of year when all Americans share the same intention, which is to express our appreciation for all of the wonderful things we have in our lives. We need to celebrate things for which we are thankful.

A huge thanks is due to our entire community for the successful on-campus learning, dining, and co-curricular experiences that we have been able to navigate during this pandemic, as we have not had one transmission case on campus. It has taken the vigilance of EVERYONE to manage the return to campus safely. Let’s keep up the good work!

As we are sure you are aware, this week the County was moved to the Purple (Widespread) Tier. We can remain open to Hybrid Learning since we opened while we were in the Red (Substantial) Tier – this has been confirmed by Dr. Chris Farnitano, MD, the Health Officer for Contra Costa County. We will need to be vigilant and monitor our positive cases as a school community. It is also possible that we could be moved to shelter-in-place by the Governor or the County, which would require us to move back to distance learning. We will continue to make decisions based on what is allowable per county guidelines.

Holidays in the COVID-19 world are going to be a challenge for all of us. Keeping our entire community safe and our school open requires us to be safe both on and off campus. We are also concerned about the safety of our employees, who have done extraordinary work in trying to create an effective learning environment in the hybrid model and in trying to provide a face-to-face experience that our students need. As we asked in our message last week, if your family is in a situation where they are not able to consistently follow social distancing and masking protocols, please move your son to distance learning until your family members have taken a COVID-19 test and received negative results. We are sharing this article again about how the virus can spread in different situations. A Room, a Bar, and a Classroom: how the coronavirus is spread through the air.

As a reminder, the entire campus will be closed next week for ALL activities. We will be spending time cleaning all areas of the campus. We will also keep you posted if there are any developments over break regarding COVID-19.

Finally, as it relates to athletics, on Monday (Nov. 16th), Governor Newsom and Dr. Mark Ghaly from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) disclosed that the release of updated youth sports guidance has been postponed. Therefore, the current guidance remains in effect, and California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) competitions are not allowed until new guidance is provided.

On behalf of the entire faculty, staff, and coaches, we wish you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving and hope that you will be able to enjoy it the best that you can.

Stay safe!

De La Salle President’s Cabinet

October 23, 2020 - Letter to Families - Return to School Timeline Update

“We often judge ourselves harshly for what didn’t get done while overlooking the marathon we completed. Look again. With grace.” Dr. Thema Bryant-Davis

This week during orientations, we welcomed more than 800 of our students officially back onto campus to prepare for our Hybrid Instructional Model, 31 weeks after we first moved to distance learning and Contra Costa County moved to shelter in place. For the past few months, per county guidelines, De La Salle has been running cohorts for athletics and theater, and the switch to having our students back on campus as learners is a welcome addition. We celebrate our dedicated teaching faculty and support staff at both De La Salle and Carondelet who have continued to reinvent their teaching and service delivery to meet the needs of all students. We are committed to ensure that all students will be able to access course learning outcomes and weekly objectives even as they are spread across space daily. Finally, we are committed, to the best of our ability, to ensure that all safety protocols and procedures are followed while on campus.

FAMILY TO-DO BEFORE RETURNING TO SCHOOL ON OCTOBER 26

Before we officially move to our Hybrid Instructional Model, we ask that all families review with your children the following items:

Please read thoroughly and sign the De La Salle COVID Commitment Pledge. If we are to be successful in the re-opening of our campus, we all must understand that it will be a SHARED RESPONSIBILITY, for common health and safety, informed by science and rooted in the respect we have for one another.
Please watch our video that reviews in-depth our Return-to-Campus Protocols as well as reviews our updated Teaching and Learning Guidelines for Hybrid. The link to the slide show that includes all of this information can be found on our Hybrid/Distance Learning and COVID-19 Information webpage.
All students MUST have downloaded and completed the DLS Prescreen App before they are allowed on campus. The app is available through the Apple Store for iPhones or Google Play for Android phones.
If your student plans to switch between hybrid and distance learning, please fill out the Hybrid/Distance Change Request Form. These requests will be processed bi-weekly.
We continue to offer weekly on-campus COVID testing, so please click here for more information.
Please review the Semester 1 Calendar.
Flex Day: We are continuing to utilize the Wednesday Flex Day for academic catch-up, club meetings, campus ministry, and other campus life activities. While we are continuing to have most activities virtual as we begin hybrid instruction, we anticipate holding more in-person activities in the near future. Please remind your students that they need to fill out the weekly Flex Day Planner, utilizing the Flex Day Catalog to make their choices. Submitting a planner by Tuesday and 4 p.m. will ensure students are counted “Present” for Flex Day. Flex Day is not a “day off” nor optional; a student who does not fill out the planner receives an “OTH” absence for attendance that day.

Navigating our campus reopening is challenging, and evaluating what works and what does not work is going to be a continuous improvement process. Our highest priority continues to be the safety and well-being of our students, families, faculty, and staff.

We are all looking forward to the coming weeks, and we appreciate your continued patience, flexibility, and partnership.

In the Spirit of Saint John Baptist de La Salle,

The De La Salle President’s Cabinet

October 16, 2020 - Letter to Families - Return to School Timeline Update

Dear De La Salle Families,

“As a Lasallian, I live in the awareness of God’s presence in daily life and I ask myself, ‘What does God want from me at this moment?’ Sometimes the call requires something simple; sometimes it requires a little more effort. God never asks us to do anything beyond our strength nor does God judge our actions by the greatness of the results, but rather God measures simply by the depth of love with which they are accomplished.” “Together and By Association,” Brother Michael Valenzuela, FSC

It is with both excitement and immense gratitude for our two-school community that we write to share that on Tuesday, October 13, Contra Costa County met the benchmark for schools to be released to return for in-person instruction following county and state guidelines. We are also delighted to report that the county numbers continue to improve, which only renews our commitment to follow all safety procedures and protocols to ensure that we can continue to come together as a school community in-person.

Accordingly, both De La Salle and Carondelet are moving forward with the detailed schedule we sent in our letter to families on Thursday, October 8. As a reminder, next week (October 19-23) will be primarily ASYNCHRONOUS INSTRUCTION, which will allow for teachers to prepare to move to our Hybrid Learning Plan and which will allow us to safely orient all of our returning students. As an additional reminder, on Monday, October 19 and Tuesday, October 20, the current Bell Schedule will be kept, and teachers will direct their students if they are synchronous or asynchronous on these days. October 22 and October 23 will be asynchronous. All students must check Schoology for specific directions from their teachers.

ORIENTATION is required for any student who is returning to in-person learning. Orientation for Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors will occur on Thursday, October 22. On Friday, October 23, Freshmen will have an expanded orientation, including a campus tour, to welcome them officially to campus. Please find the ORIENTATION SCHEDULES for Grades 10-12 HERE and for Grade 9 HERE. For families who have children on both campuses, please note that De La Salle and Carondelet have different times and schedules for orientations, and we want to give advance notice for families to plan accordingly.

FAMILY TO-DO BEFORE ORIENTATION

Please make sure you confirm your child’s appropriate hybrid learning group according to the email you received from the school’s registrar on Wednesday, October 14.
All students MUST have downloaded and completed the DLS Prescreen App before they are allowed on campus. The app is available through the Apple Store for iPhones or Google Play for Android phones.

FUTURE COMMUNICATION
Next week, please be on the lookout for:

A Back-to-School video that addresses safety protocols and procedures as well as teaching and learning guidelines for our Hybrid plan;
A link to an updated version of our Return-to-Campus Protocols slide show (also covered in the video);
Our Family/School COVID Pledge

ON-CAMPUS COVID TESTING
As we communicated last week, another resource that we are providing is on-campus COVID-19 testing every Wednesday except when campus is closed. We are working with PMH Laboratory to provide this service. The testing is voluntary. Testing is open to students and family of students, as well as employees and family of employees, all at no cost to you - your insurance is billed directly, and if anyone is uninsured, the government pays for testing through the CARES Act. We are constantly reviewing California orders regarding regular testing programs required for schools and will be implementing future testing as needed. CLICK HERE for more information about the testing program.

Our mission is to love, instruct, and guide our students in accordance with the tradition of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. We are profoundly aware that this duty is one we share with our families, and we can only accomplish our mission as Brother Michael Valenzuela articulates, “together and by association.” We are grateful for your continued partnership, and we are excited to take this next step as a community together.

In the Spirit of Saint John Baptist de La Salle,

The De La Salle President’s Cabinet

October 8, 2020 - Letter to Families: Return to School Timeline

Dear De La Salle Families,

“The current pandemic has highlighted our interdependence; we are linked to each other, for better or for worse. Therefore, to come out of this crisis better than before, we have to do so together, all of us, in solidarity.” - Pope Francis

Last week, Contra Costa County was officially moved to the Red Tier. We are happy to see the numbers that were reported on Tuesday, October 6 continue to decrease, and the County remains in the red tier. As we mentioned in our email on September 29th, this communication includes the significant upcoming dates regarding DLS/CHS school re-opening plans in the Hybrid format. The planning that already occurred over the summer months, along with the flurry of activity that the administration and faculty at both De La Salle and Carondelet are currently engaged in, is immense.

ANTICIPATED TIMELINE FOR RETURN TO SCHOOL
The timeline we share below seriously and deeply considers a number of factors that will ensure the health and safety of all community members and that will optimize the quality of academic instruction that our students will receive. The timeline allows both schools

to finalize any necessary modifications on campus, including technological infrastructure;
to finalize all class rosters of those participating in hybrid and to create class lists;
to enable faculty to work on the transition to teaching in a hybrid environment;
to message expectations to families and to orient students and faculty safely and methodically about both schools’ COVID procedures.

Week of October 12th-October 15th:

October 12, School Holiday
October 13, Professional Day, and we expect Contra Costa County schools to be released to open mid-day when the data is updated for the County and State.
October 14: Unregistered SAT (DLS/CHS) and virtual Flex Day
Thursday/Friday, October 15-16: current schedule, DISTANCE LEARNING

Week of OCTOBER 19th-23rd: ASYNCHRONOUS INSTRUCTION WEEK & STUDENT ORIENTATION
Asynchronous instruction is teaching and learning that do not happen in “real-time,” meaning that teachers can instruct students and students can learn at different times and places. Students will still be given assignments with set due dates the entire week, as we want to keep as much instructional time as possible even as we transition back to in-person learning carefully and deliberately. All students must check Schoology for specific directions from their teachers.

October 19th and 20th
- Teachers can meet with their students on zoom, but this is optional; assignments will be given to all students, and all students must complete all work for credit.
- The current Bell Schedule will be kept, and teachers will direct their students if they are synchronous or asynchronous on these days.
Wednesday, October 21st: Virtual Flex Day
October 22nd and October 23rd: Student Orientation Days on Campus & Faculty Preparation. Next week, you will receive in our weekly update details regarding Student Orientations.

Monday, October 26th: Hybrid Instruction begins. Please see our revised Semester 1 Calendar to see what days your children will be on campus. Please also understand that the school calendar is a working draft and is subject to change.

ALSO PLEASE NOTE: Two additional days of instruction have been added to Semester 1 -- December 16th and 17th -- in order to balance the hybrid schedule and to allow more instructional time.

FUTURE COMMUNICATION
You will be receiving other communications prior to the start of in-person school, including a video that addresses Back-to-School safety protocols and procedures. We will continue to update you with our progression, orientation details, athletics and other co-curricular activities, and our COVID Pledge.

ON-CAMPUS COVID TESTING
As we communicated last week, another resource that we will be providing is on-campus COVID-19 testing, which began on October 7th. Future testing will be scheduled weekly on Wednesdays, except when campus is closed. We are working with PMH Laboratory to provide this service. The testing is voluntary. Testing is open to students and family of students, as well as employees and family of employees, all at no cost to you - your insurance is billed directly, and if anyone is uninsured, the government pays for testing through the CARES Act. We are constantly reviewing California orders regarding regular testing programs required for schools and will be implementing future testing as needed. For more information about the testing program CLICK HERE.

SCHOOL/FAMILY PARTNERSHIP
As we begin to move forward with our hybrid plans, we want to reach out to all families in the DLS and CHS community to ask for your help. We are aware that there have been large gatherings of students at private homes and at other locations. As we bring students to campus, we need to be diligent in following all distancing and masking protocols for the safety of others and in order to maintain our ability to have students on campus. We are still in the midst of a pandemic with a very contagious disease, and though we can control interactions on campus, we cannot control off-campus events. These could very well lead to an outbreak on campus that would not only be dangerous, but also could lead to a quick closure of campus, as we have seen in colleges and other high schools.

We eagerly anticipate when we can welcome our students to campus. Thank you for your patience, flexibility, and partnership.

In the Spirit of St. John Baptist de La Salle,

The De La Salle President’s Cabinet

September 30 - Return to School Opt-Out Survey Letter

Dear De La Salle Families,

As a follow up to the letter we sent our families yesterday, an immediate action that we need all De La Salle and Carondelet families to take is to complete a short survey. The survey will identify your son’s intention for coming back to school in the Hybrid Format or if he is going to continue at home with the Distance Learning program. As a reference for any questions you might have about the school re-opening, please re-visit our Back to School Preparedness plan.

Please complete this Opt-Out Survey by Friday, October 2. If you do not fill out the form by that date, we will assume your son will be coming to campus in our hybrid environment.

If you have more than one son at De La Salle (or children at both schools) be sure to fill out an additional form for each child.

Finally, if you have any questions please contact Ms. Lillian Dickson, Director of Academic Services.

Thank you,

Dr. Heather Alumbaugh
Vice President for Academic Life

Ms. Lillian Dickson
Director of Academic Services

September 29 - Letter to Families - Contra Costa County Moves to Red Tier

Dear De La Salle Families,

Today, the State updated Contra Costa County’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy status from PURPLE to RED. As we informed our families on Sunday, this means that if the County remains in the RED for two weeks, De La Salle will be released to return to our Hybrid Learning Schedule at the end of that time frame.

There are still a number of steps that De La Salle and Carondelet need to take for a safe and successful re-opening of school.

By mid-next week, we will be sending our families an update of all significant dates, including when we plan to re-open campus. In addition, in the coming weeks, we will provide a comprehensive plan which will include all schedules, protocols, and procedures and any other relevant information.

One of the immediate actions that our families must complete is a short survey that will be sent tomorrow (Wednesday, Sept. 30th) that will identify your son(s) intention for coming back to school in the HYBRID format, or if they are going to continue with their Distance Learning from home.

As we near the opening, we will create a “Back To School” video for our families that we hope will serve as a great resource to help our community transition back to on-campus learning. If you missed any of the information we sent previously, you can always refer to our Distance Learning page of the website.

Another resource that we will be providing is on-campus COVID-19 testing beginning on October 7th from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Future testing will be scheduled and announced as needed. We are working with PMH Laboratory and Agile Force, Inc. to provide this service. The testing is voluntary but we very strongly encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity. Testing is open to students and family of students, as well as employees and family of employees, all at no cost to you - your insurance is billed directly, and if anyone is uninsured, the government pays for testing through the CARES Act. We are constantly reviewing California orders regarding regular testing programs required for schools and will be implementing future testing as needed. Click Here for more information about the testing program.

Finally, we will move forward knowing the safety and well being of our students, families, faculty, and staff continue to be our highest priority.

In the Spirit of St. John Baptist de La Salle,

The De La Salle President’s Cabinet

September 27 - Letter to Families from the President's Cabinet

Dear De La Salle Families,

This past Tuesday, Contra Costa County reported updated COVID-19 case numbers as part of the state’s “Blueprint for a Safer Economy” guidelines. The numbers have decreased which is good news. However, the County still remains in the “Purple” designation and we are hopeful that we continue to progress into the “Red” designation on September 29th. Once in the Red designation, we must remain in this designation for two weeks and the earliest the students would be able to return to campus, under the Hybrid Model, is two weeks from that date.

As we are all hopeful that a return to school is possible in the near future, we wanted to remind you all about the Hybrid Learning Plan that we introduced in July, so you can review the plan once again. In addition, we ask that you review the “Back to School” schedule that was introduced over the summer.

We would also like to share with you steps that will be taken in the coming weeks as we look to implement this Hybrid Plan:

Orientations for students will take place (over two days) before we begin on-campus classes in order to review protocols and safety measures that must be followed by all students.
A survey will be sent out to families so that we can determine the number of families who decide to continue to use our distance learning format as opposed to coming to campus in our hybrid environment. This also serves as a reminder that families do have the option of continuing distance learning if they so desire.
We remind you that the students have been grouped by alphabet, with A-K on campus Monday and Tuesday and L-Z on Thursday and Friday. There is some gradation to this in order to accommodate the numbers we need to properly distance in classrooms, which is one of the main requirements to have students back on campus.
Wednesday will continue to be our Flex Day virtual model and we will continue to organize extra-curricular cohorts even when we return to campus in the hybrid model.
Everyone on campus will be masked and we will be supervising students to ensure social distancing.

Finally, we will continue to update all of our families regularly over the coming weeks as we near the hopeful return to school. We want to thank all of our families for their patience and understanding and we look forward to seeing many of you soon.

In the Spirit of St. John Baptist de La Salle,

The De La Salle President’s Cabinet

September 5 - From Spartan Spotlight

On Friday, August 28, new state guidelines were introduced in the document A Blueprint for a Safer Economy. This blueprint includes information on the possible re-opening of schools. This new guidance went into effect on Monday, August 31.

Click Here to for these new state COVID-19 guidelines.

Contra Costa County is currently in the “Purple” tier and must stay there for three (3) weeks. Updates are given by the state each Tuesday. The earliest Contra Costa County could move into the “Red” tier is September 22nd. The County must then meet the "Red" tier criteria for two (2) weeks before schools are able to re-open. If the County continues in a positive direction, De La Salle would be able to open on/around October 6th.

If the County does not meet the criteria or worsens, we will move back to the "Purple" tier and the clock starts over. Counties can be more stringent. De La Salle will continue to monitor the situation and update families as new information becomes available.

2019-20 COVID-19 Communication Archive

2020 Summer Updates
2019-20 School Year

2020 Summer Updates

July 29 - 2020-21 Back-To-School Letter from the President's Cabinet

Dear Parents and Guardians,

This past week, we shared with you the unfortunate news that the 2020-21 school year will begin with distance learning. We would all agree that this is not the way any of us wanted to start the school year, yet we are more than confident that each and every one of the faculty and staff at De La Salle will meet this challenge head-on. We will continue to provide the educational, spiritual, and community experience that you have come to expect in your son’s journey.

Throughout the summer, we have tried to keep you as informed as possible with multiple communications, as well as our Town Hall series which we will continue to host in the coming weeks. If you missed any of them, they can be found on our Virtual Town Hall Meetings webpage.

While we know this is going to be a very different start to the year than any of us have ever experienced, we are excited to share with you the following in preparation for the start of school:

De La Salle’s Flexible Learning Plan
Back to School Road Map Slide Show
2020 Summer Checklist, that includes Welcome Back Letters from De La Salle Leadership
Freshman and Transfer Student Information
Enrollment Checklist information, Due by Monday, August 3rd

Flexible Learning Plan & Back to School Road Map

Throughout the summer, we have been working diligently on both our academic plans for the school year, as well as the logistical challenges of bringing our students back to campus in this COVID-19 world. We have created this Back-To-School Road Map presentation to guide you through this process.

Academically, it covers the distance learning model with which we will start the school year, along with the hybrid learning model, which we hope to move to as soon as allowed. In addition, you will get a sense of all protocols and procedures for the students, faculty, and staff, once we are able to come back to campus.

*Please note that the Back-to-School Road Map presentation is a living document, and it will continue to be updated as the State and/or County begins to ease the restrictions and gives further guidance to the schools.

Summer Checklist

Our Summer Checklist is now LIVE. The Summer Checklist has a number of items in the dropdown menus that are important to complete prior to the start of the school year, namely information regarding tuition/finances, our online Technology Boot Camp Course that must be completed before the start of classes, applicable summer reading, and newly updated information on our textbook distribution and new student orientation. We encourage you to read the 2020-21 Summer Checklist for critical and practical information regarding the beginning of the 2020-21 school year.

Distance Learning/COVID-19 Response Webpage

There are many updates, reminders, and to do's for families and students to address before the start of the school year. Please refer to our Distance Learning/COVID-19 Response Webpage for important resources and updates about the school’s response to the pandemic. This page includes all back-to-school protocols, messages, resources, safety information, and more. We will continue to update this information regularly.

Enrollment Checklist

The Enrollment Checklist process must be completed through SchoolAdmin by all families on or before 3:00 p.m. on Monday, August 3, 2020. Reminders have been sent to those families who still have items to complete.

We offer our families this prayer as we embark on a new school year:

God of love, who calls us each by name, you who bless us with talents and abilities that you ask us to share with our communities, and ask us to be your presence of love.

Deepen our commitment as bearers of the Lasallian Catholic Mission, to be people of the Lasallian Core Principles, that we might individually be a presence of your love, forgiveness, and mercy, in a world that greatly needs us.

Make us thoughtful people who serve with our full person, with both mind and heart.

We ask this through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Brother.

Amen.

We hope that you enjoy the final days of summer, and we look forward to seeing you in early August.

In the Spirit of Saint John Baptist de La Salle,

De La Salle President's Cabinet

July 28 - Drive Through Graduation Protocol Update

Dear De La Salle Families of the Class of 2020,

We have a few updates regarding the De La Salle High School Drive Through Graduation on Sunday, August 2nd from 9 to 11 a.m.

As we did for the Senior Send-Off back in May, we will be splitting up the class by last name. Please arrive at the campus during your scheduled time:

A-D: 9:00-9:30 a.m.
E-K: 9:30-10:00 a.m.
L-R: 10:00-10:30 a.m.
S-Z: 10:30-11:00 a.m.

As each student drives onto campus, we ask them to do the following:

Cap and Gown. We ask that all seniors wear their cap and gown for the Drive Through Graduation.
Name Placard in Vehicle. We are providing name placards for each student in the Class of 2020. We ask that families print their placard and place it on the passenger side of the vehicle windshield. CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD PLACARD FILE
Receipt of Diploma and Awards. The student only will be asked to step out of their vehicle upon arrival in front of the Administration Building to receive his diploma, a commencement program, and any senior award that has been earned.
Pictures. After receiving your graduation packet, the student should return to their vehicle and drive around the Hofmann Center where he, along with two family members, can get out of the car and to have their picture taken.

Note: De La Salle will have professional photographers from Studio One on campus to take pictures at both locations. These pictures will be made available to families once they are available.

We ask that all students and families follow all county COVID-19 safety guidelines.
While on campus, parents/family members will only be allowed to leave their vehicles for the family photo.
When out of their vehicles, students and parents MUST wear a mask.

If you cannot make the Drive Through Graduation on August 2nd, we will mail your son’s diploma, commencement program, and any awards the following week. Yearbooks (delayed in production due to COVID-19) and a DVD of the virtual graduation will be distributed in mid-August.

August 1st will be our Baccalaureate Mass
Although we are unable to celebrate together in person, the Baccalaureate Mass will be virtual service and will be available on the De La Salle website (www.DLSHS.org) as a news story on Saturday, August 1st at 5:00 p.m. (Vigil Mass for Sunday, August 2nd).

August 2nd will be our Commencement for the Class of 2020
The virtual Class of 2020 Commencement Ceremony will feature addresses by our Valedictorian, Cameron Katz, and Salutatorian, William Milosevich, as well as highlight all of our Senior Award recipients. All members of the Class of 2020 will be featured virtually with their Senior Portrait. The virtual graduation ceremony will be available on the De La Salle website (www.DLSHS.org) as a news story on Sunday, August 2nd at 12:00 p.m.

We appreciate your patience as our planning and response to the pandemic and local conditions have been shifting by the day. We look forward to seeing many of you on Sunday, August 2nd!

De La Salle President’s Cabinet

July 23 - President's Cabinet Letter to Class of 2020 Updating Graduation

Dear De La Salle Families of the Class of 2020,

We apologize for another communication regarding graduation. The information and messages that De La Salle and Carondelet received from the Contra Costa Health Services have been inconsistent and contradictory, to say the least. Thank you to those parents who reached out to the county to help persuade them to allow us to honor our young men.

After receiving an update from the County, we are happy to inform you that we will now be able to hold a Drive Through Graduation on Sunday, August 2nd from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

As we did for the Senior Send-Off back in May, we will be splitting up the class by last name. Please arrive at the campus during your scheduled time:

A-D: 9:00-9:30 a.m.
E-K: 9:30-10:00 a.m.
L-R: 10:00-10:30 a.m.
S-Z: 10:30-11:00 a.m.

As each student drives onto campus, we ask them to do the following:

Cap and Gown. We ask that all seniors wear their cap and gown for the Drive Through Graduation.
Receipt of Diploma and Awards. Step out of your vehicle upon arrival in front of the Administration Building to receive your diploma, a commencement program, and any senior award that has been earned.
Pictures. After receiving your graduation packet, students should return to their vehicles and drive to the backside of the Hofmann Center where they can get out of the car and have their picture taken.

We ask that all students and families please follow all county safety guidelines. Parents MUST remain in their cars at all times and students MUST wear a mask when picking up their diploma.

If you cannot make the Drive Through Graduation on August 2nd, we will mail your son’s diploma, commencement program, and any awards the following week.

Finally, in regards to Yearbooks (delayed in production due to COVID-19) and a DVD of the graduation, they will be distributed mid-August.

We appreciate your patience as our planning and response to the pandemic and local conditions have been shifting by the day. We look forward to seeing many of you on Sunday, August 2nd!

De La Salle President’s Cabinet

July 22 - Graduation Update to the Families of the Class of 2020

Dear De La Salle Families of the Class of 2020,

We know many of you have been anxiously awaiting information about our upcoming commencement celebration that is set for August 1 and 2. We made the decision originally to delay our Class of 2020 graduation ceremony until the weekend of August 1st, to give more time for the County to get the spread of the COVID-19 virus under control. We planned for a variety of scenarios and evaluated multiple ideas from completely virtual to a (hopeful) full return and everything in between. We are still on track for a celebration, but it will look completely different from what we originally envisioned and hoped for back in May.

Up until yesterday, we were planning a scaled-back version of an in-person celebration. Given the current rise in COVID-19 cases in Contra Costa County, the Governor’s recent mandate regarding the reopening of schools, and after multiple discussions with the County Health Department, we learned yesterday, along with Carondelet, that we are not allowed to have any in-person celebration or ceremony. Our hearts are broken that we cannot celebrate this amazing class and the accomplishments of our graduating seniors together in person, but we are committed to celebrating our seniors any way we can.

We appreciate your patience as our planning and response to the pandemic and local conditions have been shifting by the week. Yesterday, we made the difficult decision to move forward with an all-virtual Baccalaureate Mass and Commencement ceremony for August 1st and 2nd.

Therefore based on our current situation, this is how our Commencement Celebration Weekend will look:

August 1st will be our Baccalaureate Mass
Although we are unable to celebrate together in person, the Baccalaureate Mass will be a live-streamed virtual service on Saturday, August 1st at 5:00 p.m (Vigil Mass for Sunday, August 2nd). A link for the mass will be provided next week, and we hope all of you will be able to join us.

August 2nd will be our Commencement for the Class of 2020
The Commencement ceremony will be completely virtual and will feature addresses by our Valedictorian, Cameron Katz, and Salutatorian, William Milosevich, as well as highlight all of our Senior Award recipients. All members of the Class of 2020 will be featured virtually with their Senior Portrait. Diplomas, applicable awards, and a commencement program will be mailed to graduates’ homes. A link for the ceremony will be provided, and it will be scheduled for 9:00 a.m.

We are so sorry that this ongoing health crisis continues to negatively impact our community and world, but we are committed to joyfully celebrating you and your son’s time with us at De La Salle. We look forward to being with you virtually on August 1st and 2nd.

De La Salle President's Cabinet

July 21 - Back to School Update from the President's Cabinet

Dear De La Salle Community,

This was not the email we were planning to send you...we had another message ready to go for the opening of the new school year with a much different back-to-school scenario. However, by now you have heard that Governor Newsom has mandated that all public and private schools start the year with Distance Learning, and yesterday the CIF announced its decision to delay athletics until January 2021.

We all agree the best place for our young men is at school. However, the key to us coming back on campus is that Contra Costa County has to be off the “watch list” for 14 days, and that is a moving target. We will continue to plan for different scenarios, and we will be ready to pivot as restrictions are removed or re-imposed. With the new class schedule, we are prepared for any learning situation that needs to be implemented. At a minimum, we would like to see our young men on campus in small groups of 10 or fewer for some type of mental and physical activity while they are Distance Learning. We just need a little time to decide how to best implement our plans given the guidelines.

A few families in the medical profession have written encouraging us to open fully with all students. We are sorry to say that because of the State mandate, it is not an option at the present time. At best, we could have had 500 students on campus before the mandate (16 students in a classroom, socially distancing). We have encouraged those families to write to Contra Costa Health Services and now the Governor’s Office because that is where the change needs to be made. The School will not go against County guidelines and the State mandate.

As we mentioned in June, our goal is to keep our community together during this time. While Distance Learning was not perfect, our faculty and staff did an exceptional job responding to the immediate conversion. The result of this response is an overwhelming number of transfer student applications from other schools in the area. We have a wait pool of students who are eager to join the De La Salle Community for the best virtual, instructional experience available, enhanced with virtual and in-person community-building, co-curricular, and spiritual events.

We will continue to update you as we have done throughout the summer. We know the uncertainty can be frustrating, as it is for all of us. We ask for your patience and understanding as we carry on praying, planning, and protecting our community and your sons.

In the Spirit of Saint John Baptist de La Salle.

The President’s Cabinet

July 2, 2020 - President's Letter to De La Salle Families

July 2, 2020

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Well, this has certainly been an interesting summer. During most summers, there is downtime for us as a school. This summer, we have spent the majority of our time preparing for the safe return of our students – and that is good news because we want to welcome our students back to campus. We want you to know that we have policies and procedures in place for a safe return. Additionally, we must follow the direction and guidelines of the Contra Costa County Health Department, and as you know, they fluctuate daily.

We are prepared to handle whatever comes our way with COVID-19. I know the uncertainty can be frustrating – personally, I suffer from that too. We ask for your patience and understanding. As I mentioned in June, our goal is to keep our community together during this time. If you are having any type of hardship, please do not hesitate to reach out to us, and we will do the best we can do to keep your son at De La Salle – it is his second home, and we want to support your family.

We are looking forward to a productive partnership with you to ensure that your son can achieve his highest potential. We recognize that, in order to be successful in school, our students need support from both the home and the school. We know that a strong partnership with you will make a great difference in your son’s education. We share the responsibility for his success, and we will do our very best to carry out our responsibilities.

We would also like to share an update with each of you in regards to the Bell Schedule, our COVID Task Force, and a few other items. Finally, please be on the lookout for an email about our “State of the School” update, which we will release on July 8th.

Bell Schedule

While we understand that public health directives continually change, we are hoping and planning to welcome half of the students at a time back to campus each school day along with one day per month on our Flex Days so that each Class can come together to share in our student life programs. Under this scenario, students will be divided into two groups based on their last name and will come to campus on either Monday and Tuesday or Thursday and Friday for additional, safe interaction opportunities with each other and faculty and staff. We also have a plan for those families that do not feel comfortable with in-person learning at this time.

In coordination with Carondelet, we have completed a Bell Schedule that has been developed to be used in any scenario that we implement.

Please know that in designing this new schedule to adapt to the vagaries of COVID-19, we met multiple times with CHS and considered thoroughly the following:

Health Considerations, including the need for social distancing. Currently, there must be 4-6 feet distance between students in any classroom, and 6 feet between adults and students as of this recent document from the County.
Teaching/Learning Considerations: It is imperative to maintain a schedule that is the same for the whole school – whether you are at home, online, or in-person on Winton Drive – and that can be used whether we are 100 percent in-person, hybrid (50% in-person, etc.), or mandated to return to Shelter In Place.
Social-Emotional Considerations: This schedule includes the need for peer connection and connection between on-campus adults and all students.
Freshman/Transfer Student Onboarding: We are completely rebuilding both of these onboarding processes to include multiple opportunities (mandated and voluntary) for new students to connect with one another and with us.

COVID-19 Task Force
Since April 30th, a task force made up of administrators, staff, and faculty members has met weekly to develop policies and procedures for our safe return in accordance with the guidelines of Contra Costa County. The task force has looked at a number of different scenarios, with the goal of being fully prepared no matter the situation or restrictions we are given. More details and procedures will be shared with our De La Salle Community as we draw closer to the start of school.

Signs have been posted around the school
Classrooms have been configured to meet social distancing guidelines
Supplies and materials have been ordered for daily cleaning and disinfecting
Plans for food service are being developed
An employee has attended Harvard’s Contact Tracing Course and will work with the County Health Department

DLSPrescreen App
The Task Force has also developed an APP DLSPrescreen. Each day, all employees, students, and visitors to our campus will be required to answer a series of questions before being cleared to enter campus.

The app is currently available in the Apple Store.

For Android users, it will be available shortly.

New Contra Costa Health FAQs
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and Contra Costa Health Services (CCHS) recently released guidance and recommendations, in accordance with current health orders, to minimize the spread of COVID-19 while allowing for in-class learning to resume.

Click COVID-19 and Contra Costa County Schools FAQs to read the document, updated on June 19.

The Contra Costa County Office of Education (CCCOE) will continue to work closely with Contra Costa Health Services regarding reopening schools and will modify their directives based on the guidance from state agencies.

Additional local health information and guidance regarding COVID-19 can be found at www.cchealth.org/coronavirus.

Enrollment Checklist
If you have not done so, please make sure to complete all the items on your checklist. Thank you to the 950+ families who have completed all of their forms - it is much appreciated.

***We are experiencing a high number of transfer applications at this time, so it is important to get the forms completed to secure your place.

I hope that you enjoy the month of July, and I look forward to seeing many of you in early August. Until that time, I share the following prayer with you from our Superior General Brother Robert Schieler:

Lord Jesus Christ, in your mercy and compassion look kindly upon us.
Bless our nurses, doctors, researchers, and all healthcare personnel with courage and strength
As they continue to care for our sick sisters and brothers.

May your Holy Spirit inspire in all Lasallians a sense of social responsibility
And guide us to follow the directives of medical experts
So that together we can ensure the wellbeing of all
Especially of those who are poor and have limited or no access to healthcare.

Grant to each of us, Lord, the eyes to see our relatives, neighbors, and friends who are alone
Who have lost loved ones or who need a good Samaritan
To do their shopping or assist with other basic needs.
Give us a compassionate heart that moves us to generously respond to those in distress.

Lord Jesus Christ, in your mercy and compassion look kindly
Upon all members of the Lasallian family
Bless all of us with peace and good health.
May the angels lead those who have died into paradise.

In the Spirit of St. John Baptist de La Salle

Mark DeMarco, President

De La Salle High School • 1130 Winton Drive, Concord, CA 94518 • www.DLSHS.org

2019-20 School Year

May 21 - Freshman, Sophomore, and Junior Book Return Procedures

Dear De La Salle Families,

With our academic year rapidly coming to a close, we wanted to share some information about end of the year procedures that normally students would have taken care of during their Finals Week: turning in textbooks and cleaning out their lockers.

Given our unprecedented situation, we are adapting to create a process that is as seamless and safe as possible. On June 2-3, students will be allowed to access campus to return textbooks, library books (De La Salle or Carondelet), any outstanding co-curricular items, retrieve items from their lockers, retrieve items left in PE/athletic lockers, and retrieve any other items.

This will be done via signups with each class coming in staggered numbers every 15 minutes. We are asking that you or your student sign up for a time slot on the assigned day: Freshmen on June 2nd from 9 am to 11 am, Sophomores on June 2nd from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm, and Juniors on June 3rd from 9 am to 11 am. To sign up for a slot on your appointed day, please use this SignUpGenius link.

Please take note of the following information:

Please bring/wear a mask. To maintain appropriate social distancing, we are asking that only students access campus. Parents are asked to wait in their vehicles for students.
Students are asked to return their textbooks. A book list itemizing the textbooks which need to be returned has been mailed to you. The books returned must be those checked out at the beginning of the year. The accession number located on the label on the back of the book must match the accession # on the book list. If books are not returned you will be responsible for payment as replacement books will have to be reordered immediately. All books must be returned or paid for in order to receive books at the beginning of the year. Email the Bookstore at bookstore@dlshs.org with any question regarding book return.
Bring any outstanding De La Salle or Carondelet library books with you on your date/time.
You will be cleaning out your school locker and, if applicable, your PE or athletic locker. The Athletics Department will be creating a separate form for students who need to access the Locker Room on their day to clear out PE/athletic items - you will be sent a link closer to your June 2-3 date.
If you were provided with a loaner laptop from the school, you may keep it over the summer. Please reach out to the Tech Department if there are any current issues/damage to your school laptop: technology@dlshs.org.
Yearbooks are provided for every student and would typically be distributed at this time. Given the constraints of the pandemic, both the completion and printing of this year’s yearbook was delayed. We expect a July delivery date for this year’s yearbook and will distribute them when we receive them.

Please see the following map for parking and process:

We didn’t envision an end to our school year quite like this! We applaud the efforts of your son(s) to continue learning and progressing during this challenging time. We also appreciate all of your support of him and our faculty and staff as we transitioned to Flexible Learning. We will keep you apprised of updates concerning the opening of our 2020-2021 school year as the situation continues to evolve.

We appreciate your patience.

Go Spartans!

April 19 - Letter from the Vice President for Academic Life

Dear De La Salle Parents and Guardians,

I hope you and your families had a restful, peaceful time of renewal over Easter break. I wanted to send a reminder to all families that school resumes tomorrow, Monday 4/20, with a new DLS/CHS Flexible Learning Schedule that will extend to the end of the academic school year.

I would like to draw your attention to important aspects of the new schedule:

All AP exams are listed and will occur from May 11th-May 22nd. The College Board will be working with a new format, all AP teachers have information on their Schoology pages, and you can find information about AP exams on both schools’ websites.
The last instructional day for Seniors will be Friday, May 15th. Those seniors who are signed up for AP exams during the second week of AP testing will still take their exams. Senior students and families received a letter from the President’s Cabinet on Friday about alternate dates for end-of-year celebrations, in particular regarding Baccalaureate and Graduation.
There is no special schedule dedicated to a “Final Exam Week.” End-of-year assessments --whether tests, projects, or essays--will be spread out over the final weeks of instruction.
We will still be honoring underclassmen with Academic Awards. Since we will not be able to have an Academic Awards Night in May, we are developing a plan for how these deserving students can be celebrated by our community.
We will be in contact with you about book drop off and how students can pick up anything they left on campus. Obviously, we have to work within the dictates of the Shelter-in-Place, and once we know more, we will certainly inform you.

We know this is an unsettling, challenging time. We know that our students miss in-person contact with their friends, their peers, their teachers, and the safety and comfort of the DLS and CHS campuses. I would like to reiterate that the extensive resources of the school are still available to our students and families.

As we reconvene as an educational and faith community, I would like to express once again my gratitude for the strength and resilience of our students, their families, and our DLS/CHS teachers, administrators, and staff. Our communal faith in God and in one another will sustain us.

We look forward to welcoming our students back tomorrow to our virtual Flexible Learning Plan. Thank you for your partnership. Stay safe, and stay well.

St. John Baptist De La Salle . . . Pray for Us
Live Jesus in our Hearts . . . Forever

Sincerely,

Dr. Heather Alumbaugh
Vice President for Academic Life

May 6 - Letter to Seniors and Their Families

Dear Seniors and Seniors’ Parents and Guardians,

Graduation is an important rite of passage and celebration, as are all of the senior events you were looking forward to. These events, ceremonies, and rituals will look different this year from coast to coast, but we fully intend to send you off in style, with love, and with laughter. You have not been able to be with each other, and we remember how important that was to us when we were eighteen.

Since the crisis that has disrupted our lives may keep us sheltering a good while longer, we have been working on a variety of ways to celebrate you, your friendships, and your accomplishments. Although we must follow Contra Costa County’s and the CDC’s recommendations, we have developed options for graduation and other senior events so that they are personal and as human as possible. In doing this, we considered the many suggestions sent to us by parents, researched what other schools are planning, worked collaboratively with Carondelet, and, most importantly, sought feedback and input from our seniors.

We wanted to share with you our plans for celebrating your achievements and recognizing your class:

Ongoing: Senior Spotlights - In their College Advisory, seniors created their own slide telling the community where they are heading off to college, a significant memory from De La Salle, dreams for the future, etc. We will be compiling the slides into a presentation and sharing it out on our Social Media to celebrate our graduates.

Sunday, May 10th: Senior Mother’s Day Liturgy - We are so disappointed that our Mother/Son Liturgy and Brunch cannot happen in its current form. Campus Ministry along with the Senior Council invite all seniors and their moms to celebrate a virtual Mother’s Day Liturgy. The Liturgy will be available Saturday, May 9th at 5:00 pm. Additionally, the Parent Association has a special gift for all senior moms to be distributed at our Senior Send-Off! (see below).

Tuesday, May 19th: Senior Book Return and More - You’ve done it! Your last class at De La Salle wraps up on Friday, May 15th. We will be inviting small groups to campus (students only) to drop off textbooks, claim your belongings, and clean out your lockers. Caps/gowns/tassels/certificates/freshman retreat letters and a special gift will be distributed to the seniors at this time. Please click on this link to sign up for a 15-minute slot via Sign Up Genius.

Saturday, May 23rd: Senior Send-Off, 10:00 am-12:00 noon - To celebrate your achievements and to see you in person, the administration, faculty, staff, and coaches welcome seniors and their parents back to campus for a “drive-through” celebration and send-off. You will be asked to arrive during a time slot that is assigned alphabetically by last name. Here are the times: A-D 10:00-10:30, E-K 10:30-11:00, L-Q 11:00-11:30, R-Z 11:30-12:00.

**More details about the 19th and the 23rd will be sent to seniors from Mr. Aliotti and Mr. Aquino.***

We have decided that our priority centers around two key traditions at De La Salle -- Baccalaureate Liturgy and Graduation itself -- and that these be face-to-face celebrations. Graduation Weekend will be scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, August 1st-2nd.

Saturday, August 1st: Baccalaureate Liturgy at 5:00 pm

Sunday, August 2nd: Graduation and Reception - We are actively planning in-person graduation. As a back-up, we will have also recorded a virtual graduation ceremony that includes both speeches and awards (including those normally given at Senior Presentation) and that uses our seniors’ graduation pictures.

Sunday, August 2nd: Graduate Reception - Given the postponement/cancellation of a number of social events for seniors and their families (Mother/Son Brunch, Dads & Grads, and Senior Ball), we are planning on a big, hosted celebration with food, music, and dancing for our seniors and their families following the graduation ceremony.

What about Senior Ball, Senior Presentation, and our Grad Trip?
Given the current restrictions, it is unlikely we will be able to do a large gathering like a dance or trip to Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Our Graduate Reception is intended to take the place of some of those events.

It’s not perfect, we know, but we think it’s something good. Each of you deserves to say good luck and goodbye to each other. And we will do everything we can to make that happen.

In the Spirit of Saint John Baptist De La Salle,

--The Faculty, Staff, and Administration of De La Salle High School

April 17 - President's Cabinet Letter Regarding Senior Activities

Dear Class of 2020 and Families,

We wanted to provide an update about some of the senior ceremonies that are such an integral part of the last month of the school year, knowing that Shelter-in-Place guidelines impinge on our ability to have a large gathering to celebrate our amazing senior class.

We are planning on a "Graduation Weekend" for August 1-2. We hope to have a Baccalaureate Mass and reception on Saturday, August 1st and our Graduation and reception on August 2nd. As always, we will coordinate times with Carondelet for both events to ensure that families can attend all ceremonies. We will work on more specifics as we move forward, and as we receive information from state and local authorities on what we will be allowed to do in terms of gathering a large group of people.

Developing a celebratory Graduation and Baccalaureate are of primary importance as we seek to abide by public health directives. With that said, we are working to see how other events such as Senior Awards and Senior Ball could also be held and/or modified. More information on these potential possibilities will be communicated as soon as we know more.

We are also working on a safe and effective way for students to receive their cap and gowns, cords, yearbooks, and other graduation items. More details will be communicated as we have them. We are closely monitoring what our public health officials are mandating in terms of shelter-in-place, contactless deliveries, and gatherings. Please know that it is our hope and intention to get these items to seniors by early June and to celebrate this amazing group of young men. Know that they, and all our families, are in our thoughts and prayers.

St. John Baptist de La Salle . . . Pray for Us

Live Jesus in our Hearts . . . Forever

De La Salle President's Cabinet

April 7 - From the President's Cabinet, Online Learning Extended Through End of School Year

Good Afternoon,

Last week when we wrote to you in the Spartan Spotlight, a final decision had not yet been made by the county on the remainder of the academic year. Today, we received word from the Contra Costa County Office of Education (see below) that the suspension of in-class instruction will extend through the end of the academic year. We, as a school, must comply with the County Health Services directive.

At this point in time, it is our hope that you enjoy your Easter Break and time with your family. The leadership of both De La Salle and Carondelet high schools will continue to plan, and we will provide you with updates in the coming weeks. As we communicated earlier, plans were in place for a return on May 4th and now we know that will be extended.

We are aware that these decisions constitute a major change in all our lives; we want to reiterate that our community is putting our students, teachers, and their families first. As we continue as a community in our school, cities, and state to battle the peak of the virus, we are praying for all those affected or compromised in their physical, emotional, or spiritual well-being. Our prayers are with you during this blessed Holy Week. Know that Christ is with us even during our most challenging times.

While a number of events are being cancelled, please know that HOPE remains.

St. John Baptist de La Salle, pray for us.

Live Jesus in our hearts, forever.

De La Salle President’s Cabinet

From the Contra Costa County Office of Education

Pleasant Hill, Calif. – The public health officers and county superintendents in six Bay Area counties have announced they will extend the suspension of in-class instruction through the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year.

Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Mateo, Santa Clara, and San Francisco County Superintendents, in collaboration with the Public Health Officers in their respective counties, announced the decision to extend campus closures to students through the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year. Schools will continue to transition from in-person classroom instruction to at-home and distance learning formats. School leaders will continue to utilize campus facilities to distribute school meals and provide childcare or supervision as determined by local needs.

After recently announcing campuses would remain closed for in-person learning until May 1, Bay Area counties took action to review their timelines following statements by Governor Newsom and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond suggesting that California’s students would not return to campus for in-person learning for the remainder of this school year.

“We know that social distancing is the most powerful weapon in slowing the spread of COVID-19,” said Dr. Chris Farnitano, health officer for Contra Costa County. “As hard as it is to extend school closures, we know that it is critical to protecting the health and safety of all residents of Contra Costa County and the Bay Area in general. We appreciate the opportunity to work closely with our school leaders as we adapt to this changing situation.”

Click here for the complete statement.

April 3 - President's Letter from the Spartan Spotlight

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Please know that each and every one of you remains in my daily prayers. I know that COVID-19 has affected our daily lives, and we look forward to brighter days. Those days will come – we just need to be patient and put things in perspective.

Late last night we received the following statement from the Superintendent of the Contra Costa County Office of Education.

This week, both the Governor and State Superintendent of Public Instruction have issued strong recommendations that, given the nature of the statewide stay-at-home order and continued need for physical distancing, K-12 schools should not expect to return to in-class instruction for the remainder of the school year. While not a directive or executive order, based on this guidance and the likely event that Contra Costa Health Services will extend the stay-at-home order, I encourage all of us to embrace the idea that distance learning will continue through the rest of the school year. I will be meeting with the Bay Area Health Officers and County Superintendents early next week to discuss extending the March 16th stay-at-home health order.

We know that this situation is taking its toll on everyone for many reasons, but our health experts continue to remind us that following the stay-at-home order and practicing strict physical distancing are the two best ways to slow the transmission of this virus. While we may not be able to welcome students back to campus this year, we know that learning WILL continue, and that every educator and education professional in Contra Costa County will continue to work hard on behalf of the students and families we serve.

As you know, the situation remains fluid. De La Salle will keep you informed when we know the decision from Contra Costa County Health Services who has the authority to make the final decision on this matter. I empathize with each and everyone, especially the students of the Class of 2020, who have their senior year coming to an end and things remain up in the air. At the present time, it does not look like graduation will take place on May 24th, being that the peak of COVID-19 cases seems to be the middle of May, and we do not think it is feasible to bring 2,000-plus people to campus for this important event. There is too much risk. We are in the process of planning a few different scenarios about how we can celebrate the graduation of the Class of 2020 as well as looking at combining the Mother/Son Liturgy and Brunch with Dads and Grads. More information about graduation activities will follow as we finalize plans after Easter break. We will do what we can to take care of our graduating Seniors!

Reregistration for the 2020-21 school year will start on April 3rd. The contract letter gives specific details of who to contact if you need assistance. As you know from an earlier communication – there is no tuition increase for next year. Being one with our community during this difficult time and setting priorities to ensure we can deliver on our Mission, there will be no salary increase for our employees next year. I want to thank our employees for the sacrifice they too are making during this difficult time to ensure your son has a place where he can receive a high-quality Catholic education. We are in this together, and we will work with you as we plan for next year.

I would like to thank our entire faculty, which includes all counselors and librarians, the Academic Affairs Council, and Campus Life for their commitment to the Lasallian mission and for their educational leadership in this unprecedented time. I'd also like to extend a big thank you to all members of our Technology Department, as the infrastructure they have built over the past years enabled the school to move quickly and effectively to our Flexible Learning Plan.

Finally, it has been quite a Lenten Journey for all of us. It is my hope that we can celebrate the true meaning of the Resurrection, particularly this year, knowing that death no longer has any power over us. In reality, that is the message of Easter, and this year I have come to realize this perspective in light of what is happening.

On behalf of De La Salle High School, we wish you and your family a Happy Easter.

May God Bless each and every one of us!

Mark DeMarco '78
President

March 26 - Message to the Class of 2020

We know that the last couple of weeks have been tough. We are not only adapting to a new way of learning, but also trying to discern what the future holds and how we plan for what comes next. For many of you, there are undoubtedly questions swirling about much-anticipated senior events.

First, we want to reiterate that our planning in the near-term is based on the timeline that President DeMarco sent out yesterday, namely that we will not be back in school in person until, at the earliest, May 4th.

Second, as many of our Senior Events are done in coordination with Carondelet, we are working closely with them on alternative dates and planning. The Senior Ball was scheduled for April 25th. We are working with our event vendors to move our Senior Ball to a date later in May.

As for our other senior traditions and events that will take place throughout May, we are working to preserve all of these time-honored rites of passage as much as possible, including our Graduation ceremony. Ultimately, we have to make decisions that are best for the health and safety of our students and wider community. This is our number one priority. We have been working diligently to come up with solutions for all possible situations and know that we are proactively exploring a variety of scenarios to host these activities and to celebrate your successful transition, not only through this unprecedented time, but as De La Salle graduates!

Finally, we want to express how much you all mean to us! Mr. Drain, our Director of Student Support Services, along with Mr. Aquino, our Director of Campus Life and Culture, have a special message for the young men of the Class of 2020.

With Gratitude,

Michael Aquino Joe Aliotti
Director of Campus Life & Culture Dean of Students

March 25 - From the President, Online Learning Extended to May 1

“God is our refuge and strength; ever-present help in distress. Therefore, we fear not, though the earth may be shaken.” Book of Psalms (46)

Dear Parents and Guardians –

My grandmother always used to tell me – when life gives you lemons make lemonade. Well, at the current rate we could open multiple lemonade stands.

We are all aware that for us as a school community it is not business as usual. Today, we received word from Contra Costa Health Services office and the Contra Costa County Office of Education that school closures and student dismissals have been extended until May 1st, with a return date of May 4th. This is two weeks longer than we had planned. The good news is that we have a little over a week before we have a two week Easter break and then just two more weeks to go. As we all know this is fluid and can change at any time, we will keep you informed as soon as we know something.

We will continue with our online learning to ensure we meet our goals of delivering quality instruction during this time. Dr. Alumbaugh and her team continue to do amazing work during this time as do our dedicated faculty and staff. You will be receiving a message from Dr. Alumbaugh’s office in the next few days in regards to the school closure extension and our online learning instruction.

In the coming weeks, we will begin our planning for next year. As you know from an earlier email, there will be no tuition increase next year, and we as a school have made the necessary budget modifications based on that decision. On April 6th, you will receive the reregistration for the 2020-2021 school year. Again, I know that this is not an opportune time to send this out, but we need to plan as best we can for next school year when this crisis is hopefully behind us. That being said, if you have any concerns please wait until you receive the email regarding next year’s tuition contract for further information. We will work with you the best way we can during this difficult time. De La Salle High School is a haven in which we will continue to educate young men of Faith, Integrity, and Scholarship.

Finally, as a Christian Brother said to me a few days ago – “It is with great consolation in knowing that our Founder, Saint John Baptist de La Salle, was a man of great practicality and even greater faith, a perfect model for times like these.” As the Founder once wrote to one of his Brothers who was experiencing difficulties, “Take care not to let yourself be discouraged by anxieties and ailments; life is full of them.” With God’s guidance, we will do the things that must be done to care for each other and ourselves, and we will weather this storm successfully by weathering it together.

Thank you for your continued partnership with us during this unprecedented time.

In the Spirit of Saint John Baptist de La Salle,

Mark DeMarco ‘78
President

March 20 - Letter from the President Regarding 2020-21 Tuition

Dear Parents and Guardians,

As you know, we are in unprecedented times. Information coming to us regarding COVID-19 seems to change by the minute. The long-term effects on our economy are still uncertain. We will get through this together as a Lasallian family by taking care of each other.

This is the time of year that we announce our tuition increase for next year. The timing could not be worse. As we look around the United States, we see and hear of people being laid-off. I firmly believe that during this time our school is a haven for our students and families.

We have been meeting to discuss the financial impact this may have on you and our school and have concluded that we will not increase our current tuition for the 2020-2021 school year. Our tuition will remain flat in an effort to weather this storm together, and we have significantly increased our financial aid budget.

If you have questions about tuition, email the school at DLSCommunications@dlshs.org.

In the Spirit of Saint John Baptist de La Salle,

Mark DeMarco '78
President

March 19 - Letter from the Vice President for Academic Life

Dear De La Salle Parents and Guardians,

As both De La Salle and Carondelet announced earlier this week, we have extended the length of our Flexible Learning Plan and of Spring Break given the mandated Shelter in Place that began on Tuesday, March 17th and that will stay in place until April 7th. Please see the Bell Schedule until April 20th here. Obviously, we are aware that the situation is fluid, so we will be in open communication with all families should anything change.

Also, as we move to the end of our first week of the De La Salle/Carondelet Flexible Learning Plan, I wanted to share the full picture of the resources we have for your sons. All academic departments--including Student Support Services, the Learning Center, and the Library--are working full time online to support students, families, and teachers alike.

Counselors
School Counselors are online and available all-day during school hours. They are also available for Google Meet appointments with parents and students. Please reach out to them directly with any questions and/or to set up an appointment.

A - D	Lauren Stevens	stevensl@dlshs.org
E - K	Scott Drain	drains@dlshs.org
L - Q	Cris Rosales	rosalesc@dlshs.org
R - Z	Lindsay Melaas	melaasl@dlshs.org

Learning Center
Our College Counselors are crafting online versions of the Sophomore and Junior curriculum, the former of which has already been sent out to classroom teachers. They continue to work actively with all Seniors; they too are available via email and Google Meet, so please reach out to Janet Appel (appelj@dlshs.org) and Esther Lopez (lopeze@dlshs.org).

Our Learning Center Coordinator, Jon Norfolk, has added a course in Schoology called, Learning Center: Live Tutoring and Discussions. All students are members of the course. Follow these simple guidelines to get academic support from our adult volunteer tutors and our National Honor Society peer tutors:

1. Click on a folder and choose your tutor. Please mind the tutors' availability hours that are listed and the subjects they tutor. Our adult tutors are available, and please note that NHS tutors' availability is limited. You will have to connect with an NHS tutor through the folder's Discussion Board.

2. You have TWO options when connecting with tutors on Schoology:
a. Click the Live Chat link to communicate with a tutor on Google Meet. This will give you an interactive web face with your tutor. Different options apply to those who do not have cameras or microphones on their laptops or simply do not have a computer at all. See various options in your tutors' folder to Phone In!
b. Use Discussion Boards to post questions and comments with the tutor.

3. Please contact Jon Norfolk (norfolkj@dlshs.org) directly through email if you would like to be referred to a tutor on our Schoology course.

***If your son is NOT a member of the Learning Center course, contact Mr. Norfolk, and he will add your son immediately.

Library
The De La Salle Librarians will be available to support students and faculty between 7:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday (except Friday, March 20th, which is a virtual Professional Day). They can be reached via e-mail or Schoology, and they will be happy to meet in an online forum for additional support if needed. Please feel free to reach out to them with any research or information questions you may have. The Librarians have also transitioned Book Club to an online format and will be meeting once per week with each group using Google Meet. The De La Salle Library has a wealth of online resources, and the Librarians are here to help students navigate them with confidence and to ease the frustration that can accompany distance learning/research. Our Librarian are Elaine Seed (seede@dlshs.org), Brooke Heskett (heskettb@dlshs.org), and Brian Wiersma (wiersmab@dlshs.org).

Attendance
As a reminder, all teachers are taking attendance (see the new attendance codes in the Student Guidelines for Instructional Continuity). Please call the attendance line if your son is sick, so we can account for him. We run attendance reports multiple times a day.

Here are some additional highlights that may interest you:
On Monday, teachers ran multiple sessions, with appropriate social distancing, on Technology Tools, Digital Pedagogy, and Online Assessments for their peers. We purchased Digital Theater Plus to expand our online theater offerings for all Humanities courses. The Science Department Chair, Spencer Shively, started a “Remote Learning Flip Grid Challenge” for the Science Department to share short videos of their online experiences. Twenty-five Wacom Tablets have been distributed across Math, VPA, and Science, so teachers can lead more creatively rich instruction in real-time. This list is by no means exhaustive, but rather a snapshot of teachers’ creative adaptions.

Roger Hassett, Director of Campus Ministry, is posting Lenten Thoughts daily Monday-Friday on Schoology for students and sends them via email to faculty and staff. I wanted to share the Lenten Thought from Tuesday, the first day of our Flexible Learning Plan, as it strongly resonated with me:

One day builds on another. Our lives accumulate in increments of moments, hours, and days. Everything depends on this present moment and our courage to turn aside in delight, wonder, and gratitude.” Marv and Nancy Hiles

With wonder and gratitude, I want to thank the amazing teachers at both De La Salle and Carondelet whose resourcefulness, fearlessness, ability, and compassion have made this transition possible. We are also aware that our equally resilient and inspiring students are experiencing this new world with multiple emotions, and we are here to support them. As two schools, one community, we will continue to put the well-being of our students at the center of all decision making.

Thank you for your partnership. Stay safe, and stay well.

St. John Baptist de La Salle . . . Pray for Us

Live Jesus in our Hearts . . . Forever

Sincerely,

Dr. Heather Alumbaugh
Vice President for Academic Life

March 16 - President's Message

As a follow up to Monday’s shelter in place announcement from the Contra Costa Health Services office on Monday, President Mark DeMarco '78 wanted to share a message with our families.

Earlier today, an email was sent to you through School Messenger about our online learning program. Online classes begin Tuesday, March 17, and all students are expected attend classes virtually.

Please review the Student Guideline for Instructional Continuity for complete details.

De La Salle High School will continue to update our coronavirus (COVID-19) webpage as an online resource for our families.

If you have any questions, please email the school at dlscommunications@dlshs.org.

March 13 - Campus Closure, Move to Flexible Learning Plan

Dear De La Salle Parents and Guardians,

After thoughtful and thorough reflection, ongoing dialogue with public health officials, and keeping the best interest of our students, families, and faculty and staff in mind, De La Salle and Carondelet high schools have made the decision to implement a two-week school dismissal and initiate our Flexible Learning Plan for our students. The school dismissal will be effective Monday, March 16 through Friday, March 27, with the hopes of returning to class on Monday, March 30. De La Salle and Carondelet will re-evaluate this situation by Wednesday, March 25.

To be clear, neither De La Salle nor Carondelet has any confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), but to help reduce the spread of COVID-19, we believe this is the best course of action for our community. If you, your student(s), or any members of your family exhibit symptoms of the coronavirus, or have been exposed to individuals that have tested positive for COVID-19, please contact De La Salle and the Contra Costa Health Services office immediately.

Please be assured that administrators, faculty, and staff on both campuses have been preparing for the possibility of school dismissal over the past few weeks, and we are confident that the Flexible Learning Plan set in place will provide appropriate learning experiences for all students. Please read the Student Guidelines for Instructional Continuity with your son as soon as you can.

Effective immediately, all co-curricular activities at De La Salle, including athletics and Company, have been suspended until further notice. This includes practices, on-campus workouts (both individual and as a group), meetings, and competitions. Additionally, all De La Salle and Carondelet athletic facilities will be closed until further notice.

The current situation is and will remain fluid. If there are any changes made to the plan outlined in this communication, you will be notified immediately.

Upcoming Timeline

Monday, March 16th, 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. - Students can pick up any items left on campus. Teacher work day.
Tuesday, March 17th – Online block learning begins at 8:30 a.m.
Friday, March 20th - Scheduled professional day, and students will have the day off as originally scheduled.
Wednesday, March 25th, De La Salle and Carondelet to re-evaluate class dismissal situation.

Flexible Learning Plan

Student Guidelines for Instructional Continuity
Resources about the COVID-19, information on school events, and past communication to parents can be found at www.DLSHS.org/coronavirus
Access the Schoology portal here: https://schoology.wintondrivedistrict.org/
- If you need parent access contact Michael Aquino at aquinom@dlshs.org

Sick/Attendance
If your child is sick and is not able to engage with online learning, you will still be required to alert the attendance office. Teachers will be taking roll for each of their sessions.

De La Salle Counselors
De La Salle counselors and student support services will continue to be available each day for phone appointments. If you or your child should need to speak with them, please visit the Student Support Services page on the De La Salle website for their contact information.

Additional communications regarding Student Guidelines for Instructional Continuity will be sent out through Schoology. Students should check Schoology daily for updates.

Information about the De La Salle Auction on Saturday, April 4, will be communicated on Tuesday, March 17.

At this time, we do not plan on extending the school year since students will be learning while campus is closed. We will continue to work in conjunction with Carondelet and the Contra Costa Health Services.

This is a difficult time for all of us, and we appreciate your support and trust in our schools during these unprecedented times. Everything we do is with the safety of our students in mind.

With thoughts and prayers

The De La Salle President’s Cabinet

March 10 - Letter from the President's Cabinet

Dear De La Salle Parents & Guardians:

As questions regarding COVID-19 continue to increase, we are providing you with an update of our preparation for keeping our school, students, and employees safe.

The situation for De La Salle and Carondelet has changed, as there are currently 10 cases in Contra Costa County, so we are in Scenario II.

Contra Costa Health Services (CCHS) continues to monitor the situation and is providing guidance and resources specific to Contra Costa County.

Our planning draws from scenarios outlined in the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and the California Department of Education (CDE) School Guidance on COVID-19, as well as Contra Costa Health Services Guidance for Schools.

De La Salle will closely follow this guidance, along with specific instructions we receive from public health authorities in these possible circumstances:

Scenario I: Measures already underway to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
We have been implementing all possible preventative steps outlined in this scenario, including increased education about hand washing, staying home when ill, and routine cleaning. We have implemented proactive cleaning protocols to increase hygiene. We are closely collaborating with public health agencies and our educational partners, including neighboring schools and districts, to model the best preventative practices.

Scenario II: If there are two or more community transmission cases of COVID-19, but no individuals within the school test positive. (current scenario)
De La Salle and Carondelet will implement “social distancing” strategies when mandated by public health officials. We will work with schools and school-related organizations to cancel or postpone concerts, assemblies, athletic events, and other large group activities, as necessary. These changes would be communicated through School Messenger and email.

Please note that at this time, the Contra Costa Health Services (CCHS) is not mandating any event cancellations or postponements.

Scenario III: If a student or staff member tests positive for COVID-19.
We will work in coordination with Carondelet and public health officials on the best course of action to decide whether or not to close both campuses for a period of time to ensure the health and wellbeing of all students, faculty and staff, and community members.

We are actively developing a flexible learning plan with Carondelet, should a long-term solution be needed, which would include online learning platforms, coupled with support for those families who currently lack online access. This decision, and more details, would be communicated to families and staff through email and School Messenger.

We will also provide guidance on co-curricular activities as we work with the public health department, Carondelet, and other schools.

What You Can Do to Support

Help De La Salle Contact You:

Be sure Linda Byrne, our Registrar, has your current cell phone number and email.

Follow Public Health Advice and Information:

CCHS: Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)
- The resources section Includes FAQ’s, as well as an early COVID-19 self-screening form
CDPH: Social Distancing Guidance (COVID-19)
CDPH: Fact Page
CDC: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
CDC: Hand Washing Instructions
CDC: Get Your Household Ready for COVID-19

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we all work together to face this difficult situation. The strength and resiliency of our De La Salle and Carondelet community has always been a powerful asset for our students, faculty, and staff. Our continued collaboration will be central to keeping our schools safe and healthy.

We will communicate with you as more information becomes available.

The De La Salle President’s Cabinet

March 5 - From the Spartan Spotlight

February 27 - Letter From the President's Cabinet

Dear De La Salle Parents and Guardians:

At De La Salle and Carondelet High Schools, the health and safety of our students, faculty, staff, and families are paramount. Many of us are following the news of a new virus (novel coronavirus) that has made thousands of people sick in China and around the world, including a few cases in the U.S.

De La Salle and Carondelet High Schools are monitoring closely information and advisories from the Contra Costa Health Services (CCHS) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to reduce the risk of anyone getting sick from this novel (new) coronavirus in our community. According to the CDC, “for the general American public, who are unlikely to be exposed to this virus at this time, the immediate health risk from novel coronavirus is considered low.” This means Contra Costa County residents, including our De La Salle and Carondelet communities and neighbors, are still at low risk of becoming affected.

The best ways to reduce the risk of getting or spreading any respiratory disease, including this virus, are:

Stay home from school or work if you are sick
Frequently wash hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and water, or use hand sanitizer
Cover with an elbow or tissue when coughing or sneezing
Avoid touching eyes, nose, or mouth and limit close contact with people who are sick

CCHS is not currently recommending the use of masks, so we are not providing or requiring them at school. Local information about the virus is available at cchealth.org/coronavirus. Further, we will continue to monitor updates from the Centers for Disease Control.

We will communicate with you as more information becomes available. Thank you, as always, for your partnership.

Sincerely,

The De La Salle High School President’s Cabinet

February 6 - From the Spartan Spotlight Newsletter

Many of us are following the news of a new virus (novel coronavirus) that has made thousands of people sick in China and around the world, including a few cases in the U.S. We wanted to forward you information provided by the Contra Costa Health Services (CCHS) to reduce the risk of anyone getting sick from this novel (new) coronavirus in our community.

Right now, there have been six confirmed cases reported in California, including two in Santa Clara County. Even though there are cases in the Bay Area, CCHS reports the risk of becoming ill from this coronavirus in Contra Costa County, remains very low.

According to the CCHS, the only people who are potentially infected with this virus, which causes fever and breathing problems, are people who started getting sick WITHIN 2 weeks of returning from China, or people who have had close contact with a sick person.

CCHS does not recommend exclusion of healthy students, families, teachers, or school staff if they do not have any symptoms, regardless of actual or perceived travel history, race, or heritage.

The CCHS tells us the best ways to reduce the risk of getting or spreading any respiratory disease, including this virus, are:

Stay home from school or work if you are sick
Frequently wash hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and water, or use hand sanitizer
Cover with an elbow or tissue when coughing or sneezing
Avoid touching eyes, nose or mouth and limit close contact with people who are sick

CCHS is not currently recommending the use of masks, so we are not providing or requiring them at school. Local information about the virus is available at cchealth.org/coronavirus.

De La Salle Resources

Weekly COVID-19 Updates

Public Health Resources

U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC)

CALIF. DEPT. OF PUBLIC HEALTH (CDPH)

Contra Costa Health ServiceS (CCHS)

Coronavirus (COVID-19) FAQs

What is COVID-19?

What are the symptoms?

How do I protect myself?

It’s important that everyone take steps to reduce the spread of novel coronavirus, especially to protect those who are more vulnerable. Steps you can take to prevent spread of flu and the common cold will also help prevent coronavirus:

wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If not available, use hand sanitizer.
avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands
avoid contact with people who are sick
stay home while you are sick and avoid close contact with others
cover your mouth/nose with a tissue or sleeve when coughing or sneezing

If you are traveling overseas, check for the latest COVID-19 Travel Alerts and follow the CDC’s Travelers’ Health guidance: cdc.gov/travel

Currently, there are no vaccines available to prevent COVID-19 infections.

When Should I Seek Testing?

Seek medical care promptly if you feel sick with fever, cough, or difficulty breathing AND:

you have traveled from affected geographic areas in the 14 days before your illness began
OR
you have been identified by the health department as a recent close contact of a confirmed COVID-19 case or had recent close contact with someone who is being evaluated for novel coronavirus infection.

Before you go to a doctor's office or emergency room, call ahead and tell them about your recent travel and your symptoms. They will give you instructions about how to get care quickly while preventing exposure to others. Your healthcare provider will evaluate you to determine whether you should be tested for COVID-19.

Hybrid/Distance Learning & COVID-19 Information

2019-20 COVID-19 Communication Archive

Bell Schedule

De La Salle Resources

Weekly COVID-19 Updates

Public Health Resources

Links to Additional Information

Coronavirus (COVID-19) FAQs