May 5, 2020
Dear Monarch Parents,
I want to share a lovely video created to express gratitude to our faculty during Teacher Appreciation Week from afar.
Thank you for your support during all times! I also express gratitude for all of the lovely emails to our faculty this week and always.
Sincerely,
Patti
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Dear Faculty,
Happy Teacher Appreciation Week.
Since we can’t be with you to express gratitude over frozen yogurt, a little HH, or pizza, we wanted to express our gratitude face to face as best possible.
Thank you to these assorted characters in the video attached who also want you to know how much we love and appreciate you for all you do for our Monarch Community.
Our entire leadership team and community express a great big Monarch Thank YOU to all of you!
Thanks to Angela Hernandez for creating this moment of love and gratitude.
Watch Teacher Appreciation Video
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Letter from Head of School April 30, 2020
Dear Monarch Community:
I am sure you have heard that based on Governor Abbott’s Press Conference on April 27, Phase 1 of reopening Texas begins May 1 with specific businesses and allowing 25% capacity. https://www.rev.com/blog/transcripts/gov-greg-abbott-texas-coronavirus-briefing-transcript-april-27 . During his talk he addressed openings of multiple businesses, and the use of safe standards, including data to drive decisions. I, as well as our entire Monarch Team, wish we could say that we are starting back to school tomorrow and that it’s safe, but we cannot.
Phase 2 begins on May 18 and based on data, more businesses may open and Phase 1 businesses will be able to expand operations including up to 50% capacity.
Schools in Texas do not have the option to re-open for the 2019-2020 year and remain closed. His words last week did not address specifics as to how Phase 2 may impact summer programs, but he alluded to the possibility of hope. Regarding summer camps, he said: “We know how important they are for our kids, and how important they are for parents. Our medical team is still working on safe ways that kids will be able to attend summer camps. We know that camps are trying to get ready to make announcements, or plans sometime soon. We will continue working as swiftly as possible on ways to open summer camps, knowing that safety of all kids at camps is the most important consideration.”
During these past 25 days of remote teaching and learning, our families have been extremely supportive and our faculty members continue to do their very best to meet the needs of our learners. I extend a heartfelt “thank you” to our entire community. With the hope that we may be able to open for our summer programs, we are focusing on the safety and welfare of our students, adult learners, faculty, and staff as a top priority. We already have teams working on safety strategies based on Texas Health and Human Services protocols regarding COVID-19.
Over the past 25 days, our main priority for our Monarch Campus has been cleaning and disinfecting while supporting faculty and families with opportunities to pick up needed items in order to teach and learn remotely from our homes. A tiny crew has safely facilitated the scheduling of over 80 items that have been picked up or will soon be picked up ranging from a favorite stuffed animal, medications, and computer devices to support connecting remotely for faculty, staff and learners.
We do have some upcoming celebrations and great news to share!
Teacher Appreciation Week
Next week is National Teacher Appreciation Week. Our Leadership Team will be reaching out to celebrate our faculty and staff via emails for now. They will also receive a surprise gift card to lift them up and show our deep appreciation for their love for and devotion to our students and adult learners. I would like to encourage all families to send a special email of gratitude to your teachers and coaches as well. Pictures of our learners and messages from them mean the world to all of us!
Our faculty and staff are truly the best and our plan including communicating the festivities will pick up when we return this summer (if we are able to) whether during an in-service or hopefully during summer program. I have met with our Monarch Mom in charge of supporting Teacher Appreciation Week, and we agreed that this summer we will coordinate and continue some of the favorites such as pizza, ice cream, and other treats. Safety measures will likely require some adjusting of edible treats and we will cautiously implement all requirements.
Parent Appreciation Day
Our parents are extremely important to us and we recognize that your special day will be made up as well. This day is always a surprise and we will not forget you either!
Technology Resources for Families
Thank you to Dr. Shawn and his team for organizing a new virtual learning platform including various educational and therapeutic resources. It is so nice to have them in one centralized location. https://sites.google.com/view/monarchfamilyresources/home
Parent Education Opportunity
We have rescheduled Allison Schaberg of Consolidated Planning Group, Inc.’s presentation on Government Benefits – What Government Benefits are Available and How to Avoid Four Common Mistakes via Zoom on Friday, May 8 at 1pm. (Please save the date/time Link to join forthcoming)
The Atlantic
Please see where Ms. Loretta, Ms. Pat and myself were featured in The Atlantic. This is a prestigious publication out of Washington DC. It’s quite a compliment for Monarch to have been selected. https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2020/04/special-education-goes-remote-covid-19-pandemic/610231/
We were very proud of our seniors for the Public Service Announcement on Facebook regarding the use of face coverings during this time. We continue to explore ways to celebrate their hard work and achievements including postponing graduation in hopes of a late May or June ceremony. Please stay connected with us on Facebook as we have so much joy to share.
In the next few days, our program directors will reach out to share some program specific news and information as we do our best to continue to serve during a time where the landscape is everchanging and uncertain. One thing that is certain, is the love our Monarch Community members have for one another. Please remember a lot of things may change between now and my next communication, and I promise to share plans as they develop.
Thank you for the many emails reaching out to lift up the work of our faculty and staff, those mean so much to all of us. We also appreciate your flexibility as we navigate all of these tough times together.
Sincerely,
Patti
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Letter from Head of School April 22nd, 2020
Dear Monarch Community, I hope this finds you well.
During the ongoing disruptions, uncertainty of coronavirus (COVID-19), and Governor Abbott’s recent announcement mandating closure of all schools private and public through the end of the school year, I wanted to reach out to assure you we care deeply about all members of our community and to share information that you may find helpful.
As always, Monarch’s care and concern extends beyond the students to the whole family as well as our faculty. We are all in this together. We are working tirelessly to help in the ways summarized below and others, as possible.
The Monarch staff moved rapidly to develop in a matter of days virtual options for our students, where none previously existed, as a way to continue their connection with Monarch and our services through the balance of this school year.
We are also extremely committed to exploring what, if any, summer programs can be offered given the uncertain and unpredictable times we are all facing. We hope to have more on this in the next few weeks.
We are focused on safe ways to address important school functions such as prom, graduation, other end of year celebrations, yearbook and student recognitions, etc.
Effective immediately we will eliminate late fees for April tuition payments.
We have extended the reenrollment deadline from April 10 to May 8. We ask that you not delay your enrollment decision beyond this extended date due to the challenges late reenrollment introduces in being able to adequately staff and plan for the next school year.
As a not for profit institution, Monarch has a limited amount of needs-based tuition assistance that has been fully utilized each year. In connection with reenrollment, please confidentially let Jacquice Jones, Director of Admissions, know if you would like to explore what may be available. We hope to be able to offer support at the same level as last year.
In light of Harris County’s Judge Lina Hildalgo's mandate that all individuals ages 10 and up must wear a face covering or mask in public starting Monday, all programs have been asked to review this with all learners through our zoom sessions starting Thursday / Friday. With many of our learners experiencing sensory issues, we want to support our families with this awareness and opportunity to practice. Our learners will be invited to make face coverings for practice with household items such as: washcloths, bandannas, kitchen towels, hand towels, fabric remnants, pillowcases, t-shirts, etc. In addition, over the last few weeks, our seniors have been working on a public service announcement regarding the use of masks as an effort to flatten the curve. These will be shared soon.
In closing, I want to thank all of our families and staff who have worked so positively and collaboratively during these uncertain and trying times. We remain focused on providing the best therapeutic and educational assistance we can for our students and families and know we will all get through this together.
Sincerely,
Patti Pace
Head of School
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Letter from Head of School March 16, 2020
Dear Monarch Families,
I am sure you have heard the news regarding the latest precautions our President and City of Houston have imposed in response to the coronavirus (Covid-19). Monarch will remain closed after our spring break beginning March 23 and continuing through April 10, 2020. This closure is in alignment with our surrounding school systems and will hopefully give our medical professionals the support they need resulting in a flattened curve of Covid-19.
On March 23 (it may be via remote access) our faculty will finalize our plans to implement our Home Practice-Distance Learning opportunities for our students and adult learners. Prior to the break, many systems were shutting down to create and finalize their plans, Monarch chose to spend that time with the learners and thus we will finalize the plans on March 23-24. All families should be contacted by March 24-25th by a team member of your learner’s group. They will share with you the plan to begin our home practice. If you do not hear from a member of the team by end of the day March 25, please email your program director or me and we will assist.
All of our programs are so unique and each and every learner is one of a kind, so there is no one size fits all. Please know we are going to try many different ways to provide support, to our learners. We will use our email groups and each director has been encouraged to work with their faculty of professional educators, coaches, and therapists to create something meaningful for each learner. Programs will use multiple platforms appropriate for the learners and all of this will be explained. Therefore, the plan will look different for each learner. This will be a challenge, but we are going to do our best to make it meaningful.
We have discussed the possibility of onsite face to face opportunities, but we are not certain at this time if that will be possible. We will continue to reevaluate and keep you updated. There will be more information to share.
Thank you for your support and flexibility as we navigate through all of this. Yesterday, I spoke with the family who had had a possible exposure and all are doing fine with no symptoms. I received so many responses to that email with many of you checking on the family and sending well wishes. The family was grateful. I am so honored to work with such a caring community.
More information will be forthcoming. The safety and welfare of our entire Monarch Community remains a priority.
Sincerely,
Patti Pace
Head of School and Institute
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Letter from Head of School March 11, 2020
Dear Families,
We have had a very busy year, and I’m sure we are all looking forward to next week. This communication has a lot of information, and I hope you will find it useful. While Monarch does not have any active or presumptive cases of Coronavirus COVID-19, we have been taking proactive steps to increase our readiness for meeting the challenges of COVID-19. In our meetings over the last month, we have talked about the unprecedented nature of this event. We appreciate your patience and your understanding as we work through these uncertain days together. With two more school days until break, I wanted to reach out with some information regarding our actions and plans during this uncertain time.
With Coronavirus COVID-19 recently being classified as a Pandemic by the World Health Organization, we must continue to be very vigilant. In an abundance of caution, we have taken many steps at Monarch to support the health of our students, adult learners, and faculty. Families have done the same, thank you.
The Monarch Website has a button on the front page that will link you to my letters, references, and information on Coronavirus COVID-19. Please use it as a reference.
Preventive Health Action
The School continues to stress the importance of hygiene, including the need for frequent hand washing, covering coughs or sneezes, and staying home for illnesses. Classes are making and taking intentional extra time during the school day to ensure all students have frequent opportunities to review the importance of hand washing and to wash their hands.
Our Buildings and Classrooms
We continue to be vigilant with cleanliness and disinfecting our surfaces throughout the building. The faculty is doing a great job with this important task, and the night crew is being informed of any special needs. Over our upcoming break, we have asked the night crew to do a thorough cleaning throughout and especially in our classrooms, restrooms, and common areas.
Monarch has set up a Travel Log to track information and data that may be useful. We are asking families to please let your program director or assistant know if your learner or a family member plans to travel or has recently traveled outside of Texas. We have asked the same of faculty.
Students or family members who travel or come into contact with those who have traveled to a country/location designated by the CDC as 'Alert Level 2' or 'Warning Level 3' for COVID-19, should please inform your program director or assistant. Students or family members who travel or come into contact with those who have traveled to a country/location designated by the CDC as 'Alert Level 2' or 'Warning Level 3' for COVID-19 must self-quarantine and remain off campus for 14 days after returning to the United States. These absences will be excused, and teachers and therapists will provide instructional continuity for students during that time. If there are plans for your child or an immediate family member to travel to such areas, you should use your normal channel of communication to inform your child’s program. Materials will then be prepared for home practice.
Monarch has set up an Illness / Flu Log
We are asking families to please let us know if your learner or a family member is diagnosed with flu. We have asked the same of faculty. Again, we have NOT had any individuals report a diagnosis of Coronavirus but keeping up with illnesses may be helpful for many reasons.
School Attendance for students, adult learners, and faculty
As we navigate these unprecedented circumstances together, we want everyone to take care of themselves and monitor their health. Should illness or any concern about respiratory disease symptoms present themselves in your family, please know the school will support your decision to keep your child(ren) at home. The same goes for our faculty. We want everyone to take care of themselves. If sick, please stay home!
School Visitors including Tuesday and Private Tours
We are implementing a self-reporting “status of health” checklist for all visitors to fill out before they gain access to spaces throughout our campus. If we turn visitors away, we are following up with a friendly call.
School Related Trips and Events (as of now) :
Employability Fair canceled / hopefully rescheduled TBD
Senior Trip canceled/replaced with special opportunities
Transition Services Adult Trip canceled / the team is visiting possibilities TBD
Tours for Professionals canceled/rescheduled TBD
Camp For All trips have NOT been canceled to date. We are in close communication with CFA leadership who have high standards for cleanliness and disinfecting surfaces. If parents wish to receive the letter from CFA outlining their standards and precautions, please let your program assistant know. I want to make sure parents are very informed. We will continue watching closely.
If Monarch must close due to Coronavirus COVID-19
We are confident that should the need arise, Monarch will be able to deliver Home Practice opportunities to students / families. While we can't top the experience of being at Monarch every day, we are committed to providing opportunities that will help our students and adult learners feel connected to Monarch and support continuity of our program for all learners. Each program director has outlined a plan for Home Practice that will be communicated to parents in the event we close school. As we continue to watch and monitor the evolution of COVID-19, and prepare for this possibility, there are some specific action steps that we are asking our community to begin to think about.
1. Please let your program director know if your learner would have access to technology to access links and other information should this home practice need to implemented. Some opportunities will be on-line using various technology based platforms. Each Program Director will share information with their families.
2. Our plan will include daily check-ins and feedback for the learners / families. Currently the plan includes communication via our Monarch email groups as well as various platforms to be communicated by Program Directors.
3. Home practice opportunities and check-ins will be coordinated by faculty representing therapeutic and academic opportunities.
We appreciate your patience and partnership as we begin to undertake the challenges associated with COVID-19. We are committed to transparent and open communication and hope you will reach out to me or your student’s email group if you have any concerns. We all hope there will be no need to implement any of this, but we want to be ready. Our Monarch Community, students, families, and faculty are all very special. Please take care over Spring Break. We expect to be back together March 23, but if anything occurs that needs attention, I will stay in touch over the break.
As always, thank you for your support.
Sincerely,
Patti
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Letter from Head of School March 10, 2020
Dear Parents,
In light of the continued spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), Monarch has taken several measures to best ensure the health and safety of our school community. We are monitoring the situation through a variety of sources, including the Center for Disease Control (CDC), as well as state and local health authorities. According to these sources, the immediate health risk of COVID-19 to the American public remains low. Nevertheless, we have taken proactive measures on campus to help fight the spread of COVID-19 and other illnesses. These include continued access to hand sanitizers throughout the campus, asking faculty to inventory appropriate resources such as tissue, wipes, disinfectant, etc., we have met with our night crew to review disinfecting surfaces, and placement of increased signage throughout the campus to promote good hygiene.
COVID-19 is believed to spread primarily through the transmission of respiratory droplets. The CDC recommends several simple ways to prevent illness, including staying home when sick, proper hand washing, and disinfecting frequently touched objects and surfaces.
Students or family members who travel or come into contact with those who have traveled to a country/location designated by the CDC as 'Alert Level 2' or 'Warning Level 3' for COVID-19 must self-quarantine and remain off campus for 14 days after returning to the United States. These absences will be excused, and teachers and therapists will provide instructional continuity for students during that time. If there are plans for your child or an immediate family member to travel to such areas, you should use your normal channel of communication to inform your child’s program. Materials will then be prepared for home practice.
If you plan to travel outside of Texas over our Spring Break March 16-20, please inform your program assistant. With so much uncertainty, this information may be useful.
Our leadership teams are developing contingency plans should the infections in Houston increase in frequency or should any student or staff member be subject to a higher risk of infection related to this virus. Although our students and adult learners are extremely unique in their needs, we are discussing home curriculum practices should the virus become widespread. Our home practice plans may include using platforms such as OneDrive, Google Drive, and/or Google Hang-outs as well as more traditional opportunities. Directions for families will be included if this becomes necessary.
We will continue to monitor the recommendations of the CDC and other agencies regarding COVID-19. As the situation develops, we will update you as needed. Please see links below if you desire more information on this virus.
Links from the CDC
COVID-19 and Children https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/specific-groups/children-faq.html
Risk Assessment by Country https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/index.html
Travel FAQ https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/faqs.html
Travel Notices https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices
World Health Organization (WHO)
COVID-19 Advice for the Public https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public
Q and A on COVID-19 https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses
COVID-19 Myth Busters https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public/myth-busters
We take the health and safety of our students, families, and faculty seriously. We will share updates with our community, and communicate changes to any of our procedures if they become necessary.
Despite the uncertainties we are facing, we hope you all enjoy a safe, healthy and relaxing weekend. We will see you back Monday, March 9th and then we are off for Spring Break March 16-20.
Sincerely,
Patti Pace
From the Handbook:
HEALTH AND MEDICATION POLICY
The Monarch School is committed to wellness. A health form, complete with immunization record showing dates and kinds of immunization received, must be on file for each student. All immunizations must be completed and validated by the doctor or health clinic before a student is admitted to school. No student may begin school without a completed heath form on file. Health symptoms requiring exclusion from school and communicable disease control measures for faculty and students will be promulgated.
No medication will be given at school to any student unless there is a written request signed by the parent and the physician. This includes all medications, prescriptions, and non- prescriptions including cough drops, Tylenol, inhalers, etc. Students may not bring any medication to school for self-administration.
Forms for “Physician’s Request for Administration of Medication by School Personnel” will be available.
For the protection of all the students and faculty, the following rules will be followed at all times. A student having one or more of the following symptoms may be sent home:
· Fever of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or 37.8 degrees Celsius, or higher measured by mouth, or signs of a fever (chills, feeling very warm, flushed appearance, or sweating) without the use of fever-reducing medicine.
· suspected contagious disease
· vomiting
· diarrhea
If a student has any of the above symptoms in the morning before coming to school, parents are asked to please keep him/her at home.
A STUDENT MAY NOT RETURN TO SCHOOL UNTIL TEMPERATURE IS NORMAL Range (98.6 for most) FOR 24 HOURS WITHOUT MEDICATION.
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Letter from Head of School February 26, 2020
Dear Monarch Community,
We have so much excitement regarding our luncheon next week. As always, we hope to see all of you there. Our keynote speaker, Dr. Magro, an adult living with autism, will spend March 4th with our learners and faculty and then share his story with all of you on the 5th! We are looking forward to meeting and spending time with him, and we thank you for your support.
Due to luncheon preparations, the Monarch Parent Group scheduled for March 4th has been rescheduled for April 1st 8:30am in the MC. We have a parent (Nichola Rodriguez) who be presenting about strategies to connect to your community. This presentation will discuss strategies that parents and caregivers can use to help children with meltdowns, communication challenges and anxiety get involved with new people, places and programs. These approaches can help create more opportunities for learning and sharing joy. I hope many of you can make this MPG meeting!
We love serving your students and adult learners, and we have great plans for this spring! (Please see our busy spring calendar attached) In addition, we are already planning for 20-21. Student Enrollment Contracts for 20-21 will go out shortly after the Transforming Lives Luncheon, so please be on the lookout.
We have reviewed our parent and faculty alert systems. In cases of school emergencies, Monarch will contact you by texts, phone messages, and/or emails. Although we strive to contact you by all three, circumstances may mandate how you are contacted. Now is a good time to make sure all of your contact information is current.
With Spring Break right around the corner, I wanted to share some information regarding the 2019 Novel Coronavirus from the CDC and the steps we are taking to protect the health of our learners and faculty. Please note, I have access to the information publicly posted by the CDC and am communicating such in an effort to be proactive. While the immediate risk of this new virus to the American public is believed to be low at this time, everyone can do their part to help us respond to this emerging public health threat. It’s currently flu and respiratory disease season, and CDC recommends getting a flu vaccine, taking everyday preventive actions to help stop the spread of germs, and taking flu antivirals if prescribed. Please follow CDC guidance on how to reduce the risk of spreading illness to others. If your family plans to travel, the CDC has some important tips on their website as well.
CDC recommendations include the following:
• staying home when sick,
• covering coughs and sneezes,
• washing hands often, and
• routinely cleaning frequently touched surfaces.
At school in addition to the recommendations above, we ensure we have supplies (such as tissues, hand sanitizers, and soap) available to all classrooms. In our residential program, we are ensuring the same. Maintaining a clean environment has always been a priority. With our learners, we are primarily reviewing handwashing as a best practice, especially during flu season, but I am also including a few links and a YouTube video, if you are interested in learning more, as well as the contact information for the CDC: 1-800-CDC-INFO (232-4636) and www.cdc.gov/info. Some of our older learners have expressed concern for this health threat and our wonderful teams are working with all learners as appropriate. Please keep your program director informed, as appropriate, of any illnesses.
2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Situation Summary | CDC - https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/summary.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZcRD9fV7jo
Please see attachments for keeping your child protected during flu season, as well as an overview of dates for upcoming events for your learner’s program. I have also included a school calendar for your reference as this spring is sure to be busy. Please note, program assistants will continue to send more information on special events for your program such as time, location, etc.
As always, thank you for your support.
Sincerely,
Patti
Protect Your Child from the Flu During the School Year