Dear AISC,
Amidst the array of global events this week, which depending upon where you are looking and listening may feel utterly tragic, reading this poem gave me a few moments of clarity and inner calm. I thought our community might appreciate this share today.
Where the Mind is
Without Fear, by Rabindranath Tagore
Where the mind is
without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not
been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic
walls
Where words come out
from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving
stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream
of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert
sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led
forward by thee
Into ever-widening
thought and action…
Breathe.
Locally, we have had an amazing full week of teaching and learning on campus. We are not yet at the "Pandemic? What Pandemic?" state of mind, but I sense that we very much want to be there. Patience! We will be/we need to be taking this one day at a time!
Here are a few captures of student experiences this week.
Remember, we are re-evaluating our protocols and our campus routines (see below on Project Get Back!) each week as we monitor community spread in Chennai and on-campus.
Important Updates - Ryan McFarland, Student Life Director
Positive
cases
This week we had zero students or staff members that tested positive and had been on campus in the two days prior. We currently have 2 students and 0 staff members that are currently positive for COVID-19.
Weekly Monday Testing. Bring your negative cartridge to campus on Mondays only. If, for some reason, Monday is not your first day on campus for the week, please bring the completed strip on whatever day it is. No need to upload a photo or fill out a form.
Situational Testing. Right now, we do additional testing for higher exposure activities like field trips. However, given the extremely low number of cases and community spread at AISC, we are forecasting a shift away from weekly universal testing in the coming month.
When we do this, we will continue to use testing in specific higher risk situations like field trips and certain community events.
We would welcome community members’ inputs and questions on this topic as we continue to adapt our protocols to align with the current reality. Care to share? Email Ryan McFarland or Andrew Hoover directly at mryan@aischennai.org or headofschool@aischennai.org.
Cloth masks on campus. Given that we have come through the Omicron Surge, there are no longer any restrictions on types of masks worn on campus. Remember, surgical and N95-style masks provide optimum protection. (Those Raptor Masks are welcome back!)
Close contact tracing. We are continuously reviewing how we do this. We are maintaining a fairly broad interpretation of “close contact” exposures on campus.
Reminder
- Recycling of Panbio testing waste
Thank you to the students that have been bringing in the recyclable waste from our test kits. Please remember that the swab that is inside the tube should be discarded at home, and the tube rinsed out with water before being brought to the school. We have more plans for recycling of other materials that will be announced as part of Earth Week in April, but are excited to be able to start with this waste.
NEW! Project Get Back Update
As the
pressure from the Omicron Surge has eased, we are re-establishing certain
routines and activities on-campus.
In the coming weeks, we are phasing-in the following routines/activities while maintaining our RaptorSafe Protocols:
Here are the other aspects of campus life we are working to bring back soon…
- Interscholastic
team play
- ES
Movie Night
- Field
Trips
- HS/MS
in-person CareerX experiences
- AISC Staff Crèche
We will continue to welcome your questions, ideas and input as we continue to work on Project Get Back. Email Ryan McFarland or Andrew Hoover directly at mryan@aischennai.org or headofschool@aischennai.org.
Virtual Learning & Student Absences
Nearly all AISC students -- 98% -- are now attending our On-Campus Program.
For students attending our On-Campus Program, please note our attendance procedure:
- If
a student is sick or needs to stay at home for personal reasons, they will not
attend class virtually. Please complete the ParentLocker survey and notify the
section office.
- If a student is in quarantine/isolation by COVID-19 Protocol, complete the ParentLocker survey and notify the section office to access virtual classes.
Board of Directors Update
Reminder
- Head of School Search Committee Update
We have received several requests for access to the candidates’ resumes. Thank you to those who brought those requests to us. You can view both candidates’ resumes at the Board of Directors’ Blog under Head of School Search Documents.
The parent session dates and times for the two Head of School candidate virtual visits are posted on the PCA blog. We encourage parents to take part in these important sessions.
Reminder
- Board of Directors Town Hall Meeting - Monday, March 7 @ 8:45 to 9:45 a.m.
Please join the Board of Directors on Monday, March 7 at 8:45 to 9:45 a.m. on Zoom for our Annual Town Hall Meeting during which we share information, considerations, and thinking regarding the budget and fees for the following year (2022-2023). The Board and the Business Office spend considerable time throughout the year building a budget that balances the short- and long-term financial goals of the school while meeting the resource and learning needs of our students.
The members of the Board of Directors take seriously their responsibility as financial and strategic stewards of the school, and in the interest of transparency, we believe that Association members should have the opportunity to understand and inquire regarding this vital process. The Board will consider a 2022-2023 budget at its March 9 Board meeting.
Zoom link below. Please do not share this link with outside our community.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://aischennai-org.zoom.us/j/92430903692?pwd=OTZlRGpTMUZEV09DOVhHWXFHSW1EZz09
Meeting ID: 924 3090
3692
Passcode: AISC
Board of
Directors Meeting
The March Open Session Board meeting will be held virtually on Wednesday, 9 March at 5:00 p.m. IST. Community members are invited to join us. Zoom meeting information will be shared next week in this blog.
Next Week At-A-Glance
Office of Teaching and Learning Update – Joelle Basnight, Deputy
Head of School
Futures
Planning - Blog Update!
Wondering what is happening with AISC’s Futures Plan? Check out the updated blog post by Mike Malone.
Mike explains the progress made in the Learning and Innovation in the System by sharing information about the upcoming High School Transdisciplinary Days!
Wednesday
Early Release Update
Our last few Wednesday afternoons have been filled with learning! On February 9th faculty met in sections. On February 16th faculty attended their 5th strand learning session in the areas of:
- Supporting Diversity & Equity: From Empathy to Courageous Conversations
- Supporting Highly Able/Gifted & Talented Learners
- The Power of Making Thinking Visible
- Understanding by Design - Curriculum Development
Finally, this week, our full faculty met with Homa Tavangar for all-school diversity and equity training.
Advancement Office – Gautami Ramachandhran, Advancement Director
Be
Featured On Our New Website!
Work on our new website is well underway but we still need your help! Our new website needs some fresh photos and there is an opportunity for students, parents, and staff to participate in professionally staged photoshoots. Students can be from any grade level.
If you would like to volunteer your child to participate or would like to be featured yourself, please fill out this Photoshoot Participation Interest Form (it will only take 2 minutes!).
We will reach out to all interested participants with further details very soon. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please email rgautami@aischennai.org.
Thank you, AISC! Your participation and support will help us tell a more authentic story.
If you’re looking for the link to take our #MeetAISC survey, you can find it at the very bottom of the blog under “Information and Reminders.”
Parent Relations – Deborah Allen, Director of Admissions and
Parent/Alumni Relations
PCA March
Monthly Meeting, Monday, March 7, 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Please join us for the PCA March monthly meeting. This month we have several AISC parents coming to speak about their experiences volunteering for the PCA, including a few grade level coordinators (past and present) and our 2021-22 Executive Team. Come and learn more about the various volunteer opportunities and consider how you might like to get involved next year. As usual, we have planned a few fun interactive activities too.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://aischennai-org.zoom.us/j/94528312597?pwd=WGY0Q1lhNXFhMWZDN1c4U0RoY1M3QT09
Meeting ID: 945 2831
2597
Passcode: 619915
NESA
Parents as Partners - Webinar #5, Tuesday, March 8, 7:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Join us for the Parents as Partners Webinar Series. To participate you may use the same link you used previously, or you may (re)register to receive an email with the link.
Webinar #5, Building a Parent Pandemic Partnership: Strengthening Your Wellness, Self-Care and Self-Compassion -- Presented by Fran Polman on Tuesday, March 8, 2022, 7:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
This pandemic has triggered a world-wide mental health crisis. We have paid an emotional toll in response to being isolated for far too long, sitting with fear and loneliness; along with too many disorienting events and the changes required of us. As parents, you were asked and will continue to be asked to embrace new roles as you build a "Pandemic Partnership" with your child's school. Exhaustion seems to be the great equalizer. Join Dr. Prolman as you strengthen a psychologically safe community of support for each other, and strengthen yourself from within to train for this marathon endemic run.
NOTE: If you are unable to attend, or you want to listen to the session again, the webinar recordings and slides from the previous sessions are posted on the Parents as Partners Info Hub a day or so after each session.
Community Survey Update
We had over 40% families take the Community Survey. Thank you (!!) for taking the time to share your valued feedback. The results will be available for viewing and shared at the Biannual General Meeting scheduled in the month of April.
If you completed the survey and shared the screenshot of the last submission page, your AISC swag will find its way to you.
Head of School Virtual Global Coffee, Thursday, March 10 at 8:45
a.m. and repeat at 5:00 p.m. IST – Join Us!
Join me for a Head of School Coffee where Andrew will be sharing perspective on being back on-campus, our plans for the reminder of the school year, how we are thinking about our Commitments for 22-23, and lessons learned during the pandemic.
Please mark your calendars for Thursday, March 10 at 8:45 a.m. and repeat of the same coffee session at 5:00 p.m. The Zoom meeting link will be shared next week on this blog.
My word for 2022 is GRACE.
Stay connected.
Have a good weekend and a delightful week ahead!
Andrew A. Hoover
Head of School
headofschool@aischennai.org
COMMUNITY NOTES
Reminder – Student Protection – Michele Ness, School Psychologist/ES
Counselor
If any members of the school community have concerns about a student’s safety, please contact one of AISC's counselors (ES, MS & HS), principals or the School Psychologist.
FOR REFERENCE
Illness
Reporting
Despite being in Virtual Learning, it is vital that AISC continues to monitor the health of our student body. While our attendance has been spectacular this year, we also need to know when a student is not well enough to participate in a day’s learning activities.
By way of reminder: Elementary, Middle, and High School parents and/or High School students are expected to email the section offices with the reason for virtual absence when a student cannot attend to/participate in the day’s learning activities. [esoffice@asichennai.org; msoffice@aischennai.org; hsoffice@aischennai.org]
In a typical year, we track illnesses, fevers, and flu symptoms. Now, more than ever, it is so important that we know if a student or household member has flu symptoms and/or has tested positive for COVID-19.
Our Health Office is open virtually. Please use us as a resource.
Our school nurses are Jessy David, Suvitha R and Barkath B and are available on all school days from 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Contact our Health Office by email on healthoffice@aischennai.org or by phone on +919840729563 / +919940635827 for any health-related questions or if you need assistance.
Positive
COVID Case Reporting
Given the contagious nature of the coronavirus, the AISC Health Office must stay informed of positive cases in our families’ households. In order to serve and protect community members, positive COVID cases need to be reported to us immediately.
Here
are a few guidelines:
- If
anyone in your household -- including staff (live-in/non live-in) -- tests
positive, please inform the School by writing to the section offices -- [esoffice@aischennai.org; msoffice@aischennai.org; hsoffice@aischennai.org]
or to the Health Office contact details shared above.
- All health information provided by AISC families has always been and will continue to be kept confidential and used by our Health and Planning Teams for record-keeping. When reporting positive cases within our community, the School will not use personally identifiable information.
We thank you for your cooperation in helping us keep our community safe. With collective and personal responsibility, we can all do our part to ensure the health of our community members and to help flatten the COVID-19 curve.
If
you aren’t sure what kind of question you are asking, we are happy to hear from
you, no matter what!
2021-2022
Data Center
Below find snapshots from our COVID-19 Data Lab. During the school year, we update these each week.
Use this information to compliment external sources of information to understand our local context, inform decisions, and as opportunities to ask more questions.
1.
Below, Return to Campus variables remain GREEN.
Return to
Campus Rubric
The
variables on our Rubric have been approved by our partner International SOS and have the support
of the AISC Board.
All of the Decision-Making Variables below must be GREEN (GO) for AISC to consider opening campus for students.
|
GO |
SLOW |
STOP |
|
Decision-Making Variables |
Explanation |
|
Lock-Down Restrictions. |
Tamil Nadu has continued to
rescind lockdown requirements. There are not any requirements that impede the
daily movement of people in the city or the general movement and procurement
of goods and services. |
|
School Campus Opening Status. |
All students in Grades EY-12
are now permitted to return to campus.
|
|
Emergency COVID Health Care Capacity (O2
Beds, ICU Beds, Non-O2 Beds). |
This assessment is based on
data from 9 major hospitals in Chennai and healthcare facilities overseen by
the Directorate of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, which tracks the
occupancy of more than 13,000 beds in Chennai.
This is GREEN when hospital
vacancy rates are increasing or stable and above 10%.
See the table and graphs below. |
|
|
Emergency care and access to
emergency care facilities are fairly normal. We anticipate some gaps in this
area if healthcare workers are not able to perform their duties due to
COVID-19. |
|
COVID-19 Testing Levels. |
Testing levels are high. |
|
Access to Supplies and Equipment
at AISC. |
Our campus is well-supplied and
remains prepared to be open. |
We also keep our eyes on the following Decision-Informing Variables, among many others, every day:
|
Decision-Informing Variables |
Explanation |
|
New cases below 1,000 per day. |
New cases began increasing on
December 22, rose above 1,000 on January 4, peaked at over 9,000 on January
14, and have been in decline since then. As of Thursday, February 24, new
case numbers were below 200/day.
This is GREEN because the daily
new case numbers are below 1,000 and are also decreasing. |
|
5 Day Moving Average of new
cases over total cases is less than 2% for two incubation periods. |
This number remains low. |
|
Percentage positive test rate at
acceptable level for one incubation period. |
(WHO 3-12%) This number has
been above 12% since January 7, 2022 and fell below 12% on February 2.
When rates are below 12% for
more than 14 days, this goes GREEN. See graph below. |
2. Below, we are sharing daily new case graphs in Chennai comparing the Omicron Surge to the two previous surges -- Alpha and Delta. (The x-axis is the number of days and the y-axis is number of new cases/day.)
3. Below, we summarize the availability of emergency COVID Care in 9 major private hospitals in Chennai, and of more 13,000 beds across Chennai in Community Health Centers (CHC) and Communicable Disease Hospitals (CDH). COVID Care infrastructure and resources are steadily returning to normal.
Emergency COVID-19 Care Bed Availability in 9 Major Hospitals
Percent of Chennai COVID-19 CHC and CDH Beds Available Since January 1, 2022
5. Below the line slope of percent of positive tests relative to total tests shows that it has crested and has fallen considerably. This number has been below 12% for more than 20 days.
6. Below we have 499 confirmed COVID-19 cases in our community since January 2021, with 5 active cases currently, including staff, students and family members. Active case individuals who expect to be on campus observe a 10-day quarantine at home and require two negative tests before returning to campus. Confidentiality is strictly observed.
7. Vaccination efforts continue in Chennai. More than 97% of the adult eligible population Chennai has been vaccinated and more than 78% of the adult eligible population of Chennai has been FULLY vaccinated. 76% of eligible children in Chennai between the ages of 15-17 have been vaccinated.
Commitments in 2021-2022
Our Commitments for the 2021-2022 school year are here!
Staying RaptorSafe
Our RaptorSafe information is here!
Information and Reminders:
#MeetAISC Survey | AISC Community Directory – 2021-2022 | AISC Annual Calendar – 2022-2023 | Head of School Coffee Presentation – November 11, 2021 | Head of School Coffee Q&A – November 11, 2021 |AGM Head of School Presentation – September 8, 2021 | Head of School Coffee Presentation – August 12, 2021 | Head of School Coffee Q&A - August 12, 2021 | Senior Leadership Team Town Hall Presentation – July 27, 2021 | Senior Leadership Team Town Hall Meeting – Q&A – July 27, 2021 | Learning Models Framework | Student Protection Manual 2021-2022