Like most schools, Rock Point School has temporarily suspended our on-campus activities due to COVID-19. As we made arrangements with families to get students home safely, we also started to make plans with our staff about how we could best support our students and their families at this uncertain time. While we know it is necessary to be physically distant at this time, we also know it is crucially important to stay deeply connected to our community.
Rock Point School teachers and staff have been working hard to shift learning online while we all stay home and stay healthy during this crisis. Teachers are meeting with each of their classes for 30 minutes a day via Google Hangout and will continue to receive work and give feedback in Google Drive. While things like Chemistry lab will have to be changed pretty dramatically, we are confident that our students and staff will rise to the challenge and continue learning as best we can during this time. As C.J. likes to say, "We will not let the perfect get in the way of the good!"
We are so encouraged by everyone doing their part to stay home, self-distance, wash their hands, and avoid public places. It's a service we can all do to help the hospitals from getting overwhelmed with patients and to protect the vulnerable members of our community. As we are all staying home more, we thought we could share some ideas of things you can do to keep your mind, body, spirit, and heart active and content.
On March 15th, the Executive Committee and Administrative Team met regarding updates about COVID-19. The situation is rapidly evolving and recommendations have changed. On that Sunday, the Governor of Vermont issued a mandate that called for Vermont schools to be closed by Wednesday. This has changed our thinking about the plan for keeping Rock Point open. In order to follow best practices happening around us, and lessen the risk for all people in the face of this virus, we have decided to suspend on-campus programming at Rock Point effective Monday, March 16.
During their work with our college counselor or weekly meetings with their advisors, students explore who they've been, who they are now, and who they want to be. There is a big focus on personal qualities and values, but students are also encouraged to explore potential career paths. Staff can help them connect with professionals in the community.
On June 8th, we held graduation for the class of 2019. These exceptional students inspired so many people to speak on their behalf during the ceremony, with moving stories of their growth, strength, and talents. We are forever grateful to their families for sharing these wonderful students with us.
The end of the school year is always a bittersweet time for our community. Our days are filled with fun events, cleaning the school, packing our bags, and saying farewell. While both staff and students are looking forward to summer break (and Summer Session), we are sad to say goodbye to members of our community who are graduating, retiring, or moving on. One way we try to ease the stress of the transition is through many of our end-of-the-year traditional events.
Each year, students go camping on their first weekend at Rock Point. The students who live on the 3rd floor traveled to Grand Isle State Park on Lake Champlain, where they enjoyed a gorgeous sunset Friday night. Saturday, they picked apples, visited a dairy farm, and took in a Farmers' Market. The students who live on the 2nd floor, traveled to Button Bay State Park Friday and then took the annual trek to the Tunbridge World's Fair where they enjoyed all the fried dough, rides, and games they could take!
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