Current Staff and Student Enrollment as of July, 2020:
Current Enrollment, teachers, staff and volunteers:
Teachers:
Pre-K and K – 2: 3 students
Mrs. Kelly Appell: Grades 3 – 6: 3 students
Mr. Breck Appell: Grades 7 – 12: 10 students
Staff:
Volunteers:
Rev. Mark Appell: Sr. Pastor/Bible Teacher
Rev. Jordan Davoll: Assistant Pastor/Bible Teacher
Mr. Chris Gardner: Youth Director/Bible Teacher
Mrs. Chris Mayer: Art
Parents of students: As needs may arise
Purpose statement:
To provide a spiritually, physically, and healthy environment that will meet the needs of the staff, students, and guests in accordance with both local and state officials. We desire to contribute to success while maintaining both a sensitivity and sensibility to the existence of the COVID-19 virus. This submission has taken into account all the recent guidelines set forth by the SED and DOH within context of this Academic institution.
Curriculum Used:
We will primarily use the BJU Press curriculum along with supplemental work from other sources as recommended by the classroom teacher. Each classroom has a teacher. The curriculum is video based and portable, and students can take their work home, do their work at home with opportunity for corrections, quizzing, and tests in the event that the Academy could not be open due to an outbreak of the virus in the community.
General Security:
We will continue to have outside doors to the public locked as in previous years. The main entrance to the building will be left unlocked for convenience but the inner entrance door is kept locked all day.
We require ID for entrance if the visitor is unknown to the receiving staff. Students are never to let anyone in the building even if the student recognizes the guest as a friend or family. Adult staff are the only authorized individuals to let guests into the building. All entering guests will be required to have both ID and a mask. No individual is allowed apart from prior knowledge of their arrival and a health screening.
Health and Safety initiatives:
1. To provide an environment that is cleaned during and after each school day.
- Using the appropriate cleaning supplies as provided by the school district and purchased.
- Implement a cleaning process throughout the day to provide continual cleanliness in accordance with the submitted guidelines by both SED and DOH.
2. To provide a place of rest for any student or staff who may fall ill during the school day.
- Back room off the main office.
- Immediate notification of parents.
- An assessment of the student’s physical condition.
- An available log book to begin recording pertinent information.
- Contacting of health officials if it is believed to be COVID-19.
3. To have the adequate equipment to monitor the health of students and staff.
- face masks
- no touch thermometer
- cleaning supplies for daily maintenance
- adequate hand sanitizer for each area of instruction and rest rooms
- continue our usual supply of first-aid needs as we have in the past
- posted signs as a clear reminder of personal and corporate responsibilities
4. School day gathering changes:
A. To provide acceptable distance for students as they prepare for the school day to begin, all
students will have assigned areas (socially distanced) that they will be required to gather in once they arrive. Students will be within the view of a teacher. This will be only until the school day officially begins; then staff and students will be released to their individual desk areas in their particular classroom to begin the school day.
B. There will no longer be a general opening for the student population each day. All opening activities such as pledges, prayer, Scripture recitation, and announcements will take place in and with teachers and students at their classroom once they have been dismissed to their particular classroom each day.
C. There will be morning staff meetings in the lobby in accordance with the staff manual.
5. To have each classroom adequately planned that allows for acceptable distance or the use of barriers.
- Some classrooms will allow for students to be socially distanced in their classroom.
- Some classrooms will use transparent barriers to allow for necessary learning environments
6. To have limited amount of chairs and tables for the lunch rooms.
- The PK-6 staff will socially distance their students by family each lunch period as the 3 double-tabled tables that seat 12 each will now accommodate the 6 students and 2 staff. The 3 tables will remain providing sufficient room for the total of 6 students and 2 staff to be socially distanced.
- The staff for grades 7-12 will also socially distance by family during their lunch period as there will be sufficient chairs and tables for the 10 students and 1 staff.
7. To have Bible classes in the student’s classroom.
- This will reduce the potential for student groups to be in proximity.
8. To have limited amount of chairs for Chapel according to the predetermined chapel schedule.
- The greatest number of staff and students at any one time would be 6 to 10 students. There will be 10 chairs socially distanced and marked for student use on the scheduled chapel days.
9. To provide any additional guidance for staff, students, and parents in accordance with local and state officials as it may be received throughout the school year.
- All students and staff must have masks to wear and be used at appropriate and necessary times.
- All guests must have masks to wear and use at appropriate and necessary times.
- Masks may have to be worn for the entire school day, but note, there may be times that masks aren’t worn or needed.
- We encourage parents to provide the necessary sanitizing items needed for their student to be kept in their desk area while they attend the school day. The supplies would include additional disposable masks, hand sanitizer, and cleaning wipes for their desk area. This may include correct size disposable gloves as well.
- Parents need to put in writing their requests for their child’s health care as they spend the day in school; if that health care is in addition to the above mentioned items. (There is a spectrum of response to COVID-19.) We have established what we believe is a balanced approach and standard to maintain our Health and Safety initiative. Our Academy health initiative standard must be kept; but, a parent can add a personal measure of care for their student. Any parental requests need to be put in writing and turned in to the Academy office for our records. The parent’s in addition requests will be communicated to the teacher.
- If a child cannot ever wear a mask or covering due to health concerns, that has to be determined in advance by both the parent and their personal physician. We will have to have a clear understanding as to our role and what guidelines will need to be kept in mind in light of such a situation. The Academy will need written confirmation from the family physician stating as such and a plan particular to that student and those around that student from day to day.
10. To provide guidance to parents in the event their student is ill at home or becomes ill during the school/work day.
- If your student is ill at home; please make arrangements to keep them home. They cannot arrive with a fever, consistent strong cough, or runny nose that is not allergy related. If they arrive at school with any of the above conditions; they will be immediately quarantined, parent notified and expectation of immediate pick up in accordance with the provided emergency contacts on your student application. We will have to be insistent upon an immediate response.
- Emergency contact information and assurance that a student can be picked up in a timely manner if the student falls ill during the day will need to be provided.
- A designated room (see number 2 above for quarantine location) for students or staff who may fall ill for any reason while waiting to be picked up by parent or emergency contact.
- If a student or family becomes ill requiring an established quarantine at home; then every effort will be made to assist the student in the continuation of their at home education until they are well enough to return following the mandatory time of quarantine.
- We will be in weekly contact with our parents via email and phone and encourage parents to maintain consistent contact with the Academy as well. We exist to support the measures necessary to quell COVID-19 and to protect those within the student population who may have been exposed to the virus through their time at school.
Facilities Guidance:
PBCA has 2 forced air units of any kind that provide either heat or air conditioning. Established HVAC inspection and maintenance requirements will be followed that will preserve the system’s ability to achieve proper ventilation for those areas. For most of the building the air is free-flowing throughout the building and is exchanged in normal and natural ways as doors and windows are opened and closed and as air moves within a given area. Heat for most of the building is provided through a steam boiler system.
The size of our building and the lack of significant population aids us at this time with the ability to socially distance, maintain cleanliness, and circulate air in light of high ceilings and large open areas.
Physical Foot-print of PBCA:
PBCA building provides nearly 26,000 square foot of space for a population at this time not greater than 30 in total for staff and students.
Child Nutrition:
PBCA does not provide meals for their students. All lunches and snacks are brought from home. Students are not to share their lunches or snacks with other students. All garbage must be immediately thrown away. Parents are responsible for. providing a balanced breakfast to ensure student energy for learning and recreation.
Masks will not be required during lunch period; but thorough daily cleaning of the lunch room will be necessary prior to returning to their classroom. Staff may need to assist in this clean up each day.
Transportation Guidance:
The students of PBCA are brought in by their parents or authorized family members. No students are to be transported by any staff to the Academy. The only exception is if the parent is employed at the Academy, then they are to bring their own student as they normally would each day.
Social Emotional Well-being:
The ministry of PBCA is just that; a ministry. A ministry mindful of the spiritual, social, emotional, academic, and relational needs of the students. Due to our small class sizes and established relationships we are positioned to take note and comfortably notify parents of any student exhibiting signs of discomfort in light of all the recent challenges and changes.
There is a weekly chapel that provides formative counseling in a way that is encouraging, relative, and visible from the other staff members. Our open door and open communication policy will disallow for us the opportunity to keep a student’s parent from not knowing any concerns we may have on behalf of a student and helping in whatever challenge their student may have at that time as prescribed by the parent to us.
Current teachers are more than just staff to our students, but friends to each of their families. There is a strong bond of communication and trust for the students of the Academy with a sensitivity to each particular student’s make-up and understanding. Communications go home with each student providing the parent with current information and the opportunity to monitor the student’s homework.
Religious and Independent School Schedules:
At present we are on schedule to coincide as best as possible with the school districts that we have been affiliated with for the past 40 years. We are prepared to assist and adapt as we did in March of 2020 to meet the academic needs of our students. We do have some technology capabilities; and, as we did in the past, we can have a controlled schedule of students and staff in the building.
The strength of our curriculum is that it is portable. At present we are able to provide continued education with minimal interruption as long as parents are encouraging at home learning. Students would be able to schedule allotted times to video conference with their teacher.
It was our desire to maintain as much help as we could as a ministry without burdening the parents any more than they were as they were shifting to a whole new paradigm of both parenting and schooling. We extended our school year this past year.
Attendance:
PBCA’s small population and family connection assures a well-monitored system for attendance. Due to the type of portability with educational materials; a student can feasibly stay current with their courses even if they were confined to home.
Our student handbook outlines all our attendance requirements and expectations. There is no student who can simply slip through the cracks without knowledge of both the parents and the Academy.
Teaching and Learning:
The portability of our curriculum allows for students to continue their education without interruption. In review of our most recent shutdown we assessed that almost all of our students finished their assigned work for the year. Of those who did not complete all of their assignments they still completed more than 75% of their assigned work. Their incomplete work was with the knowledge of their parents.
Athletics and Extracurricular Activities:
PBCA has very few after school events that are indoors. We are not a part of any athletic conference and at present we do not know if we will be participating in any sports as our student population is at a minimal.
In the event that PBCA is to host an after school event then all prescribed measures would be enforced and made known to our entering guests.
- Masks will not be required if gym or recess takes place outside, unless the parent has informed us that they prefer their student to wear a mask while being outside and around others.
- Masks may have to be worn for the entire school day, but note, there may be times that masks aren’t worn or needed.
Bilingual Education and World Languages:
PBCA does not have any students that require special staff to help with interpretation and understanding of the English language. This presently does not apply to our situation.
Conclusion:
This document provides the basis for staff, students, and PBCA family’s guidelines, expectations, and explanations of the coming school year. This information is to be posted to the link that exists with our current website in association of the “Perth Bible Church.” The guidelines from both the SED and DOH will be filed and available in the event of any question or concern as to what should be done.
As a ministry family we will continue to provide the best environment for spiritual, academic, and physical growth and well-being for all those attending and associated with PBCA.
