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Civility and Love

Last night we met with hundreds of SouthLake families for JK-8 Curriculum Night. I told the audience in attendance that such events take on added importance in a society increasingly skeptical about what schools teach. We make our curriculum fully accessible to parents because we have nothing to hide. Meeting face-to-face also helps us humanize each other in ways that increase empathy and trust, both necessities as we partner together for the benefit of your children.

When the Maui wildfires devastated the town of Lahaina last month, early criticism focused on the EMA Director who did not activate the county’s warning sirens. When I first heard the story, I reflexively thought, “What an idiot!” That thought persisted unchallenged in my mind for days. Then I heard an interview with the Director, Herman Andaya, who explained that the sirens were used primarily for tsunamis, and residents hearing them would likely flee inland, directly toward the fires. My entire perspective changed. I was forced to admit that I didn’t know if the decision was correct or not; I had insufficient information to form a credible opinion. I was reminded of Proverbs 18:17: “The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him.”

In-person interaction informs our beliefs about each other. Face to face we see where our judgments have been hasty and our information incomplete. Each time we meet, whether at carline, an athletic event, a school meeting, or a fine arts performance, we build the relational capital a healthy community needs. Research consistently shows a growing incivility in America, much of it executed through digital communication fueled by online disinhibition. By contrast, I have seen a growing civility at SouthLake in recent months, perhaps because as a Christ-centered community, we are called to something even greater than civility. We are called to love.

Bible community Education Ethics Leadership
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Things I’ve Learned About Education from Senior Exit Interviews

Each spring, we conduct senior exit interviews with all of our soon-to-be graduating seniors. Typically, one-third of our seniors have been at our school since kindergarten, and the vast majority since middle school. We buy them lunch and meet with them in groups of 6-8 students at a time. We ask them questions about their most memorable experiences, what they learned from their involvement in fine arts and athletics, which teachers best prepared them for college, which staff members made the biggest impact on them, how our school’s culture affected them positively and negatively, how they grew spiritually, and anything else they want to discuss in the time we have. I try to listen and say almost nothing in response. I take copious notes every year. This summer I spent some time reviewing my notes and began to realize how much these meetings have taught me. This is a summary of what I have learned so far.

Seniors can be grumpy. This is not a knock on seniors. You’d be grumpy too trying to navigate the labyrinth of AP classes, college visits, admissions essays, financial stressors, and nagging parents. When you’ve been at the same school for 14 years, you tend to get tired of that school near the end. Parents and educators have long observed that seniors tend to “soil their nest” before they leave home. Seniors still need our help more than they wish, and certainly more than they’ll admit. They have high expectations for a memorable and fun senior year, but they also have high anxiety about the future. To cope with this cascade of emotions, seniors tend to create interpersonal conflict, sabotage relationships, and generally make themselves a nuisance to those around them. The effect is that leaving home becomes a relief, for them and the adults in their lives. As a result of this phenomenon, exit interviews can become gripe sessions no matter how we try to steer the conversation. Seniors will never be as thankful as we hope, or as aware of the sacrifices people have made for them as we wish. I must check my ego and remind myself before every meeting that I can learn something from even the harshest criticism.

Every teacher gets compliments. Every teacher gets criticized. No teacher connects effectively with every student, and no student connects with every teacher. A teacher may be described as the best teacher at the school one week, and the worst teacher the next week. Students tend to pile on, joining their friends in their positive or negative assessments, even when they’ve had no direct experience with the person they are evaluating. I do not mean to discount the criticisms; they have value. Even when the facts are skewed or downright wrong, at least we learn about student perceptions, and with teens, perception is indeed nine-tenths of reality. The lesson to learn here is that teachers who seek to be popular among students are fighting a losing battle. Teens may like you for all the wrong reasons, or dislike you for all the right ones.

Students look at much of life through the lens of what they like and dislike. They assume adults do likewise. I often hear students say, as an explanation for poor performance in a class, “that teacher hates me.” If you try to correct this believe, you’ll be met with the gravest skepticism. My own children were confused to hear me say that mature teachers give little thought to who they like or dislike. Professional educators will spend hours with students they may not necessarily like in order to help those in need. In my experience, teachers operate from a deep sense of calling, not from superficial preferences. You will be hard-pressed to convince high school students of this fact.

Students place a high value on relationships with teachers. Perhaps students value relationships too highly, but nonetheless they learn more from teachers who make an effort to connect with them on a personal level. Teachers do not have to be cool to make connections and they shouldn’t try. Students are remarkably adept at detecting inauthenticity. The best teachers relax, be themselves, and show genuine concern for their students, always within appropriate boundaries. Strong relationships will pay off educationally more often than not. That said, students will attempt unhesitantly to leverage relationships for better grades. Veteran teachers know they are always being played.

Students respect teachers with high levels of professionalism. Students appreciate teachers who are well organized and return graded material in a timely manner. They give little grace to teachers who don’t keep their word or meet deadlines, but they consistently want more grace for similar failures, certainly more grace than universities are going to give them. Students admire teachers who are humble and admit mistakes, even those students who view themselves as beyond fault. Students revere fairness. They are sensitized to favoritism, sometimes see it when it isn’t there, and hate it wherever they see it, unless they themselves are the beneficiaries. Students may like teachers who are laid back and easy, but they respect teachers who are professional and make them better scholars.

Students tend to give athletics an importance disproportionate to their value. Don’t get me wrong, I am an avid believer in athletics. My wife and I spent untold hours and dollars on the athletic pursuits of our three children. Students can make great health gains and learn valuable lessons from playing sports, no doubt. And yet in the pantheon of things important to families, sports are near the top of the list for many. Student athletes see sports as a path to social acceptance, self-worth, or the college of their dreams. Parents see athletics as a path to college scholarships. Seniors tend to judge their high school experience based on the teams for which they played or cheered. Often they praise and criticize coaches with greater gusto than teachers. Students involved in fine arts sometimes feel marginalized by the prevailing athletic culture. Obviously, many of these observations are unique to our school, but I know Heads of School across the country report similar trends. Keeping sports in perspective remains a keen challenge for students, parents, and school leaders alike.

If students don’t get into the college they want, they will often blame their high school. Universities strive to make themselves appear desirable to drive up applications and drive down admissions rates. Low admission rates signal the school is elite or selective, whether it is of high quality or not. Selective universities carefully curate their incoming classes. As a result, we see highly qualified students fail to gain acceptance at a school one year, only to see less qualified students gain acceptance at that same school the following year. The game seems capricious and the outcomes increasingly unpredictable. As a result, seniors stay stressed about college nearly all year. It colors everything in their lives for many months. Applying to 7 or 8 schools on average, our seniors spend enormous amounts of time and money on the process. Some hire outside counselors because they think, often wrongly, that doing so will increase their chances of getting into their dream college. Even in this test-optional era, many seniors enroll in test prep classes and/or get private tutors to help boost their scores. They compare themselves with their peers at every step of this emotionally brutal process. Inevitably, students experience disappointment, and they sometimes blame the school (the teachers, the classes, the counselors, etc.). It is never our fault (and I do mean never), but when the stakes seem so high, and you do everything right but still miss your goal, you want someone to blame. Many inside higher ed will admit the system is broken, but it isn’t likely to change anytime soon. In the meantime, we try to reassure seniors that what they do immediately after high school does not determine who they will become in the long run. When you’re a high school senior in an academically rigorous school, however, that message can get drowned out by louder voices.

Conclusion
I get to know our seniors better than any students. They are probably my favorite group of students at our school. I find them bright, funny, filled with energy and hope, but often riddled with anxiety. I fear that as a society we put tremendous pressure on seniors to accomplish two somewhat incompatible goals. First, we want them to have the time of their lives, often hoping to live vicariously through them as they do so. Second, we want them to be fully prepared for life after high school. These two goals do not coexist well. Each year when I listen to seniors talk about our school, I am reminded of the psychological and spiritual turmoil they experience as they juggle these goals. They’ve made it this far by determination, hard work, and intelligence, but maybe we place too much on them in their final year of high school. Maybe we expect them to grow up too much in too short a period of time. Most accept the challenge and rise to the occasion, in their own way and at their own pace. I always look forward to what they become after graduation. In the meantime, I never cease to be amazed at how much I learn from them as they prepare to leave our campus.

College Education Mental Health Parenting
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One Year Ago …

One year ago, we closed our campus and moved to online instruction for all students. At the time, I will confess I had grave concerns about what the following months would hold for our school. How long would our campus remain closed? Would our people get sick? Would our students thrive online? Would we survive financially? How and when might we reopen our campus? These and a hundred other questions weighed heavy on my mind during long days working from home and occasional sleepless nights.

Fast forward to one year later. We are a better school today in every way. Enrollment is strong and nearing capacity as we have added four new classes in our lower school. Our financial position is sound and participation in charitable giving has grown remarkably. Our teachers have learned to navigate online learning with amazing skill and our technological sophistication as a school has developed at light speed. Our students have learned new coping skills that will pay dividends long after this pandemic ends. We all learned the value of cooperation and trust as we navigated this year together as a community.

One year after our world shut down, I feel gratitude. I am thankful to each of you for your support and cooperation this past year. We faced many issues that threatened to divide us as a community, but we remained unified in our commitment to educate and care for our students. I am thankful to the medical professionals whose wise guidance has helped us navigate the complexities of running a school safely during a pandemic. I am grateful to our teachers for the sacrifices they make every day to continue the noble work of education by whatever means necessary. And finally, I am thankful to God whose providence and protection we owe for whatever good the past year has brought us, and whose love for us in Christ drives us forward in our mission. The past 12 months have brought us precious little to celebrate, but today, we can certainly celebrate that we are still here and still doing the work God has for us, day by day, week by week, until one day all things are made new.

Academics community Education
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Why I Am Thankful, Now More Than Ever, For a Liberal Arts Education

I have an undergraduate degree in French Horn Performance. I have master’s degrees in business and theology, and a PH.D. in philosophical theology. Aside from my MBA, all of my education has been in the so-called liberal arts. As opposed to concentrated vocational training in a career-specific course of study, a liberal arts education focuses on the academic disciplines of philosophy, history, language, literature, music, art, and the social sciences. Also called the humanities, these courses of study teach one to think and write and solve problems rather than merely to do a job. The humanities endeavor to make one a better person rather than merely a more credentialed one. I have never held a job that specifically requires me to have any of the degrees I hold, and yet in every job I have had, and at every stage of my adult life, I have been incredibly grateful for a liberal arts education. This is especially true now, for two key reasons.

First, closing and opening a school during a global pandemic has forced me to think carefully, critically, and calmly, skills without which I might have lost my mind or my job long before COVID could get to me. This year I have had to read and study more diligently than ever, sorting through mountains of data, discerning fact from fiction, disregarding hyperbole and speculation in order to attend to relevant information. Leading an organization during a public health crisis requires the kind of information literacy that a liberal arts education helps develop. Sure, a degree in public health would be helpful, but one cannot earn a degree to match every crisis. The abilities to learn concepts quickly and apply them appropriately are valuable precisely because they are transferrable.

Second, the racial turmoil and political polarization we have seen in recent months has exposed our inability as a nation to engage thoughtfully and productively in public dialogue on controversial topics. We are all tempted to exist in an echo chamber, listening to voices that reflect our own, viewing events exclusively through the lens of our own experience, and discounting alternative perspectives. Sustained engagement with the humanities inoculates against the kind of narrow ideology that divides and radicalizes. When we humbly subject our viewpoint to sustained critique, we are much more likely to see our own blind spots and to show empathy toward others with whom we disagree. I see no other way to live peaceably with my fellow citizens.

The free and critical exchange of ideas lies at the heart much of the western intellectual tradition from its inception. As the cost of a true liberal arts education has increased exponentially, I fear the value has been increasingly marginalized. Research shows that the humanities tend to have a moderating influence; serious students tend to view the world with less dichotomy and more nuance, less polarization and more subtlety, less estrangement and more empathy. In the process, perhaps students of the liberal arts also come to see that both politics and pandemics have less ultimate significance than matters of faith. Diseases and democracies rise and fall, but the Kingdom of God remains forever. Worry less about the schools you or your children may attend. Worry less about the fleeting social dramas that tend to occupy our immediate attention. Let us concern ourselves more intently with the kinds of people we are becoming, the kind of society we are helping to create, and the God who sits enthroned above all our fleeting and temporal concerns.

Education Leadership
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SouthLake Christian Academy Reopening Plans

Introduction

The Executive Administrative Team of SouthLake Christian Academy has established a plan to return to live instruction on campus this fall. While we acknowledge that there is no risk-free way for students and teachers to return to campus, our plans intend to mitigate risk and balance the spiritual and educational needs of our students with the health and safety needs of the entire community. Attempting to resume on-campus operations during a pandemic will require careful strategy and unprecedented cooperation. We are committed to the words of our vision statement “that Christ may be preeminent in all things” (Colossians 1.18) and we take seriously the promise of our mission statement to education and disciple students “in all aspects of God’s reality.” We also know that we have an obligation to the common good, to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. With these principles in mind, we will keep our plans flexible, our operations nimble, and our eyes attentive to changing circumstances.

Our decision to reopen campus for all students, five days per week, is based on the following considerations:

  • Monitoring the number of COVID-19 cases in the primary zip codes that feed our school
  • Monitoring the percentage of COVID-19 cases in our area affecting children ages 0-17
  • Available scientific evidence showing that children are at lower risk than adults for contracting the virus and developing severe symptoms
  • Available evidence that prevention practices such as physical distancing, hand washing, surface cleaning, and face covering (masks) significantly reduce the risk of infection
  • Mandatory COVID-19 testing for all SouthLake employees prior to the start of school
  • Enrollment caps to allow sufficient room in school classrooms to space students safely
  • Our ability to implement daily health screening and safety practices schoolwide
  • Willingness on the part of our teachers, parents, and students to return to live instruction, understanding both associated risks and prevention strategies
  • Our continued ability to provide quality online instruction during the year when it becomes necessary for students with health concerns or those in quarantine
  • Information from health officials allowing us to make precise decisions by class, grade, hallway, or building about any needed shut down of operations
  • Continuation of Phase 2 or 3 or North Carolina’s reopening plan and the absence of stay-at-home orders by government officials

Should there be an outbreak at school or increasing disease prevalence in the areas where our families live, or if local, regional, or state government officials issue stay-at-home orders or other restrictions that make campus operations impossible, SouthLake Christian Academy will shift to online instruction until conditions allow us to return to campus. The Executive Administrative Team, in consultation with local health officials, will continually assess current conditions and closely follow the latest research to adjust our safety protocols as the school year unfolds. The following document outlines details of our reopening plan that parents and students need to know. This is a long document, but we ask that you please read all of it carefully.

Executive Administrative Team

  • Matthew Kerlin, Head of School
  • Rebekah Leonard, Associate Head of School
  • Becky Makla, High School Principal
  • Mark Apgar, Lower School Principal
  • Jennifer Thomas, Middle and High School Assistant Principal

Communication

Successfully navigating the 2020-2021 school year will require clear channels of communication. Email is the official means of communication for SouthLake Christian Academy. Emails from the school to families should include SLCA in subject line and a brief description of the content. The school will send at least one weekly email communication to all families and the Head of School will send schoolwide updates on the first of each month. Teachers will send regular communication related to classroom activities. For urgent, emergency, or time sensitive communication, parents may receive a Renweb Parent Alert (text and/or voicemail). Certain times of the year may require more frequent communication than normal.

Both parents and employees are encouraged to attend carefully to all school information, particularly information related to safety protocols. As rumors tend to proliferate during stressful times, remember that the only official source of information for school operations is a direct communication from an official representative of the school. Everyone should be certain that all relevant contact information is correct in Renweb. To update your contact information, go to the “Family” tab in Renweb or the “School” tab in the Renweb app.

School Calendar and Attendance

School will begin as scheduled on August 12. Fall Break will be October 5-9 and Thanksgiving Break will be November 23-27. Other relevant dates will be updated and posted on our website at southlakechristian.org at About > School Calendar prior to the first day of classes. Calendar dates are subject to change this year as needed to protect instructional time or promote safety.

Attendance policies for the coming school year have been revised. For the 2020-2021 academic year, students will be allowed 10 absences for semester-long classes and 20 absences for year-long classes, twice the number of allowed absences from last year. This should prevent students from feeling pressure to attend school when they are showing symptoms of any illness. Furthermore, should a student contract COVID-19 or be required to quarantine because a member of his/her household is being tested or tests positive, we will seek to provide online instruction and suspend normal attendance policies provided we receive documentation of the positive COVID test. Documentation allows us to isolate potential spread of the virus and to assure that we make attendance allowances fairly and accurately.

If online instruction becomes necessary, students will be expected to participate fully unless illness prohibits it. In cases of illness, we will provide grace and reassurance, doing our best to help students make up any work missed. The school may make additional changes to policies for assignments, grading, and exams as needed to effectively facilitate any necessary online learning.

Health Screening, Hand Washing, Cleaning

Each student will have a temperature check every morning. Students with a temperature of 100.4 or higher will be isolated and sent home. Parents should be familiar with COVID-19 symptoms, including:

  • congestion, sore throat, runny nose
  • recent loss of taste or smell
  • worsening cough, shortness of breath
  • nausea, vomiting, diarrhea
  • fever, muscle aches, unusual fatigue

Students with any of these symptoms should stay home and seek medical attention from a physician to determine whether a COVID-19 test is needed. A signed commitment to this effect appears on the final page of this document.

We will make time in our daily schedule for students to wash their hands on a regular basis. Students who change classes (grades 5-12) will wash hands between every class using staggered dismissals and assigned sinks. Students in self-contained classrooms will wash hands at least every 90 minutes. Sinks have been added in all JK-2nd grade classrooms to minimize hallway traffic. All bathrooms will be equipped with both electric dryers and paper towel dispensers. Students are encouraged to use paper towels to open bathrooms doors upon exit.

All surfaces used in class will be cleaned between classes with a cleaning solution approved by the CDC to kill viruses and bacteria. Except in cases where we have a student with a chemical allergy, we will use a properly diluted and safe solution of water and chlorine bleach, paper towels, and gloves. In grades 5-12, students may use masks and gloves to assist with surface cleaning between classes.

Face Coverings/Masks

Students and employees will be required to wear an approved face covering (mask) when they arrive at school, when they transition between classes or lunch, when they are dismissed from school, and any other time when physical distancing is not possible. Administrators and teachers may require masks at any time during the day as they deem it appropriate to protect the safety of students or teachers who may have a heightened risk of infection or complication from the virus. We will begin the semester wearing masks anytime we are indoors, but our aspiration will be to relax use of masks when seated and spaced in classroom as health conditions in our area allow. Students with health problems that might prevent them from wearing a mask in certain settings should submit documentation from a primary care physician to that effect. In such cases, we will consider exceptions to our mask policy on a case-by-case basis. All parents and guests entering a school building will be required to wear a mask.

We will provide three washable cotton/poly masks for each student. Additional masks may be purchased from the school. We recommend that you use the masks we provide for a few days to test for comfort, breathability, and fit before purchasing more. Cotton/poly masks should be washed and hung to dry after each day of use. In addition, students may use a standard disposable light blue surgical mask. Disposable masks should be used for no more than one day. No other types of masks or face coverings will be allowed except by written recommendation from a primary care physician. We will consider such situations on a case-by-case basis.

School Arrival

School buildings will open at 7:15 AM each morning. No student will be allowed to enter a school building prior to 7:15. Students should not be left at school unattended before 7:15. Students should wear masks as they enter school buildings each morning.

  • JK – 8th grade students will arrive at Hampton Hall and proceed to the lower level until 7:30 when they will go their classes. Students in grades JK – 8th who arrive at 7:30 or later will go directly to their classrooms.
  • High School students will enter Wilcox Gym upon arrival and will leave for their A block classes at 7:30. High School students arriving at 7:30 or later will go straight to their A block classes.

Class Transitions

  • Students in grades JK-4 will transition to PE, specials, and recess by grade and separated from other students.
  • Students in grades 5-6 will change classes as normal.
  • Grades 7-12 will change classes in a staggered format, one-half of each class dismissing at a time, separated by five minutes to minimize hallway traffic. Students will be allowed to use backpacks should they wish to do so to avoid the need to go to a locker after each class period.

School Dismissal

Students in grades JK-6 will dismiss at 2:30 as follows:

  • 2:30 PM – car riders will dismiss for the pavilion
  • 2:40 PM – After School students will move to the Lower Level of Hampton Hall
  • Late Wait students will remain in their classrooms until 3:10 and then dismiss for the pavilion

Students in grades 7-12 will dismiss at 3:10 as follows:

  • 3:10 PM – bus riders and students picked up by a parent or guardian dismiss for the pavilion
  • 3:20 PM – student drivers and their siblings dismiss to cars

Classrooms

We have established a maximum capacity for each classroom on campus that allows us to separate students by approximately 6 feet from nose to nose in each classroom. Most Hampton Hall classrooms will seat 18 or fewer students. Most Wilcox classrooms will seat 16 or fewer students. First Building classrooms seat between 12 and 18 students. On the rare occasion that a class size exceeds designated limits, that class will be moved to a larger area on campus such as the First Building Commons, Mezzanine, Library, or lower level of Hampton Hall. School HVAC systems will be adjusted to provide maximum air circulation and classroom doors and windows may remain open as weather and security precautions allow.

Chapel

To start the semester, Wednesday chapel services will be pushed entirely into individual classrooms through livestreaming and video curriculum. Our aspiration is to transition to in-person chapel services when circumstances make it safer for large gatherings. In the first stage of that transition, chapel services on will operate on a rotation.

  • JK and K classes will alternate weeks with grades 1 and 2, attending chapel in person in the First Building Commons (8 AM) one week and holding chapel in individual classrooms the next.
  • Grades 3and 4 will hold chapel together each week in the First Building Commons (11:25 AM).
  • Grades 5 and 6 will alternate weeks with grades 7 and 8, attending chapel in person in the Wilcox Gym (8 AM) one week and livestreaming chapel in their A Block classes the next.
  • Grades 9 and 10 will alternate weeks with grades 11 and 12, attending chapel in person one week in Wilcox Gym (9 AM) and livestreaming chapel in their A Block classes the next.

Lunch and Breaks

Our Hot Lunch Program allows students to pre-order food from area vendors who prepare and package meals off campus and deliver to SouthLake. We keep the food warm and serve it to students during one of three designated mealtimes. Most meals and breaktime snacks will be eaten in classrooms during the first few days of school. To minimize crowds in our lunchroom, we will deliver lunches to classrooms whenever possible.

  • Teaching assistants and lunch volunteers will deliver lunches to students in grades JK to 4.
  • Students in 5th to 8th grades will wear masks and dismiss to get lunch on a staggered schedule by grade, and then return to classrooms to eat.
  • High School students will wear masks and depart for lunch staggered by cohorts to wash hands, get food, and then return to B block classes to eat.
  • Each stairwell will facilitate one-way traffic only. After the first few days of classes, students may eat outdoors in our pavilion and other designated areas on a rotational basis, as the weather allows.

Because some students have food allergies to nuts and nut-based products, each classroom will have 1-2 desks that are designated nut free and marked accordingly. Students with nut allergies should always sit at a nut free desk in each classroom they use. Teachers will strictly monitor to be sure that only nut free meals and snacks are consumed at nut free desks. Some classes with students having a severe nut allergy may be asked to bring only nut-free snacks at the discretion of the teacher and our school nurse.

School Supplies, Curriculum, and Library

We are purchasing additional supplies and textbooks to limit the need to share resources in the classroom. When technological devices must be shared by students they will be cleaned appropriately. We are purchasing additional art supplies and redesigning art projects to limit group work. The list of school supplies that families purchase for the coming year will be shortened to eliminate items that are now expensive or difficult to find and the school will order needed supplies in bulk. The library will be used primarily as a classroom this year and library time for lower school students will be pushed into individual classrooms on rotation. STEM instruction will be incorporated into individual classes as the STEM lab will be closed and repurposed for the academic year.

Technology for Online Instruction

Online instruction at SouthLake involves three primary platforms.

  1. Renweb is our school information management system where you access student information, schedules, class resources, and grades.
  2. Google Classroom is a free online class content manager that integrates with Renweb and facilitates assignment creation, grading, testing, and file sharing.
  3. Zoom is a free online video conferencing tool. Zoom meetings require a meeting ID and password. For security purposes, students and parents entering a Zoom meeting should use their real names as they appear in Renweb.

Other online platforms may be used as curriculum dictates and we will provide training for parents and students as needed. If parents or students have a technological need, they should contact the Technology Help Desk at slcahelpdesk@gmail.com. During school hours, a member of the Tech Team will typically respond to your request for assistance within a few minutes. After-hours responses may sometimes take longer.

Bus and School Travel

We will continue to provide bus service to and from school each day. Buses will be limited to half capacity with one student per seat. Siblings are encouraged to sit together in the same seat. When weather allows, buses will travel with windows open to allow maximum ventilation. Students will be expected to wear masks during bus travel unless directed otherwise by a school official.

Travel to any scheduled school athletic events will follow the same bus protocols mentioned above. Field trips to indoor public places and all overnight travel has been cancelled for the fall semester. In some cases, we are working to reschedule trips and retreats for later in the school year.

After School Care

After School Care will operate following the same safety protocols outlined above. Parents entering a building to pick up a child from After School will need to wear a mask.

Sports

The North Carolina Independent School Athletic Association (NCISAA) governs competitive sports at SouthLake Christian Academy and other member schools. Our ability to compete this fall, and our ability to host spectators, will depend on both the decisions of the NCISAA and our assessment of the risk of each particular sport for students and spectators. At this time, the NCISAA has delayed the start of all fall sports until at least mid-August. We suspect that high risk fall sports may be further delayed. Voluntary no-contact practices for some sports may begin at the discretion of coaches and the Athletic Director. In the event that a fall sport is cancelled for the season or moved to the spring semester, we will explore all safe options for inter-squad practice and non-contact competition.

Quarantine and Contact Tracing

In the event that a student or a family member living under the same roof shows symptoms of COVID-19 or is tested for COVID-19, we will follow guidelines provided by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS), and the Mecklenburg Department of Health (MCDH) for isolation, quarantine, and contact tracing. The following are some guidelines for responding to symptoms and/or the need for testing. This list is not comprehensive nor intended to replace CDC, NCDHHS, or MCDH guidelines.

  • In the event that a student develops symptoms of COVID-19, that student should stay home and contact a health professional to determine if a test is appropriate. A student should not return to school until he/she has been cleared by a health professional to return to school, typically after testing negative and/or being symptom free for at least three days.
  • If a health care professional recommends testing for a student or any household member under the same roof, you should notify the school and members of that household should quarantine until either (a) the COVID-19 test is negative, or (b) fourteen days have passed and all household members are symptom free.
  • If a student or any household member living under the same roof tests positive for COVID-19, please contact SouthLake Christian Academy immediately. We will consult with the MCDH and relevant medical authorities to determine a timetable for return to school and to provide online instruction during needed quarantine.
  • If a student or teacher tests positive for COVID-19, we will begin the process of confidential contact tracing in accordance with the MCDH and local health officials.
  • We will handle each case of potential COVID-19 transmission on a case-by-case basis in conversation with you, the MCDH, and school medical personnel, giving you enough information to make decisions while protecting the confidentiality of our employees, students, and families.

Determining When to Close

We will take all necessary steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19 should someone in our community test positive. This includes identifying students who have had high-risk contact with a person who tests positive and notifying parents or legal guardians of the need to isolate and seek medical advice and/or testing. We have made every effort to schedule classes and school activities to keep students in smaller groups and with people in their own grades to the greatest extent possible. This will limit exposure and facilitate more precise contact tracing should it become necessary. Should a student or employee test positive for COVID-19, it may become necessary to close a class, hallway, or building temporarily (2-5 days) to consult with health officials, to clean and disinfect, and to contact trace. In each case, we will attempt to be strategic and precise with our containment measures, closing as little as possible but as much as necessary. More extensive closures would likely coincide with local or state closure mandates.

Signed Covenant of Cooperation

We have read and understand the contents of SouthLake Christian Academy’s Reopening Plan. We understand that COVID-19 has been declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization and that COVID-19 is a dangerous and potentially deadly disease. We understand that COVID-19 is contagious and believed to spread primarily by human-to-human contact.

We understand the symptoms of COVID-19 include congestion, sore throat, runny nose, recent loss of taste or smell, worsening cough, shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever, muscle aches, unusual fatigue, and other less common symptoms. We commit to keep our children home from school should they present any of these symptoms and to seek medical advice concerning the need for a COVID-19 test. Should my child test positive for COVID-19, we agree that we will notify the Head of School immediately so the school can help my child shift to online instruction and begin confidential contact tracing as needed to protect the health of other students and families.

We understand that health practices such as social distancing of six feet, coughing and sneezing into one’s arm, wearing masks or face coverings, washing one’s hands frequently, and cleaning surfaces thoroughly may help to prevent the spread of COVID-19. We agree to support these mitigation efforts by asking my child or children to participate cooperatively in these practices while at school as instructed by teachers and school administrators.

We understand that although SouthLake Christian Academy has put into place preventative measures to reduce the risks of disease transmission, no measures can completely eliminate the risk of exposure to COVID-19 while participating in school-related activities. Having enrolled in SouthLake Christian Academy voluntarily, we understand and acknowledge these risks and agree to assume these risks on behalf of our children for the 2020-2021 academic year. We agree that we will not hold SouthLake Christian Academy, its officers, directors, employees, agents, and representatives liable for damages of any kind caused by COVID-19.

[Document to be signed and returned to SLCA before the first day of classes on August 12.]

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Plans to Open School: SouthLake Christian Academy, Fall 2020

Below is an outline of our plans to start school in the fall. I am keenly aware that no matter what we decide, some will be pleased and others will not. That said, I believe the plan detailed below gives us the best chance of balancing the educational needs of our students with the safety of our employees and families. Our Executive Administrative Team has spent many hours looking at CDC and North Carolina recommendations for starting school, and while we know there is no risk-free scenario, we have identified protocols that will help us minimize risk. While we still have some details to iron out, here is a brief overview of our plans for the fall semester.

  • Our intent is to open school on August 12, live and in person, 5 days per week for all students.
  • We will observe Fall Break (October 5-9) and Thanksgiving Break (November 23-27) as normal.
  • We will limit the number of enrolled students in each grade and class as necessary to facilitate appropriate physical distancing in classrooms. With slightly smaller capacity limits, several grades are nearly full.
  • Bus routes will run as normal with staggered seating, one student per seat.
  • Our After School program will operate with students appropriately spaced, utilizing outdoor spaces to the greatest extent possible, as usual.
  • Students will be required to undergo health screening upon arrival, including temperature and symptom checks.
  • Morning drop off locations will be added to eliminate large assemblies of students in a single room.
  • Sinks are being added on the first floor of Hampton Hall (JK-2nd grade), hot water circulation has been improved, no-touch paper towel and soap dispensers will be added across campus, and all students will have designated places to wash their hands on a regular basis.
  • We will purchase additional school resources, art supplies, and curriculum to minimize the need for students to share materials.
  • We will stagger arrival and dismissal from classes and create one-way stairwells to minimize traffic congestion in our hallways.
  • Students will be divided into smaller groups for chapel and will alternate between attending live and watching a livestream from classrooms.
  • Students will be divided into smaller groups for lunches and breaks with some eating in classrooms or outdoor spaces as weather allows.
  • We plan to expand our use of outdoor spaces for PE, recess, lunch, breaks, and some classes as the weather allows.
  • We are increasing our internet bandwidth to improve our ability to livestream classes to the greatest extent possible for those who may need to quarantine.
  • We will adjust attendance policies for students and faculty who document a positive Covid test.
  • Classrooms will be reconfigured to allow students to spread out appropriately.
  • We will adjust our HVAC systems to maximize ventilation and teachers will be permitted to leave classroom doors and windows open where it is safe to do so.
  • Large spaces such as the library, the lower level of Hampton Hall, and the First Building commons will be used as teaching spaces for larger classes.
  • Cleaning protocols will be enhanced in cooperation with our new custodial provider.
  • Field trips to indoor public places and all overnight travel has been cancelled for the fall semester. In some cases, we are working to reschedule trips and retreats for later in the school year.
  • We will address sports on a case by case basis as we get additional guidance from our athletic association.

Now to the subject of masks. Scientific research has demonstrated consistently that the proper use of masks can reduce the risk of disease transmission. We know, therefore, that using masks to some degree gives us the best opportunity to return safely to live instruction. We also know that masks can be a nuisance, especially for younger children. Our strategy will be to use masks as little as possible but as much as necessary. Whenever we cannot be physically distant from each other indoors, we will wear masks. Where we can configure classrooms, activities, and traffic flow to practice safe physical distance in well ventilated areas, we do not plan to require masks. We plan to establish a capacity for each classroom below which masks would not be required, and we will work to keep capacity below that threshold. Masks will be encouraged for anyone who wants or needs to wear them at any time. Students with documented health issues that make wearing a mask unsafe will not be required to wear one. Beginning August 12, all visitors to campus, including parents, will be required to wear a mask while inside school buildings. We plan to purchase CDC approved reusable cloth masks for every SLCA student as part of their school uniform and to distribute them before school starts. These protocols are in keeping with CDC guidelines, current state and local mandates, and the advice we are receiving from medical professionals. Of course, some of these protocols are subject to modification as new scientific data informs our decisions.

Undoubtedly, you will have questions we haven’t answered or concerns we haven’t addressed. We have a few details to iron out, but feel free to ask questions and we will answer them as soon as possible. We know that the fall could be more complex than this past spring, particularly if people in our community begin to test positive for Covid. We all need to be prepared to move into an online environment should government officials enact stay-at-home orders. Whatever the fall brings, I know that God is faithful and you have done amazing work in the year 2020. For these reasons, I am more thankful than ever to be at SouthLake Christian Academy and confident that together we can navigate the coming school year in ways that honor Christ and best serve our students.

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Continuity of Instruction Plan for SouthLake Christian Academy

How does e-learning work?

School may look differently in the days to come, but education will continue. Here you will find our plans to provide instruction to SouthLake Christian Academy students in an online environment, also called telelearning, distance learning, or e-learning. Our teaching plans aim to keep things simple, clear, and flexible.

Simple. Effective online instruction does not need to be fancy. Neither parents nor students need to be technology specialists to learn well in an e-learning environment. We will start with basic tools – phone, email, internet – and build from there. We will focus on essential curriculum and skills. Students WILL learn the most important content.

Clear. Effective online instruction requires clear two-way communication. Teachers should be organized, accessible, and responsive. We ask students and families to relay problems to us quickly. We want our students to have a clear understanding of class expectations and content and not to struggle with logistics.

Flexible. Effective online instruction utilizes both synchronous and asynchronous engagement. Most instruction will be asynchronous, meaning that students will be able to access materials on their own schedule rather than in coordination with the entire class. Synchronous instruction will be scheduled to accommodate student availability. Many of our families have multiple children and childcare challenges. We could potentially move back and forth between live and online classes in the weeks to come. This will require each of us to be patient, accommodating, and supportive of each other.

What can parents and students do to prepare?

  1. Give us the information we need to help you. If you have not done so already, please complete our tech survey so that if you have a problem, our tech team will know what technology you have at home. If you have not done so already, make sure we have the correct demographic information for you in Renweb.
  2. Get organized. You will soon receive more electronic communication from SouthLake than you are accustomed to receiving. Set up an email folder for each of your children or for each class or subject. Check email regularly, file or deleted unneeded mail, and respond quickly and briefly to any emails that require only a short response.
  3. Be patient. This is a learning curve for all of us. We are landing a plane while finishing the runway. We will all make mistakes and maybe get frustrated from time to time. We will try to solve problems as quickly as possible. This plan is a work in progress. We will update, revise, and improve as we go along. Give and receive grace.
  4. Stay connected. You can see what is happening around the school and stay informed by following our school’s various social medial channels. Here is a list:
  • Facebook – SouthLake Christian Academy
  • Instagram – southlakechristian
  • Twitter – @SLCAEagles
  • Head of School Blog – http://www.mattkerlin.com

What technology will we use?

We will use technology platforms that are free, accessible to everyone, and work well on both Mac and PC devices. Teachers will provide instructions for using these resources as needed. Not all teachers will use all of these programs, and our Tech Team will be available to assist as needed. Here is a list of most of the platforms our school will be using.

  • Email – we will use the contact emails you provided in Renweb.
  • Phone or FaceTime – we will use the cell phone numbers you provided in Renweb.
  • Renweb – our online school database and the primary means of posting class content.
  • Microsoft Office 365 apps including One Drive, One Note, Forms – online file sharing and storage (mostly for High School use).
  • Google Suite products including Classroom, Calendar, Docs, Forms – online program for managing classes, assignments, content, tests, quizzes, calendars, and file sharing.
  • Zoom – an online communication tool for video recording and video conferencing.
  • Smart Music – an app for recording individual music practice and receiving feedback.

What if I need technology support?

Email the help desk at slcahelpdesk@gmail.com. A member of the tech team will contact you.

What are our plans by grade or division?

Although each teacher is unique, our plan provides some standardization to minimize confusion to the greatest degree possible. All teachers will use a combination of the following: video (instruction and conferencing), regular email or phone communication, assessment (tests, quizzes, papers, projects, etc.), and virtual office hours.

Junior Kindergarten – 3rd Grade (Spano, Canipe, Calhoun, Moore, Davis, Patton)

  • Teachers will email families regularly to communicate expectations and information needed to complete assignments.
  • Teachers will post weekly plans, assignments, needed documents, web resources, and video content on Renweb.
  • Students may turn in assignments by email, text, or an online student-interactive website.
  • Teachers will phone, FaceTime, or Zoom to connect with students and parents each week to check in and answer questions.
  • Teachers will set up virtual office hours for individualized assistance.

4th – 6th Grade (Boovy, Gonzalez, Bussell, Clemmer, Jacobs, Rowles, Vance, Boone, Belvin, Thomas)

  • Teachers will email families prior to March 30 to explain in detail how to access all electronic resources needed, primarily Renweb, Google Classroom, and Zoom.
  • Beginning March 30, all teachers will communicate via regular emails with information relevant to all 4-6 grade students.
  • Each teacher will email daily with specific information and reminders to check Renweb and Google Classroom for assignments in specific subjects.
  • Needed materials not already sent home will be linked to both Renweb and Google Classroom.
  • Students may turn in assignments using a combination of text messaging, Google Docs, Google Forms, or other Google apps.
  • Teachers will schedule virtual office hours for students needing individualized help.

7th – 8th Grade (Belvin, Bumgarner, Boone, Jacobs, Reeves, Russell, Wilson)

  • Each teacher will email families prior to March 30 welcoming students to e-learning and explaining in detail how each class will work.
  • Beginning March 30, teachers will post lesson plans and links to primary resources in Renweb. They will give assignments and provide instructional content through Renweb, Google Classroom, and curriculum specific sites (science and history). Links to these items will be posted in Renweb.
  • Each teacher will produce video lessons weekly or more frequently, depending on the nature of the content.
  • Each teacher will communicate regularly with students via email, video, and/or phone to provide specific instructions and reminders to check Renweb for assignments.
  • Each teacher will schedule virtual office hours for students or families with questions or concerns.

High School

  • Each high school class is unique, so e-learning plans will be highly individualized, just as they are in a live classroom setting.
  • Teachers will use a blend of synchronous and asynchronous instruction.
  • Teachers will email students prior to March 30 with introductions to online learning and instructions for use of any new technology.
  • Each teacher will post lesson plans, notes, videos, and assignments on Renweb and other file sharing platforms.
  • Students will submit assignments through OneNote, OneDrive, and Google Classroom.
  • Teachers will use Zoom for scheduled online class gatherings.
  • Teachers will schedule virtual office hours for individualized assistance.

What about specials like library, PE, Fine Arts, and STEM?

  • Most music classes will move to individualized instruction using the Smart Music app.
  • Other classes will utilize online resources for singing and choreography.
  • Library instruction will include reading recommendations, videos, and book blogs.
  • Art teachers will send weekly project ideas and post completed projects on Instagram and our online art gallery called Artsonia.
  • PE instruction will consist of weekly video workouts that student can do in their own homes.
  • STEM instruction will involve periodic emails with ideas for projects that can be completed at home to support subject area learning.

What about students receiving services from our Academic Development Center (ADC)?

  • ADC teachers will continue to support their students by providing consultation and individualized assistance to students with issues that affect their learning.
  • ADC teachers are familiar with distance learning technology and will have access to their students’ Renweb resources and e-learning apps.
  • ADC teachers have received special certifications for teletherapy and will use Zoom for individualized therapy session.
  • ADC teachers will schedule virtual office hours for those needing additional assistance.
  • ADC teachers will continue to support students with an Educational Plan of Action (EPA), and provide documentation needed for accommodations on standardized testing.
  • ADC teachers will continue to consult with prospective students and their families.

What about high school students needing help for fall scheduling or from our College and Career Counseling Office?

  • Course request meetings will be handled using Zoom. Individualized assistance will be provided by phone or email from our scheduling team.
  • Students needing schedule counseling will use Sign-up Genius for Zoom meetings.
  • Junior planning meetings and sophomore PSAT and Pre-ACT test review meetings will take place using Zoom as students request.
  • Blog posts will contain grade level updates, encouragement, and links to resources.
  • Email communication will inform students of collegiate information and any testing changes.
  • Personal communication will continue to support post-grad research, virtual tours, and senior schedules.

Final Considerations

Thank you for your steadfast faith and trust in SouthLake Christian Academy as we continue to teach and minister to your students. We hope to return to live classes as soon as it is safe to do so. Truthfully, the months that follow may have a profound impact on the future of education. New capacities, efficiencies, competencies, and possibilities will likely emerge from this unprecedented time in our history. We cannot see exactly what the future holds, but we trust that Christ is preeminent in all things.

Compiled and edited by the Faculty and Staff of SouthLake Christian Academy

March 2020

Academics Education Technology
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A Short Guide to Starting School

School starts back at SouthLake Christian Academy this week. Today was open house and I saw a lot of excited families, and maybe a few nervous ones. Here are a few words of encouragement for those starting school for the first time, or returning to school for another year.

  1. Get organized. Calendars, planners, to-do lists, family meetings, and good communication with everyone involved will help you get off to a good start.
  2. Establish good habits. Pay attention in class. Use school hours to start homework and get extra help as needed. Do homework as early in the afternoon or evening as possible in a distraction free environment. Go to sleep each night at a time that allows you consistently sufficient sleep. Keep to a schedule.
  3. Build relationships. Students – get to know someone in each of your classes. Parents – get to know parents in your child’s class. Stay in communication with the teacher. Treat everyone around you with respect, even when you have a disagreement. You will forget most of what you experience at school, but you remember the relationships you make.
  4. Keep things in perspective. Students are not defined by their academic performance (or their athletic or musical performance). Your identity is not determined by whether or not you out-perform your peers. The question to ask is this: “Am I doing all that God created me to do, to the best of my ability?” If the answer to that question is yes, be at peace.
  5. Learn things other than what we teach in school. Read books you love that we haven’t assigned. Visit museums, art galleries, and other cultural attractions that stimulate your interests. One of the most important things you can learn during your school years is HOW TO LEARN, and how fun it is to learn!
  6. Unplug. Spend some time outside every evening. Put down your electronic devices, go for a walk, play in the yard, walk the dog. Nurture hobbies
  7. Don’t worry. Nothing that happens in the first several days of school is likely to make or break your school year. There may be a few emotional, academic, or logistical bumps in the road early on, but you are going to be OK. Be calm, problem solve, and ask for help if you need it. One keen piece of advice Jesus gave his own followers was this: “Do not worry about your life … But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” (Matthew 6.25-34)

I hope your school year gets off to a great start.

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Why Christian Education

Why Christian Education

[The following is a written summary of an address to the faculty of Westminster Catawba Christian School on August 5, 2019.]

At SouthLake Christian, we began a strategic planning process earlier this year to identify our main priorities as a school for the next chapter in our history. We spent a few months gathering data from our various constituents – teachers, students, parents, alumni, and members of the community – to clarify who we are and what next steps we should take, to select among all the good options the very best ones. Early and often, people identified two traits that characterize our school and must be preserved at all costs: our commitment to academic rigor and our identity as a Christian school. These conjoined twins represent the two main reasons our school was established and continues to exist, the reason parents hire us and pay us to do a job, the reason volunteers and donors give their time and money, and the reason that independent, public, and charter schools haven’t crowded us out. And yet, there are reasons for Christian education superior to those pragmatic considerations, important as they are. I propose that Christian education casts out fear[1], nourishes freedom, and tells a better story.

Bob Woodward’s 2018 book entitled Fear describes the inner workings of the White House with this phrase: “Real power is fear.” Machiavelli’s The Prince articulates a similar refrain: “It is better to be feared than loved.” Many leaders rise to power and maintain that power because they manage effectively to understand and articulate the underlying fears of their constituents. Some leaders maintain power by stoking that fear while promising to ameliorate it. These strategies work because fear plagues us all. It drives us to work and overwork, robs our sleep, wrecks our bodies, taints our relationships, and blinds us to life’s beauty. Fear. Cable news fuels it, social media feeds it, marketing firms monetize it. And the thing we have most to fear is fear itself. Yet we have a solution. Christians have always taught that the antidote to fear is love. The apostle John, for whom 4 books of the New Testament are named, writes that “God is love” and “perfect love casts out fear” and “greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for a friend.” (1 John 4.8, 1 John 4.17, and John 15.13 – NIV). The love that led Jesus to lay down his life for us lives in us. As we love each other and our students and their families, we cast out fear. As we teach that love, and acknowledge explicitly its source and power, we smother the fires scorching our society. Christian education literally makes the world a better place, God’s kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.

As we cast out fear, we nourish freedom. Years ago, I attended a conference of the American Academy of Religion, one session of which concerned academic freedom. The panel discussion was led by professors at various types of universities – state, private secular, and Christian. As they each described their context, something became blatantly obvious. Only Christian schools have any chance at true academic freedom! Public and secular private school teachers avoid religious conversations like the plague, by necessity. They can lose their jobs if they appear to advocate for any particular religious conviction. In the name of tolerance or open-mindedness or diversity, our society has pushed theological belief to the margins, treating nearly every other form of belief more amicably. A rather strange state of affairs now exists whereby religious belief, so important to so many, can barely be discussed by anyone in a secular classroom. And so, I ask, who is really free? The answer is YOU. You teach at a school that sees theological conviction not merely as a subject worthy of open discussion, but one foundational to all discussion because every belief of any kind begins with an unproven assumption. All learning requires faith. Your students attend a school where they can ask ANY question and get a straight answer. We can actually promote tolerance and open-mindedness and diversity not because these things are fashionable, but because they are beautiful, and good, and right, and true, and biblical. We have rich theological language by which to say that we should treat each other with respect and kindness because we are all created in God’s image, that we value people different from us because such is the Kingdom of God, that we seek community with people who do not look like us because heaven will be filled with people of “every tribe and tongue and nation” (Revelation 7.9 – ESV). We do not fear others because we love them. We love them because God first loved us. God’s love sets us free.

Christian education casts out fear, nourishes freedom, and tells a better story. This summer I spent part of a day with Scott Dillon, Head of School at Westminster Catawba, and we talked at length about the why of Christian education. What sets us apart from other academically rigorous schools? Why do parents pay us to educate their kids? What do we offer that is distinctive? To approach an answer to those questions, play a game with me. Imagine your school is not a Christian school. A student asks, why do I need to learn this math? You could answer, because you will need it for next year’s math class. Why do I need next year’s math class? Because you will need it to graduate. And why do I care about graduation? Because you need a high school degree to go to college or vocational school. Why do I need college or vocational school? Because you need more education to find a job in a competitive global economy? Why do I need to a job? So that you can live, pay your bills, raise a family, enjoy the world. Why do I need to do these things? Because they contribute to the greater good. And why should I care about the greater good? And on, and on, and on. Eventually, every answer becomes depressingly utilitarian. We do these things because they have pragmatic value. BORING! As Christian educators, we have a better story to tell. We teach and we learn because all truth is God’s truth. Because every equation displays God’s handiwork, and every element on the periodic table gives evidence of God’s ingenuity, and every musical note sounds God’s beauty, and every star in the solar system declares the God’s glory, and every language expresses God’s love, and every event in history ultimately tells His story. And we are story tellers. And what an amazing story we get to tell.

[1] The idea that Christian education casts out fear I owe to Dr. Dennis Sansom, Professor of Philosophy at Samford University. He presented this idea in a Convocation address to the university sometime during the 2006-2007 academic year.

Biblical Interpretation Education Leadership Theology