School Opening August 2020
Mr Mills School Opening Procedures and News
Head of School’s letter, 7th August 2020
Dear Parents,
I hope you are all enjoying a restful holiday before we head into Term 1 of the new academic year.
In July, after seeing the school through the 2019/20 academic year successfully, our Business Director, Andrew Gordon, decided to take early retirement. We thank Andrew for his 15 years of dedicated service and his fervent commitment to the school. Andrew oversaw the implementation of the Master Plan of the school buildings and facilities. He leaves behind as a daily reminder a school with the best facilities and learning environments in Southeast Asia.
We wish him all the very best for his future.
We are most fortunate that the Board has appointed an Interim Business Director who knows the school context well. Craig White has been on the Foundation Board for two years and has over thirty years of senior management experience. He has an MBA from the University of Cape Town. He and his wife, Nida, have two children attending Patana; Kate going into Year 11 and Ethan going into Year 8. Craig has resigned from all board duties as he undertakes the Interim Business Director position. His email is crwh@patana.ac.th.
School Opening Procedures
When school opens on 19th August, we expect to have full classes with children attending every day. Our new Nursery and FS1 starters will have their assigned staggered start. Block 1 ECAs will go ahead as planned, with some adjustments to adhere to social distancing guidelines.
The following procedures will still be in place:
- Daily temperature checks for students boarding school buses and when they enter school (staff and all approved adults entering school will also be checked).
- Social distancing practices will still be observed.
- Students and staff will wear masks. Students will be able to remove their masks for PE and in the playground as directed by staff.
- The buffet lunch at the Canteen will still be served by staff.
- Parents of children in Year 3 and above will not be permitted past the main campus turnstiles for the first month of school. This will be reviewed within that period. All new parents can attend the new student orientation scheduled for 18th August.
There are some modifications to procedures we trialled in the final two weeks of Term 3. Please take note of these procedures which will also be in place for the start of school:
- Teachers have the option to use visors when instructing in front of the class.
- A blended CSL (Continuing Student Learning) online support programme will be provided only for students in quarantine or who are still overseas and waiting to get back into Thailand. If you are in this situation and have not yet contacted Admissions, please email Rachel Jones at rajo@patana.ac.th. At this time, we are not providing any online support for students already in Bangkok as school is opening as normal in a safe learning environment.
- All snack bars and lunches operating as normal.
- School bus service as normal but masks must be worn and there will be temperature checks prior to boarding the bus.
If you have any questions about these procedures please contact the Primary Office (primary@patana.ac.th) or Secondary Office (secondary@patana.ac.th).
Action for Parents
Please fill in or review these two important online forms prior to coming back to school:
Health and Travel Declaration and the Student Safeguarding Staying Safe in School – COVID-19 forms.
If you completed these forms previously, please review and make any necessary updates. You do not need to declare provincial travel within Thailand. Those who are new to the school; those who have returned from overseas destinations since 26th June; and anyone who has contracted or been in contact with a COVID-19 case do need to complete these forms before 19th August 2020. If you have any difficulties accessing the forms or have any questions, please contact the Primary or Secondary Offices.
As a school, we are fully aware that the COVID-19 pandemic is here longer than expected. We are confident that our school campus is a safe learning environment that has many health and safety additions embedded, taking COVID-19 into account. If the situation in Thailand changes at any time, we will of course, make the necessary changes to our programme. We have a fully developed CSL programme that can be deployed to support our students’ learning if for any reason learning has to take place at home again. Even with school operating as normally as possible from 19th August, we strictly adhere to the 3W’s at all times, as the medical research clearly emphasises these three rudimentary life-saving procedures:
Wash hands regularly
Watch your distance at all times
Wear your mask at all times.
I’m really excited to be starting my 13th year as Head of School in one of the most outstanding schools in Asia. I am optimistic that we will have a really smooth start to the academic year. We are most fortunate that all of our overseas new teachers have arrived safely in Thailand. Enrolment numbers are stable and our school continues to be a first choice international school option for parents in Thailand.
We are all really looking forward to welcoming back all of our students on 19th August.
Best wishes,
Matt Mills
Head of School
