Dear AES parents, teachers and staff,
This morning I provided information regarding the COVID-19 outbreak with many parents at my monthly Director’s Coffee Morning. We shared a presentation with the latest information on what we know, what we’re doing, and how you can help. We were also able to answer some parent questions at the session.
The presentation is linked for your information, and a YouTube recording of the presentation is also available.
We are a community. We celebrate a culture of belonging. When events occur that are frightening to us—whether it’s violence in the city, or a viral pandemic—we need to support one another, and to support our students too. Children pick up on their parents’ emotions very well. We can lean on the strength of our community, which includes health professionals, counselors and many others who can give us good information for decision making. They can also help us step back, take a deep breath, stay calm and do the right things.
We are using a preparation and response rubric developed in international schools during the SARS, MERS and Ebola epidemics. It was developed with CDC and medical authorities and has been refined and tested over time. It includes guidance for detailed decision points regarding communication, campus access, educational delivery, co-curricular programs, events and trips, personnel, emergency care, and school operations. The rubric is described in the presentation and video linked to this message.
We have been at level one (Low Risk) to this point, with several infectious disease cases confirmed in India in January. On Monday we moved to level two (Moderate Risk): the first infectious disease cases confirmed in Delhi. We have not reached level three, which is when the disease is moving through the city or begins to appear in our school community.
We are strengthening our practices and preparing for Level 3 now. We are hoping for the best, but planning for worse. If we have to move to Level 3 in our response rubric, then some actions we would be considering include restricting campus access for visitors, checking temperatures at the gates, making decisions to cancel large events, assemblies or trips, and curtailing some or all activities.
Today the CDC list of Travel Warning Advisories (against non-essential travel) expanded. The list includes China, Korea, Iran and Italy now. Anyone traveling or receiving guests from these countries should not be coming to school for 14 days after arrival to India. A CDC Travel Alert (use enhanced precautions) is still in effect for Japan. The Government of India’s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has updated its own travel advisory list including mandatory medical \screening for passengers arriving directly or indirectly from China, South Korea, Japan, Iran, Italy, Hong Kong, Macau, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Nepal, Thailand, Singapore and Taiwan.
Please follow the directives and preventive guidelines that we share with the community. We encourage parents to refrain from circulating rumors among various WhatsApp groups. Please do not pass along information from unauthenticated sources. The school will share official, verified information via email or SMS. We will be sending frequent updates to the community.
We are a community. We share a collective responsibility in helping to assure the health and wellbeing of every student. Thank you for your flexibility, patience and cooperation.
Best regards,
Jim Laney
COVID-19 Official Resources
World Health Organization (WHO) – COVID-19 Update – All Situation Reports
Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Home
Center for Disease Control COVID-19 Home