School NEWS
Keeping everyone safe and secure
By Brenda Montgomery Director, Academic Innovation & Growth Selwyn House School
A
s I look back on the 2020-2021 academic year, I believe Selwyn House School managed the COVID-19 pandemic exceptionally well. In March of 2020, at the beginning of the pandemic, everyone was in turmoil. Nevertheless, Selwyn House quickly adapted to an online learning program, and I am very proud of our teachers and students for persevering during this strange and unsettling time. We had few cases of COVID—not as many absences and interruptions as we had originally expected—and we managed to educate our students and move through the curriculum almost to the same extent as in a regular year. While some luck was From left: Kabir Kohli, Matthew Li and William Robillard (all Grade 4) involved, I credit our school’s Health and Safety Protocols for keeping everyone safe and feeling secure. classrooms. We knew we had to keep our community as safe as The Senior Administration Team at Selwyn House worked possible. non-stop during the summer of 2020 to develop a way to open We purchased 100 state-of-the-art air purifiers for classrooms the school safely for all students while also keeping everyone else and offices. Our kitchen staff, under the guidance of chef Silvana safe. Of course, we also had to follow all the regulations from Parnas, were amazing in preparing individual box lunches and Santé Quebec and the Quebec Ministry of Education, which delivering them to each classroom every day! changed almost daily. We are very grateful to Selwyn House Old Boy and current I believe that everyone took very, very seriously their parent Dr. Donald Vinh ’92, clinician and scientist in the responsibility to open the school safely and remain vigilant. We Infectious Diseases and Immunity in Global Health Program at understood the severity of the illness and the speed with which the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre. COVID-19 can spread. Dr. Vinh is on the front lines of treating and researching COVID, We were told by the Quebec government that we could not and we appreciate his willingness and availability to answer our bring all of the Senior School students back into the school unless questions, host parent meetings, and provide guidance. they were kept isolated in class bubbles and mini-pods within Teachers worked harder this year than I have ever seen. each bubble. Trying to also maintain a student’s class selections They learned new technologies and new methods of delivering (arts, options, sciences, math, etc.) made this a difficult task. instruction. They supervised more. Teachers worked under what I was incredibly pleased that we were able to devise a plan I call the “invisible lead blanket of COVID.” No doubt, teachers to bring all of the students back on a staggered schedule, even were dealing with their own concerns and worries about their though it meant increasing teachers’ workloads as the number own families. Nevertheless, they provided calm and reassuring of class groups increased. guidance to our students. We had to implement an online learning program for those Throughout this, we were guided by our new headmaster, students who could not come to school. Teaching a class online Mike Downey. We proved his motto for the year, “Stronger is one thing, but teaching a full academic year online provides Together,” is certainly true. Our students are fortunate because special challenges. they continued to learn and progress through the curriculum. I Once the academic schedule was in place, we focused on know they are prepared for their next academic year. health and safety protocols. We allowed only limited movement In summary, I am so proud of everyone at Selwyn House. within the school, assigned doors and recess areas for each grade, This is a special place, and it’s special because of the teachers, provided loads of hand sanitizer, Lysol wipes and, of course, staff, students, parents and Old Boys. masks. Selwyn House actually went above and beyond the Ministry of Education’s requirements, and insisted on masks in Veritas, page 6
