Here, you can find the expectations for how we at Georgetown Prep will engage with the virtual campus experience. We know how anxious, how nervous, and how stressed many are about this experience – please know that we will do everything we can to support you and support your son, and we will all work together through this new challenge. Please know too that we cannot do this without your help: more than ever, we at Prep will look to you for support, for encouragement, and for strength. We are partners together working towards the same goal – we want your son to grow, to learn, and to become a man for and with others. Every challenge is an opportunity for growth, and this moment is no different.
There are sure to be questions this document does not address. Please know that this is a starting point and an opportunity to address some of the more common concerns raised. If you have any questions, please reach out to:
John Glennon, Headmaster
Chris Rodriguez, Dean of Students
Dr. Erik Maginnis, Academic Dean
Attendance
Each student is expected to attend each class, each day. The regularity of the Prep daily schedule will enable as strong a sense of normalcy as we can provide our students, and we feel that it is in their best interest to maintain this structure. We will follow a Blue Monday schedule each day. We will continue to follow a test letter day rotation. If your son must be absent, please email Chris Rodriguez, Dean of Students, directly.
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We will only have class on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Wednesday is a day for students to meet in advisory sessions, work on their own, collaborate with peers, connect with their teachers, or meet with extracurricular groups and clubs online. By building this day into the middle of the week, we hope to enable students a bit of a break from what will likely be an at times overwhelming adjustment.
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For students unable to attend a synchronous class meeting because of differences in time zone or other complications, any essential information from those learning periods will be recorded and made accessible on Veracross or in a teacher’s shared Google folder. Every Zoom session will be recorded, and these recordings are meant only for necessary absences; students should not miss class simply because of this access. Attendance is required unless other arrangements are explicitly made.
Behavior/Engagement
We ask for your help in reminding your son that the online classroom is still a classroom, and should be treated as such. He should not act differently during online instruction than he would in person. In particular, we want to encourage our students that this time is going to be just as challenging for their teachers as it is for them, and it is important as men for and with others that they treat their teachers with the same patience and respect we hope their teachers afford them.
It can be easy to get distracted on the computer, and we ask for your assistance in helping to minimize distractions. Your son should:
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Keep his phone out of reach during class time.
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Close all unnecessary tabs and programs on his computer to focus on Zoom.
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Keep the teacher as the central screen in Zoom, pinning either their image or their shared screen to avoid being distracted by the screens of his peers.
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Your son should not be eating during class time, and he should not be walking around and bringing his computer with him. Should he need to use the restroom or step away, he can simply stop his video and mute himself until he is able to return.
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Your son should be appropriately dressed. He does not need to be in a coat and tie, but his clothes should be presentable and appropriate. He must be in a collared shirt, and (like a normal school day) he must not wear a hooded sweatshirt.
Work
The work may be different in online instruction than you or your son are accustomed to. There may be fewer or differently-structured assessments, there may be more projects and opportunities for collaborative work, and there may be more independence. We expect every student to continue to take his work seriously and remain engaged with the learning process.
Communication
Encourage your son to stay in touch with his teachers and to attend virtual office hours when he can. In addition, we encourage you to keep dialogue open with your son’s teachers should any questions arise.
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Your son is expected to check his Prep email every day. This is crucial as teachers will often be communicating outside of the regularly scheduled classroom time.
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Your son is expected to check each teacher’s Veracross and/or Google Classroom page each day. These sites are important resources for completing required work.
Environment
Help your son to find a quiet place in your home that can serve as his “classroom.” Try to limit distractions, but also make sure that the space is conducive to academic work. Ideally, he should not be laying in bed or on the couch, but sitting at a table, a desk, or something similar.
Support
We want your son to continue to rely on the relationships that help to make Prep the wonderful environment we all love. Both he and you can and should continue to reach out to the teachers, advisors, counselors, administrators, coaches, and adults who offer support - they are all eager to continue to do so. In particular, take advantage of scheduled office hours with teachers, make appointments with College Counseling or Ms. Napolitano, drop in to chat with Dr. Maginnis or Mr. Blue, whatever will help you both feel connected to the Prep community even from afar.
