Dear School District of Philadelphia families and staff,

Let me begin by recognizing that staffing challenges due to the Omicron surge coupled with the winter storm have made this an incredibly challenging first week back to school for the 2022 new year. It’s important to know that shifting any school to virtual learning is always a last resort. Our schools are more than just institutions of learning. They are the safe havens our young people rely on for emotional support from a caring educator, for reliable daily meals to nourish their growing bodies, for the support services that are vital to their health and healing, and for the sense of community and connectedness that comes with being together in person with their friends. We will continue to keep as many of our school buildings open as consistently as possible as long as we are confident we can do so safely.

School Updates for Next Week at this time

Omicron continues to impact staffing in our schools and central offices. We ask for your patience as we conduct daily reviews to inform school-by-school decisions as quickly as possible. During these reviews, we assess a range of information such as COVID-related staffing data, temporary measures the school can take to keep their schools operating smoothly, and how we can deploy Central Office staff to help maintain safe and orderly school environments.

Based on today’s data review, we know that at least 46 schools definitely will be 100% virtual next week, Monday, January 10th through Friday, January 14th, 2022:

• ADD B. ANDERSON SCHOOL
• ANNA L. LINGELBACH SCHOOL
• ANNE FRANK SCHOOL
• BACHE-MARTIN SCHOOL
• BALDI MIDDLE SCHOOL
• BENJAMIN FRANKLIN ELEM. SCHOOL
• CHARLES W. HENRY SCHOOL
• COOKE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
• DR. ETHEL ALLEN SCHOOL
• EDWARD T. STEEL SCHOOL
• FELTONVILLE ARTS & SCIENCES
• FELTONVILLE INTERMEDIATE
• GEN. GEORGE G. MEADE SCHOOL
• GEN. LOUIS WAGNER MIDDLE SCH.
• GROVER WASHINGTON JR. MIDDLE
• HAMILTON DISSTON SCHOOL
• HON. LUIS MUNOZ-MARIN SCHOOL
• HOWE ACADEMICS PLUS SCHOOL
• J. HAMPTON MOORE SCHOOL
• JAMES G. BLAINE SCHOOL
• JAMES LOGAN SCHOOL
• JAMES R. LOWELL SCHOOL
• JOHN B. KELLY SCHOOL
• JOSEPH PENNELL ELEMENTARY
• LAURA H. CARNELL SCHOOL
• LEWIS C CASSIDY ACADEMICS PLUS
• LEWIS ELKIN SCHOOL
• MARY BETHUNE SCHOOL
• MIFFLIN, THOMAS SCHOOL
• MORTON MC MICHAEL SCHOOL
• OLNEY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
• RHODES ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
• ROBERTO CLEMENTE MIDDLE SCHOOL
• ROWEN SCHOOL
• RUDOLPH BLANKENBURG SCHOOL
• SAMUEL PENNYPACKER SCHOOL
• SAMUEL S. FELS HIGH SCHOOL
• SOUTHWARK SCHOOL
• TANNER DUCKREY SCHOOL
• THOMAS EDISON HIGH SCHOOL
• THOMAS G. MORTON SCHOOL
• THOMAS K. FINLETTER SCHOOL
• WEST PHILADELPHIA HIGH SCHOOL
• WILLIAM H. LOESCHE SCHOOL
• WILLIAM H. ZIEGLER SCHOOL
• WOODROW WILSON MIDDLE SCHOOL

We will continue to monitor staffing data for all other schools throughout the weekend, and provide another update on Sunday by 4 p.m. Again, this data is rapidly changing. For all other schools, some schools that were virtual this week could remain virtual or shift to in person next week, and those that were in-person this week could remain in person or need to shift to virtual. We know these uncertainties are challenging, and ask that our families prepare for either possibility. Then, as we’ve done this week, we will provide updates twice a day next week. Detailed information and the latest list of schools is available at philasd.org/covidupdates. 

Grab-and-Go Meals for Students Learning Virtually

Starting Tuesday, January 11th, the number of grab-and-go meal sites will expand from 12 to 24. Five-day meal boxes will be available for pick-up Mondays through Fridays 9-10 a.m. and 1-2 p.m. for any School District student who is temporarily learning virtually or quarantining at home. Find details here.

Health and Safety Supports

Safely keeping our schools open for students takes all of us doing our part. As we have since the start of this pandemic, we will always have numerous layers of safety in place to protect everyone in our schools and offices, including mandatory masking, hand sanitizing stations for frequent hand washing, air purifiers in classrooms and common spaces and, importantly, almost 85% of our staff are fully vaccinated. If you are not yet vaccinated or boosted, you can find the latest list of School District vaccine events here and a list of other locations across the city on the City of Philadelphia’s website here or at www.vaccines.gov. While not required, if you’d like to submit proof of your enrolled child’s vaccination status to us, simply take a photo of their vaccination card and email it to your child’s school nurse or to 5vax@philasd.org. We also ask that staff and students continue to stay home if you need to self-isolate or quarantine due to positive COVID testing or exposure or if you are sick.

We are doing everything we can to safely keep as many of our schools open as consistently as possible for our students and families. By continuing to work together, and by being flexible and patient with one another along the way, we can help our young people through these difficult times.

With appreciation,

Dr. William Hite
Superintendent