Well, given the survey email that just came out, it appears that the anonymous letter writers' request is being declined. The email indicates SFS is sticking to distance learning after Thanksgiving.

Anonymous wrote:Should we make public health decisions based upon what the % of the school population that pays full fees thinks regardless of the reality? Should we additionally make it a ranked choice based upon the size of your annual donation? I bet you’d not rank that high, PP.

This has moved beyond a public health issue. It is now an operational issue.

Should we make public health decisions based upon what the % of the school population that pays full fees thinks regardless of the reality? Should we additionally make it a ranked choice based upon the size of your annual donation? I bet you’d not rank that high, PP.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“these "Karens" pay salaries and donate to all the funds that keep the school operating--it is not just husbands who have the money, folks” It’s an unfortunate term and no place here, but I think deep down it’s a state of mind that’s at issue not so much gender (I would bet men were involved); also this statement is worse than the letter. You’d be surprised to find how little it would matter if you left: there are many less entitled people happy to pay the school fees and contribute to the annual fund who don’t think our excellent school and teachers are in their servitude. What is wrong with you?!

Nothing is wrong with me, thank you. I am simply pointing out that women who are both emotionally and (heavily) financially invested in their child's education have the right to speak up respectfully without being called Karen. What is wrong with you?

Umm ... by that logic, do the scholarship mothers have less/no right to speak up? What about teachers? Those should be pass/fail question on the parents admittance interview to our school.

For your own sake, I hope you examine your values. It’s not about left and right at all, you can be of any political persuasion, but it is about the right and wrong.

You are not speaking up respectfully with an anonymous petition after we reached the sense of the meeting on this semester. You are not speaking up respectfully when you treat teachers as your employees. And you are not speaking up respectfully when you attack our students for having a point of view. Always encouraged and welcomed everyone to speak up respectfully. So what’s wrong with my world right now is honestly just you.

Anonymous wrote:“these "Karens" pay salaries and donate to all the funds that keep the school operating--it is not just husbands who have the money, folks” It’s an unfortunate term and no place here, but I think deep down it’s a state of mind that’s at issue not so much gender (I would bet men were involved); also this statement is worse than the letter. You’d be surprised to find how little it would matter if you left: there are many less entitled people happy to pay the school fees and contribute to the annual fund who don’t think our excellent school and teachers are in their servitude. What is wrong with you?!

Nothing is wrong with me, thank you. I am simply pointing out that women who are both emotionally and (heavily) financially invested in their child's education have the right to speak up respectfully without being called Karen. What is wrong with you?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Hmmmm.....I wonder why they did not openly include their names, when respectfully asking the school to have their children attend school on campus when they have paid over 45,000 in tuition and hybrid worked? What a shocking request! Could it possibly be due to some of the views expressed by other parents (or are they really bored HS students? teachers?) on this site? Not a whole lot of tolerance or civility being expressed here, no matter how virtuous you think you are.

Sadly, this is true of the current Sidwell - only one viewpoint (i.e. the left) is accepted. Diversity of viewpoints and freedom of Speech/thought are not tolerated and some group of parents will suppress any views that are different from theirs.

Totally. I too check the dcum to decide how to handle important matters in life. It’s perfectly reasonable and not immature and unintelligent at all. Calling the Board now to complain about the bullying on dcum which has pushed me into the Parents Anonymous because my name is Karen (which is why I didn’t sign it). Will mention they should reopen the school and make teachers teach in person. Because I pay the fees. Pandemic schmandemic.

Off to drink beer with Bret and watch Amy use her towering intellect to ignore the school her children brought the outbreak to from the Rose Garden. January cannot come fast enough.

Signed: bored HS student, disgruntled teacher, disgruntled teacher’s lawyer spouse, lefty parent

I would have paid top dollar to see the Board’s reaction first hand when they clicked on the anonymous petition. Must be good for a few laughs over the evening cocktails. They should copy the Michigan lawmakers statement (they are not the Left so should be palatable to the PP): We have not yet been made aware of any information that would change the outcome of the [election in Michigan and as legislative leaders] school decision, we will follow the [law] community values and guidelines and follow the normal process regarding [Michigan's electors] any such decision, just as we have said throughout this [election] entire push to reopen no matter what fiasco," ps DC is in an uncontrolled infection spread by its metrics as of this morning but dcum folk say nothing to see here and 99% you’ll be fine so we’ll periodically pretend to reconsider whenever a perfectly sane dcum parent screams at us that schools must open

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The bigger issue is that it’s been over a week since 11/11 and still no word from SFS? This is borderline negligent.

You need to reread the SFS protocol. There is nothing there that I can find that says the school will notify anyone about positive tests, nor should they. That is the job of the health department in contact tracing.

Ask the parents of kids who had classes with the infected student and had to figure out amongst themselves who might have had contact. this is a massive fail by the school, the protocol is insufficient. safety AND confidence are key if this is going to work

Again, if DC Health determines your child is at risk of exposure, you will be notified. If you are not notified, your child s not considered to be a direct contact and at risk. There’s no need to be ferreting out info...if you need to know something, you will.

I think what you’re missing - and what parents are wondering - is whether they will be informed if their child was sitting in classrooms with someone who’s infected. Depending on how many classes they have together, they could have been in the same closed room for several hours. Is the school telling the District “there was no close contact” simply because the school protocol is that they are always supposed to be 6’ apart? If so, then no one in the classroom is getting contacted. I’d be pretty pissed if that is the school’s approach. But having heard nothing from the school, I’m left to wonder what their approach is.

At our other child's school - if my child was in the classroom with someone who tested positive, the school would reach out to us directly. They would report to DC/VA/MD authorities as well but not rely on them to reach out to us.

In addition, the school would report to the entire community that someone had tested positive, their role in the community (faculty, student, contractors), the date of the positive test, and the last date the person was on campus. My work office building does the same.

Alternatively, if the parent of a child or the spouse of a teacher tested positive, the school would not report it to the community and any contact would rely on official state contract tracing.

This is a petition for no more SFS threads — one of the best schools in the nation doesn’t need this sort of a thing because the few unceasing entitled voices are not who we are. “If you agree with it, we ask you to sign anonymously, if you prefer.”

Anonymous wrote:As a parent with kids at 3 different area schools- and one who has been involved in this issue on multiple fronts- I can assure all Sidwell parents that the schools methods, policies and protocols are second to none, on any school in the area. They are also among the most conservative as far as metrics for being on campus and yet- they are the one school (ok, maybe along with GDS) that is dragging feet on reopening. Why? Parents have a right to know this. There is no scientifically supported reason for Sidwell to remain in full distance learning after Thanksgiving

My experience on this is different. Other schools where my children attend are doing a much better job on all fronts than we have experienced with Sidwell.

For those of you saying everything is great now, so what's the big deal and we should open after Thanksgiving....consider that the virus is spreading and that families will get together and will travel and local rates are likely to look much different by December. Furthermore, those families that chose to gather and travel for Thanksgiving, despite overwhelming advice not to are also less likely to follow requests to quarantine and keep their kids at home afterwards .

That’s actually really funny. True, all those names were being called around the student letter. Who needs therapy when you have dcum — it’s a much more satisfying frustration outlet and it’s free!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Hmmmm.....I wonder why they did not openly include their names, when respectfully asking the school to have their children attend school on campus when they have paid over 45,000 in tuition and hybrid worked? What a shocking request! Could it possibly be due to some of the views expressed by other parents (or are they really bored HS students? teachers?) on this site? Not a whole lot of tolerance or civility being expressed here, no matter how virtuous you think you are.

Sadly, this is true of the current Sidwell - only one viewpoint (i.e. the left) is accepted. Diversity of viewpoints and freedom of Speech/thought are not tolerated and some group of parents will suppress any views that are different from theirs.

Totally. I too check the dcum to decide how to handle important matters in life. It’s perfectly reasonable and not immature and unintelligent at all. Calling the Board now to complain about the bullying on dcum which has pushed me into the Parents Anonymous because my name is Karen (which is why I didn’t sign it). Will mention they should reopen the school and make teachers teach in person. Because I pay the fees. Pandemic schmandemic.

Off to drink beer with Bret and watch Amy use her towering intellect to ignore the school her children brought the outbreak to from the Rose Garden. January cannot come fast enough.

Signed: bored HS student, disgruntled teacher, disgruntled teacher’s lawyer spouse, lefty parent

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Hmmmm.....I wonder why they did not openly include their names, when respectfully asking the school to have their children attend school on campus when they have paid over 45,000 in tuition and hybrid worked? What a shocking request! Could it possibly be due to some of the views expressed by other parents (or are they really bored HS students? teachers?) on this site? Not a whole lot of tolerance or civility being expressed here, no matter how virtuous you think you are.

Sadly, this is true of the current Sidwell - only one viewpoint (i.e. the left) is accepted. Diversity of viewpoints and freedom of Speech/thought are not tolerated and some group of parents will suppress any views that are different from theirs.

Except it’s only your voices that are ringing out in the deafening silence that our community met your absurd anonymous methods with and it’s your freedom that wagged the dog to reopen this semester. No one else is acting out.
Also, diversity of viewpoints limited to those who pay?! Students, teachers, administration not entitled to an opinion?! It doesn’t take a liberal to be a decent human being.

Anonymous wrote:
Hmmmm.....I wonder why they did not openly include their names, when respectfully asking the school to have their children attend school on campus when they have paid over 45,000 in tuition and hybrid worked? What a shocking request! Could it possibly be due to some of the views expressed by other parents (or are they really bored HS students? teachers?) on this site? Not a whole lot of tolerance or civility being expressed here, no matter how virtuous you think you are.

Sadly, this is true of the current Sidwell - only one viewpoint (i.e. the left) is accepted. Diversity of viewpoints and freedom of Speech/thought are not tolerated and some group of parents will suppress any views that are different from theirs.

Anonymous wrote:“these "Karens" pay salaries and donate to all the funds that keep the school operating--it is not just husbands who have the money, folks” It’s an unfortunate term and no place here, but I think deep down it’s a state of mind that’s at issue not so much gender (I would bet men were involved); also this statement is worse than the letter. You’d be surprised to find how little it would matter if you left: there are many less entitled people happy to pay the school fees and contribute to the annual fund who don’t think our excellent school and teachers are in their servitude. What is wrong with you?!

This AND schooling shouldn’t be about who can pay (we can but don’t hold ourselves above those who can’t, that is just so déclassé to use the terms RHO watchers can understand)