Update Regarding Wildwood School Closure/Reopening
- Details
- Written by Rebecca Shurtleff
Friday, October 23, 2020
Dear Wildwood School Community,
As you know, on Thursday, October 22, 2020, Wildwood was advised by a local health department that one member of the school community had tested positive for COVID-19. The decision was made to program remotely for both staff and students on Friday, October 23, 2020.
We have been in ongoing contact with the health department, and It has verified that the safety protocols that were in place and being followed by Wildwood School significantly minimized the risk of exposure. The health department has been thorough in its investigation, and the school leadership and nursing teams have provided detailed information about our safety plan and protocols, our student population, and our deep cleaning processes. This same process will be followed for all future COVID-19 related notifications.
Since this was our first COVID positive case at the school, we felt it important to use today to meet with our staff, make plans for next week and share information with everyone, to ensure that we are doing our very best to protect the health and safety of our students, families and staff. Going forward, we will review each future event on a case-by-case basis, with a goal of continuing uninterrupted in-person instruction, to the greatest extent possible. We do not intend to immediately move to all remote instruction following future events--however, we will err on the side of caution if significant health and safety risks are identified.
Plans for Next Week:
1) YAP. On Monday, October 26, 2020, students who attend the Young Adult Program at our Latham site will continue to receive remote instruction only. No in-person instruction or therapies will take place. YAP staff will report to work in-person and provide remote services from the Latham building.
On Tuesday, October 27, 2020, in-person educational services will resume for all YAP students and staff.
2) Curry Road. In person educational services will resume on Monday, October 26, 2020 for all students and staff at our Curry Road location, including YAP Class 20.
I know that during these unsettling times, confidence in our decision-making is crucial and we take our responsibilities very seriously. Rest assured that Wildwood is deeply committed to the health and safety of everyone involved in our school programs. We are confident that when we return to in-person instruction and services next week, our buildings will be safe for all.
Thank you for your patience and understanding. Have a great weekend and please don’t hesitate to contact me at your earliest convenience with any questions you may have.
Sincerely,
Wilford LeForestier
Wildwood School, Director of Education
bleforestier@wildwoodprograms.
518-836-2210
School to be held remotely tomorrow, Oct. 23
- Details
- Written by Rebecca Shurtleff
Wildwood Schools will be moving to remote instruction for all students tomorrow - Friday, October 23 - due to a positive COVID-19 test within the school community.
Further information about this will be sent to all school families and staff this evening.
A determination about instruction for next week will be made and communicated to all families and staff tomorrow. Please contact school administration with questions.
Read today's 10/23 update from Wildwood School:
https://www.wildwoodschoolsite.com/editoruploads/files/Positive_COVID-19_Parent_Letter.pdf
Love Letters from Wildwood: Informed Consent
- Details
- Written by Rebecca Shurtleff
By Kate Napolitano, MA, LCSW, Social Relationships & Sexuality Educator at Wildwood
Welcome to another edition of Love Letters from Wildwood! In this column, we talk about all things love, sex and relationships, often with a special eye towards current events and/or the world of disability. This edition of Love Letters will be about Informed Consent: what it is, why it’s not just about medical stuff, and why I think it’s a good idea for all of us. If you already feel you’re an expert on informed consent as related to sex and social relationships, that’s wonderful! But know this article strives to describe it for those who may not have given much thought to it before.
If you’re interested in learning even more about Informed Consent after reading this, consider coming to our online Informed Consent educational workshop, happening Wednesday, October 28, at 10am. Registration is free, and more information can be found at the end of this article.
Some of you may know “informed consent” as a phrase hospitals and doctors use, based around the big clipboards of paperwork they get you to sign before surgeries or medical treatments. Broadly speaking, applied to almost anything, “informed consent” means:
Informed = Learning as much CORRECT information about something as you can, including the possible good things and possible risks about it, before you...
Consent = say yes to it. And when you say yes, you’ve taken some time to think about the risks and benefits, and whether you still want to move forward.
I love the concept of informed consent. I think it should apply to everything, especially sex, love and relationships. I mean, why say yes to anything without really thinking about what you might get?