Sonoma school first to welcome students back to campus

The Presentation School, a private school in Sonoma, welcomed its youngest students back to campus this week, becoming the first school in Sonoma County to reopen since the pandemic shut down classrooms across California seven months ago.

“Things went very smoothly,” said Head of School Jacqueline Gallo. “The students were so excited to be back on campus. Many students told me it was the best day of the year or their lives. Parents were very happy for their children and a few shed some tears.”

Forty-nine of Presentation’s 54 students in grades K-2 returned to school on Wednesday, Gallo said. Five students stayed home, continuing to take their classes online. Two teachers are continuing to teach remotely and the rest are teaching in person.

Students started their day by touring campus to learn how it has changed and practice some new routines. At recess, Gallo practiced the “2020 dance” with second-graders to illustrate how much space is needed to stay properly distanced.

In early October, the Sonoma County Department of Health Services reviewed applications from 15 private schools across the county seeking to reopen with in-person instruction. Presentation was the first and only school approved on Oct. 7 to reopen, although other schools are expected to follow in the days ahead. A second Sonoma school, St. Francis Solano School, provided additional information to the county on Oct. 6 and is waiting for a reply, according to school officials.

All 145 students in kindergarten through fourth grade can be on campus at the same time because the school can spread students out using additional classroom space, said Gallo. Grades five and six will return to class in two cohorts, one group on campus one week and remote the next.

The school is barred from resuming in-person classes for students in grades seven and eight because Sonoma County remains in the purple tier, the most restrictive in the state’s COVID-19 reopening plan.

Presentation students and staff are doing daily temperature checks and mid-day symptom checks, wearing face coverings and social distancing. The school has also hired a third-party contact tracing company and is conducting regular testing of staff.

If the first week continues to go smoothly, Presentation will begin welcoming back third and fourth graders the week of Oct. 26 and fifth and sixth graders the week of Nov. 2, Gallo said.

Sonoma County schools have been closed for in-person instruction since mid-March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sonoma Valley public schools discussed reopening goals at its Oct. 21 school board meeting but cannot yet set a reopening date.

“Social distancing in a school setting is possible,” said Gallo. “The students, so happy to be back together, were happy to comply with the new rules.”

Founded in 1997, The Presentation School is a private K-8 school guided by Catholic values with 193 students and 24 faculty and staff, according to its website. Tuition is $16,450 annually, although nearly a quarter of families receive financial aid that reduces their costs.

See the complete list of California schools with waivers to reopen at cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID-19/ElementarySchoolWaiverConsultations.aspx.