Dear MPCS Community:
I trust this letter finds you well several weeks into summer break. Likewise, I pray you will all have a chance to decompress a little this summer before we are all back together on August 11. This has been a year like no other that I have experienced in my 50 years of life. I pray that God will use all of the trials and ambiguity the year has brought to make His presence known to all, and I pray you will all find peace and rest in the days ahead.
Today, I write to let you know our Summer Programs committee met and determined that we will not run camps so as to ensure that we are fully prepared for the opening of school on August 11. From my perspective, and that of the committee, we feel that using all resources to ensure that the campus is clean, fully sanitized, and completely prepared to welcome back 1,100 students in August is our number one priority. We also seek to ensure our operations team has all they need in terms of time and supplies to create safe facilities and a welcoming atmosphere for all of our students and staff as we begin the school year. I am sorry for those of you who will be negatively impacted as a result of camp cancellations and for our employees and students who were counting on a month of camp and the relationships and memories that go along with them. However, we believe strongly that this is the right decision for the summer of 2020.
As I have been in communication with a group of other Atlanta area heads over the past several weeks, it is the overwhelming choice of most schools to either drastically limit the numbers of camps they allow on campus using extreme social distancing, or cancel them altogether. As such, we have chosen to take the last approach. If you have signed up for camps, you will be receiving information soon concerning full refunds.
The only activity that will take place on campus for students this summer will be athletic training in small and highly-monitored groupings. MPCS will follow all GHSA rules and conditions and ensure that both the number of people and the number of spaces are limited. We will also be vigilant in our health screenings of all who enter campus over the summer months. This will enable our operations team to monitor and address all of the cleaning needs of these spaces and allow for maximum care of the remainder of campus leading up to the start of the school year.
Thank you for your gracious understanding. Please continue to pray for us and for our local leaders as we plan and prepare for the start of the 2020-2021 school year. I am confident it will be a great year and that we will be fully prepared to serve your families and offer the best in education, as we have for the past 44 years. I cannot wait to see you all very soon, on campus!
Soli Deo Gloria,
Dr. Timothy P. Wiens
Head of School
Mount Paran Christian School
