Hello Friends,
I cannot believe how quickly the month of July has flown by. We are already starting our fourth week of Extended School Year (ESY) and our last week of Vocational Immersion Program (VIP). We plan and talk for months to ensure a meaningful experience for our students and VIP participants and before you know it, the programs are here and soon to be over.
We have had the pleasure of working with approximately 170 students for ESY. All programming was in-person. We strategically introduced a few community-based trips, but unfortunately were not able to introduce all the off-campus trips we typically run during the summer. We have enjoyed working with the students who have come to campus every day for a slower-paced, but still productive program. We held a picnic for students and staff this past Friday. Everyone enjoyed a hot dog and some outside fun. ESY will wrap up on Friday, August 6.
VIP has also provided a positive experience for our young adults this summer. We are extremely grateful to our community business partners: Starr Books, United Sports, Phoenixville YMCA and Elmwood Park Zoo. These businesses are providing our young adults with opportunities to learn job skills and practice the soft skills of employment, such as following directions from a supervisor, arriving on time, and working side-by-side with co-workers. We have found that VIP is a positive experience, not only for our participants but also for the community business partners. The week of July 26 will be the last week of VIP. The last week is also known as residency week. Our participants stay overnight at a local Sonesta Inn and Suites and learn important skills such as meal planning, grocery shopping, planning one’s day and evening, getting up for work and learning to share and live with others. We will celebrate the accomplishments of our participants on Friday, July 30 in a ceremony on campus. VIP families should look for additional details in their email within the next few days.
We are moving full steam ahead with planning for in-person instruction in September. We expect to start the school year with minimal to no restrictions/guidelines in place. Of course, we will adjust as needed should the virus rear its ugly head in our region. I am emboldened by the region’s willingness to embrace vaccines and protect ourselves and those around us. Unfortunately, we are reading and hearing more about the Delta variant that is even more insidious than the original strain. I encourage Vanguard School families to review the benefits of their student(s) receiving a vaccine before the start of school in the fall. I know the vaccine is only available for students 12 years of age and older, but if the majority of our students are vaccinated it could potentially contribute to the decrease in spread should a student or staff person become infected with this variant. There are no guarantees, but it seems the more of us who are vaccinated the better our chances of retaining in-person instruction with little to no restrictions. In the meantime, we will follow the CDC, PA-DOH and Chester County Health Department’s recommendations very closely. Should our protocols change and we reinstate any guidelines, we will fully communicate those changes to our families and employees as quickly as possible.
August is just around the corner. VFES @ Camp Kweebec is filling up and we are excited to welcome our campers back. If you have any questions about camp, please direct them to either Michele Seel at miseel@vfes.net or Sascha Baello at albaello@vfes.net.
I hope everyone enjoys a wonderfully relaxing August. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. We are sharing activities weekly on social media. It is an easy way to stay in touch and follow the happenings here at VFES.
Best,
