Preparation for Virtual Instruction
When inclement weather is likely, students should make sure they bring their laptops, chargers, and necessary books/notebooks home. When the school is closed because of inclement weather, the building will be closed and students will not be able to access their lockers.

Closings, Delays, and Early Dismissals

Due to weather or other factors, it may sometimes be necessary to delay the start of the school day or cancel in-person learning altogether. It may also be necessary to cancel after-school activities or dismiss students early on occasion. Anytime such a change will be made, the community will be notified via email and text message. When possible, this information will also be reported to various news outlets for inclusion on their "Closings & Delays" page. 

Saint Joseph's is located within the geographical boundaries of State College Area School District. If State College delays or closes, Saint Joseph's will as well. Students who live in the boundaries of other school districts should follow their districts: if a student's home district delays or closes, that student may come to school late (or not at all) even if Saint Joseph's is following a normal schedule.

Delays

A delay postpones the beginning of the school day from 8:05 AM to 10:05 AM. Following a delay, students follow a modified schedule that allows all classes to meet for a shorter duration (see "Bell Schedules" in the Family Handbook). All delays are a free out-of-uniform day (see “Out-of-Uniform Dress Code” in the Family Handbook). When a delay occurs on a Mass day, students are encouraged to dress sensibly and avoid overly casual outfits, mindful of the reverence due to the Holy Sacrifice. 

Early Dismissals

It may sometimes be necessary to dismiss students early, especially due to weather conditions. When an early dismissal is called, a dismissal time will be communicated to the community. We ask all students and families for patience, as an early dismissal often requires coordination between multiple school districts who may send transportation at different times. Student drivers are encouraged to exercise additional caution. In other cases, after-school activities may be canceled without any modification to the school's dismissal time.

Closings

In the event of a school closing, instruction is able to continue without disruption to the academic calendar thanks to our 1:1 technology program This also means that students have certain academic responsibilities that they must fulfill on these virtual instruction days (or "virtual days").

Pennsylvania law requires students to check in for attendance at the beginning of a virtual day. In order to be counted as "present" for the day, all students must email their first period teachers no later than 8:15 AM. Teachers will report attendance to the Main Office on the basis of these emails, and all in-person policies apply with regard to absences, late arrivals, or early dismissals. (See "Absence" in the Family Handbook for more information about attendance policies.)

Each teacher has the option to present instruction synchronously or asynchronously, based on the material being presented and with the objective of offering high-quality lessons both in-person and virtually. Before 8 AM, all teachers will communicate with their classes to indicate whether the day's classwork will be synchronous or asynchronous. Whether instruction is delivered synchronously or asynchronously, teachers will be available throughout the day via email to respond to questions and assist students as needed

Asynchronous Learning

Asynchronous assignments are completed by each student independently. If classwork is being completed asynchronously, teachers will post all materials by 10 AM. Virtual day assignments are due the same day at 7 PM, unless stated otherwise by the teacher. 

Synchronous Learning

Synchronous instruction is delivered to all students simultaneously via video call. If a teacher decides that instruction will be synchronous, they will ensure that a video call link is clearly posted on Google Classroom. Students must join the video call by the beginning of class, according to the normal bell schedule. Study periods, clubs, House periods, Mass, chapel, and homeroom will not meet.

Students must keep their cameras on at all times in class, must be dressed either in uniform or spirit wear, and should be in a public location within their house (i.e. not a bedroom or bathroom) as far as possible. The expectation is that students will participate in a virtual class to the same degree as an in-person class. This means that teachers may require students to participate vocally, through the chat, or both. It also means that students should not be on their phones, playing games, or otherwise distracted during a video class. Violation of these expectations may result in further disciplinary action, as it would during in-person learning. Teachers may require students to remain on the video call for the duration of the class, according to the bell schedule, or may dismiss the class to work on an assignment independently.