Since March 2020, we have looked forward to the day when the NMS community can be together in person. It is finally possible to plan for that time. As we prepare for Fall 2021 at NMS, we’d like to provide you with an initial sense of our plans and what you can expect.
We are excited to welcome all activities to our main Audubon Street building and our Guilford satellite location this fall, provided government guidelines allow us to do so. These activities include:
Given positive trends related to vaccination rates in Connecticut, we are optimistic about the fall.
We will continue to closely monitor public health recommendations as we refine our fall plans. Our protocols will be responsive to current guidance, including safety precautions such as mask wearing and increased ventilation.
We will share details of our fall protocols over the summer.
One key aspect of our preparation for the fall is enhancing our technological capabilities throughout our teaching studios so that faculty can seamlessly teach students who are at home, as well as those who are at NMS. We recognize that some students may not be comfortable with in-person instruction in the fall, and we will continue to provide remote instruction.
An additional important benefit of these technology upgrades is that if a student has any symptoms that may be indicators of COVID-19, they can stay safe at home and still attend their lesson, class, or ensemble online. Students will be able to engage with their teacher online without missing a beat.
Throughout this past year, we have continuously had students and activities in our building, including:
As we brought back each activity, our staff and advisors engaged in a robust, collaborative process to develop policies and procedures designed to keep everyone in our building safe. We are proud to say that these policies and procedures have worked:
We have not had a single case of COVID-19 transmission within our building.
Much credit is due to our students, families, faculty, and staff, who all have been diligent about keeping our community safe. We also believe that our collaborative, science-based planning process has played a major role in our success, as it has enabled us to create strong, sensible, and safe procedures.
As we look ahead to the fall, we will continue to approach our planning process as we have throughout the past year:
We continue to believe in the importance of listening to expert advice, collaborating with our community, and placing safety at the center of all of our plans.
We thank you for your resilience and your commitment to NMS over the past year. We are hard at work planning a safe, engaging, and joyful fall, and we look forward to welcoming you back.
