Status of Fair Haven Schools Reopening

As of about a month ago, all 600+ school districts in the State of New Jersey had a plan to open schools for at least some version of in-person instruction, with most offering some version of a hybrid approach to comply with the State health and safety guidelines.

As of today, over 200 of those 600 or so school districts have moved to a full virtual opening of their schools.

This is an unbelievably challenging time for all of our communities, and certainly for our schools.

I am happy to report that the Fair Haven Schools have successfully reopened and have enjoyed our first week and a half of modified in-person and virtual instruction!

Nothing about this has been simple.  There are extremely serious issues, each of which requires diligence, thought, and care as if every student was our own, and as if every staff member was a member of our family.

I am incredibly grateful to our staff.  While this plan is not without its challenges, we believe that we need to be here for your kids, who we treat as our kids.  We witnessed how challenging a full virtual learning model was for so many of our children, and so many of our families, and we want to be here for you.

That said, our staff is putting its faith in this administration and this community to do everything we can to keep them safe too.  So thank you.  Thank you for supporting us, thank you for bearing with us, and thank you for trusting us. 

While I know that this is not the opening that we had all hoped for, let’s not focus on what this is not. Instead, let us not lose sight of what it is.  It is our first step back.  Our first step towards returning to that special place that Fair Haven has always been, where children rush through the doors with smiles on their faces to greet their teachers, to see their friends, and to learn and grow.

This is our way back, and while no one is more sorry than I am not to see our schools reopen fully just yet, I am so proud and so happy that they are open.

As this process continues, please be patient with us.  We are opening schools during a global health pandemic for the first time in the modern era. Our goal is to be calm and steady as we take each step, because truly, our goal is not simply to open, but to remain open.  We know how valuable this is to our children and we are determined to get it right.

Referendum Projects Update:

We are also happy to report that our construction projects at both schools are progressing nicely!  We will be updating our referendum projects website next week to include updates and images to keep our community informed throughout this process.  You can find the webpage at www.fairhaven.edu

Thank you all for your wonderful support!

Sean McNeil
Superintendent of Schools