We are honored to share an incredible article on Catalyst Circle Rock parent Ms. Monica Smith! Please check out the article linked here, and thank you Ms. Smith for all that you bring to the Catalyst community!

Catalyst's IT department, the ROCKITS, were featured in a recent article! Please check out the article linked here, and thank you ROCKITS for all that you bring to the Catalyst community!

 

Dear Catalyst community,

We hope that you are safe, healthy and doing well. We are incredibly grateful for the heroic efforts of Catalyst parents, staff, scholars and partners who have worked tremendously to make remote learning as successful as possible.  We have been able to get 100% of scholars connected at home (with a Catalyst device available to all), and we are seeing ~94% average daily attendance across the network.

When we made the decision in August to remain remote, it was informed by our parents and staff and based on the safety of everyone in our community. Staff and parents have worked incredibly hard towards an online learning platform that has worked well. In determing how we move forward into Quarter 2 was again driven by community safety and our capacity to ensure an excellent and accessible online platform for our scholars. Here’s what is known:

• Survey feedback from parents and staff members have indicated a strong sense of success with online learning;
• Scholar attendance has been strong, closely aligned to what would be expected during in-person learning;
• Parent feedback has indicated satisfaction with our approach 
• Parent feedback indicates that ~30% at Maria and 37% at CCR would send their child back to campus for in person learning after Q1;
• The remaining percentage of parents have said they are unsure or would not send their child back at this point;
• COVID19 infection rates are increasing in almost every state, including IL;
• The medical community has been warning of a second wave and believe we may be entering it;
• We are approaching flu season which complicates health issues;
• We do not have access to a vaccine or treatment;

In considering these items, we have determined that this compels us to continue our current remote learning platform through Quarter 2. After numerous conversations and surveys, school and network leadership are in alignment on this. We will smartly reassess when we return from winter break with the earliest date of return to on-site instruction for scholars being the start of Q3, February 8, 2020. At this point, the one thing we know for sure is that we need to reach and teach every one of our scholars. 

Be well, stay safe, and much peace and grace to our Catalyst families. Stay connected and do not become isolated- please reach out and let us know what we can do to support you.

-The Catalyst Schools team

We hope that you and your families are safe, healthy and doing well.  

On November 5, 2020, Catalyst Circle Rock's Kehrein Center for the Arts will stage a dynamic virtual symposium on Racial Reconciliation. The event is being hosted by the Austin Renaissance Council, and the program will be formed by neighborhood groups and individuals with compelling voices on that theme. This event will be live streamed on YouTube and Facebook and moderated by Reesheda Washington. 

The Call for Proposals for the Symposium - as well as sponsorship opportunities - can be found here: Symposium on Racial Reconciliation

Questions for consideration in Symposium presentations: 

• For whom and for what are you advocating? 
• Who have been the important voices for you in the area of racial justice? 
• How do you impact and effect change? 
• If historical figures like Christopher Columbus and Thomas Jefferson are no longer embraced as those who best represent our country's ideals, which historical figures do?
• What would our country look like if our actions reflected that all people are created equally? 

Please consider participating, as well as circulating to others whose voices we need to hear today.  The deadline for the Call for Proposals is October 16, 2020. For sponsorship opportunities and further questions, contact Sharon Morgan at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The Symposium on Racial Reconciliation on November 5, 2020, Catalyst Circle Rock's Kehrein Center for the Arts was featured in a recent Block Club Chicago article, linked here. 

More information on the symposium can be found below. 

On November 5, 2020, Catalyst Circle Rock's Kehrein Center for the Arts will stage a dynamic virtual symposium on Racial Reconciliation. The event is being hosted by the Austin Renaissance Council, and the program will be formed by neighborhood groups and individuals with compelling voices on that theme. This event will be live streamed on YouTube and Facebook and moderated by Reesheda Washington. 

The Call for Proposals for the Symposium - as well as sponsorship opportunities - can be found here: Symposium on Racial Reconciliation

Questions for consideration in Symposium presentations: 

• For whom and for what are you advocating? 
• Who have been the important voices for you in the area of racial justice? 
• How do you impact and effect change? 
• If historical figures like Christopher Columbus and Thomas Jefferson are no longer embraced as those who best represent our country's ideals, which historical figures do?
• What would our country look like if our actions reflected that all people are created equally? 

Please consider participating, as well as circulating to others whose voices we need to hear today.  The deadline for the Call for Proposals is October 16, 2020. For sponsorship opportunities and further questions, contact Sharon Morgan at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.