Family Weekend

Welcome to Family Week
October 14 - 16, 2020

View the Schedule:

Wednesday, October 14

Wednesday
6:30–7:30 p.m.	Parents of Avon Meeting—Jeffrey Marx & Prep4Ward Presentation* Join us for our virtual Parents of Avon meeting on October 14 at 6:30 p.m. We have an exciting addition to our program! This year's visiting author Jeffrey Marx, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and New York Times bestselling author, will be joining us. He will offer a question and answer opportunity regarding the two summer reading books, The Long Snapper and Season of Life as well as a sneak peek into the program the boys will experience the following morning. Heather and Graham Callaghan will also join us for the second half of the meeting to discuss Avon's Prep4Ward program. You won't want to miss this special meeting. Please email parentsofavon@gmail.com with any questions. * The link to the meeting was sent to parents via email on via email in our Weekly Rundown on October 9 and in a reminder email today, Wednesday, October 13. Please note Zoom meetings will be recorded for those who are unable to attend.

Wednesday

6:30–7:30 p.m.

Parents of Avon Meeting—Jeffrey Marx & Prep4Ward Presentation*

Join us for our virtual Parents of Avon meeting on October 14 at 6:30 p.m. We have an exciting addition to our program! This year's visiting author Jeffrey Marx, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and New York Times bestselling author, will be joining us. He will offer a question and answer opportunity regarding the two summer reading books, The Long Snapper and Season of Life as well as a sneak peek into the program the boys will experience the following morning.

Heather and Graham Callaghan will also join us for the second half of the meeting to discuss Avon's Prep4Ward program. You won't want to miss this special meeting. Please email parentsofavon@gmail.com with any questions.

* The link to the meeting was sent to parents via email on via email in our Weekly Rundown on October 9 and in a reminder email today, Wednesday, October 13. Please note Zoom meetings will be recorded for those who are unable to attend.

Thursday, October 15

Thursday
8–9 a.m.	Jeffrey Marx Keynote Address
9:10–10 a.m.	Student Workshop #1
10:10–11 a.m.	Student Workshop #2
11:10 a.m.–12 p.m.	Student Workshop #3
12–1:15 p.m.	Lunch
1:15–3:25 p.m.	Student C & D Classes
3:30–4:15 p.m.	College Counseling Webinar for Sophomore Parents, Junior Parents, and Senior Parents*
4:30–5:15 p.m.	Senior Parents: Zoom* with Head of School Jim Detora and Provost Rob Dowling Junior Parents: Zoom* with Deans Mike Symes and Graham Callaghan Sophomore Parents: Zoom* with Deans Brian Doyle and Jill Harrington Freshman Parents: Zoom* with Associate Head of School Rob Whitty, and Deans Trevor Stern and Mike Murphy Links to meetings were sent to all parents via email in our Weekly Rundown on October 9 and in a reminder email on Wednesday, October 13.
7–8:15 p.m.	Joe Ehrmann Parent Webinar with Q&A*

Friday, October 16

Friday
7–7:30 a.m.	Jim Detora & Christel Rooney Zoom with International Parents*
2 p.m.	Students Allowed to Depart Campus After Last Commitment

* Please note Zoom meetings will be recorded for those who are unable to attend.

Enjoy a virtual message from our students to their families that have sacrificed so much, making it possible for their boys to attend Avon Old Farms School this fall.

A Day in the Life: A Student Project by Millan Jain

22nd Annual Family Weekend Book Drive

The Baxter Library's Family Weekend traditions continue. While we will miss having families on campus this year we are pleased to offer:

A limited quantity of The Long Snapper and Season's of Life, by our Visiting Author Jeffrey Marx, is available for purchase ($25 for both).
Delicious fall treats for the boys to enjoy.
Opportunity to make a contribution to the Baxter Library's electronic bookshelf, OverDrive, in lieu of our traditional Book Drive.

Please contact Director of the Library Deb Garber for more information!

Your sons are missing you, too! They've worked hard to put together some special Family Week videos to share with you.

Music from Your Boys

Note: Students Leaving For the Weekend

We are looking forward to Family Week and are excited to present unique programming and special opportunities to connect with our families virtually. The following contains specific details regarding the mandatory COVID-19 testing for students returning to campus on Monday, October 19, and the permissions and limitations for residential students requesting leaves over Family Weekend, October 16–19. These guidelines were developed in conjunction with Hartford HealthCare with the wellness and safety of the entire Avon community as our top priority.

Overnight/Weekend Leaves
Community COVID-19 Testing

Overnight/Weekend Leaves

Overnight/Weekend Leaves

Due to our health and safety guidelines, overnight and weekend leaves will function differently this year. The partnership with our families continues to be essential for our success.

An overnight/weekend leave over Family Weekend will begin on Friday, October 16, at 2 p.m. Residential students will be required to return to campus on Monday, October 19, by 3 p.m.
Please refer to the following information regarding overnight leaves, families visiting campus, and local leaves with parents/guardians.
Students will be allowed to leave campus during Family Weekend in accordance with the following guidelines. Please reference the State of Connecticut Travel Guidelines for the designation of "green" and "red" states. The designation of states is updated every Tuesday, based on a seven day rolling average of COVID-19 prevalence.

Students traveling home to "green" states:
a. Students may travel home to a "green" state.
b. Students are highly discouraged from travel by airplane or train. If a student travels by air or train, he will need to quarantine for one week in a green state and provide two negative PCR test results prior to returning to campus.
c. The deadline for a student to apply for an overnight leave is Tuesday, October 13, and must be approved by the parents/guardians on School Suite.
d. Students must follow the guidelines of the Social Contract.
Parents/Guardians visiting campus/area from "green" states:
a. Parents/guardians from "green" states are allowed to visit campus as long as they adhere to wearing a mask, follow physical distancing guidelines, avoid entering buildings, and limit contact with other students.
b. Parents/guardians from "green" states may visit and take their sons out to lunch/dinner locally; however, we request that you choose outdoor seating at the restaurant.
c. Students may stay at a local hotel with their parents/guardians who have traveled from a "green" state.
d. Students must follow the guidelines of the Social Contract.
Students traveling to other students' residences (green states only):
a. Students may request permission to stay at the residence of an AOF student in a green state.
b. The deadline for a student to apply for an overnight leave is Tuesday, October 13. This leave must be approved by the parents/guardians on School Suite.
c. Students must follow the guidelines of the Social Contract.
Students planning to travel to a "red" state:
a. Students are not permitted to travel to "red" states. If a student chooses to travel to a "red" state, he will be required to quarantine in a "green" state for 14 days and provide a negative COVID-19 PCR test, prior to returning to campus.
Parents/Guardians visiting from a "red" state:
a. We ask that parents/guardians from "red" states refrain from visiting campus at this time. We realize this is a difficult restriction. However, we feel it is necessary in order to maintain a healthy campus.

Community COVID-19 Testing

Community COVID-19 Testing

On Monday, October 19, the school will be conducting mandatory COVID-19 testing for our entire community. The cost of this testing will be absorbed by the School.
12–3 p.m. – Faculty, Staff, Day Students, Students who remained on campus
3–5 p.m. – Residential Students who left campus

On Thursday, October 22, the residential students who were granted an overnight/weekend leave and all-day students will be tested again as part of our strategy. This testing cost will be $95.00 and will be charged to your son's student account.

Once again, we are excited to virtually connect with all of our families and share the highlights from the first six weeks of school. If you have any questions about the information in this email, please reach out to me at whittyr@avonoldfarms.com or Heather Callaghan, director of nursing, at callaghanh@avonoldfarms.com. Thank you for your cooperation and dedication to ensuring we have a successful fall semester.

CLASS RING ORDERS THROUGH JOSTENS

Senior year is a time to celebrate your time at Avon Old Farms School. Whether you're the proud parent or the accomplished senior, Jostens has all you need to commemorate your high school achievements and memories.

In addition to helping you celebrate, we can create a personalized tribute to your success with a custom high school class ring. A class ring serves as a memento of your accomplishment, school spirit, your passions in high school and what lies ahead of you.

LEARN MORE

Overview

VIEW PHOTOS OF VISITING AUTHOR DAY

Cherouny Hawk's Nest School Store

Popular Items

Our most popular items are available for sale though the online book store.

Family Weekend Favorites

We've got a special Family Week offering of popular holiday gift items from our partners at Custom Made Comfort:

Blankets and Pillows

Not What You're Looking For?

You are encouraged to contact the school store if you have specific requests for other items. Lara Doyle would love to work with you!

Lara Doyle

Email:

Phone Numbers:
School: 860-404-4210

Student-Led Winter Clothing Drive

The Helping Hands For Connecticut club is holding a collection for the Love Wins Community Drive. This drive is done in honor of Ana-Grace, a Sandy Hook victim. Her mother Nelba Marquez-Greene organizes this drive at CCSU every year. She was extremely thankful last year for all of our help, and we hope that this year we can do the same!

Due to COVID-19, this year we will only be collecting NEW winter clothing (gloves, hats, socks, coats, etc.) and toiletries (toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo, soap, etc.). There will be clothing/donation bins in the Hawks Nest.

Please consider sending your son back to school with a few items to donate to the drive!