Philosophy & Leadership
“Just as I wear a mask to protect you, and you wear a mask to protect me, remember that the decisions you make impact others’ children, and the decisions others make will impact your children.”
Last Updated January 14, 2022. This reflects our best thinking up to this point and we are constantly working on it. Updates will be shared here and via newsletter.
CAIS Pandemic Response
As our school community navigates the complexities associated with COVID-19, CAIS remains committed to an educational program that is anchored in
- The essential elements of our school’s Mission, Core Values, and Strategic Vision
- Best practices in managing health risks for our students, workforce, and families
- Realistic and sustainable expectations of our faculty
- Partnership with our CAIS families as they strive to balance school, work, and family life
Our Guiding Principles
- We start from an abundance of caution and proceed with a commitment to systematic reassessment and adjustments to our approaches—both to risk management and student learning—based on information we actively seek from authorities and our community stakeholders.
- All children should attend in-person, full time school with health and safety as the top priority.
- Decisions about curriculum reflect the greatest needs for our students during this global health crisis.
- Health and hygiene decisions and plans are based on guidance from public health and government authorities.
- Successful risk management for everyone in our extended community depends on a partnership between families and school, and we rely on families to understand and adhere to the school’s guidance and procedures.
- This is a global crisis: patience, flexibility, and perspective are required of all community members.
Authorities That Will Guide Our Planning and Decision Making
(From specific to general):
- San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH)
- San Francisco Department of Social Services (DSS) for Preschool
- City and County of San Francisco
- California Department of Public Health (CDPH)
- State of California, Office of the Governor
- American Academy of Pediatrics
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Questions? Contact covidresponse@cais.org
Pandemic Response Advisory Team
The Pandemic Response Advisory Team brings a variety of perspectives and expertise to advise the Pandemic Response Operations (PRO) Team of administrators on how best to operationalize public health guidance.
Steve Bajc*
CFO/COO
Jeff Bissell*
Head of School
Kimberly Kaz*
Head of Lower School
Paul Kocher
Parent/Trustee
Stephanie Liang*
Health Coordinator
Dr. Ben Lui
Parent/Physician/Trustee
Mary Powell
Parent/Trustee
Wei Qian*
Head of Early Childhood
Tim Reitz*
Director of Communications
Dr. Monique Schaulis
Parent/Physician/Trustee
Chris Tom
Parent/Board Chair
Chu-Hsi Tseng*
Preschool Director
Joe Williamson*
Head of Middle School
Dr. Lisa Wu
Parent/Physician
Dr. Jean Yuan
Parent/Physician
* Pandemic Response Operations (PRO) Team Member