A Message from Meta Bowers, The Executive Director of the Meyer Center for Special Children
Dear Meyer Center Family,Thank you for your patience, understanding and support during these un-chartered and constantly changing times. As COVID-19 (coronavirus) continues to force a new norm on daily life, I think that it is more important than ever to keep you updated and remain transparent on the status of the Meyer Center and our return to school plans. I want to take a moment to share some critical information relevant to our reentry plans for the 2020-21 school year. First, we firmly believe that our students’ well-being requires regular face to face teacher and therapist interactions. As a parent, you know firsthand how vital these daily services are to your child’s success. As a result, the Meyer Center will resume face to face instruction on the first day of school.However, we also understand that each child and family we serve is unique. As parents or guardians, you will have a choice in deciding the method in which your child receives services. We respect the personal decisions of each family and are here to support your child’s success in the model you choose. These will range from:
- Full Distance Model
All instructional and therapeutic services will take place in the home.
- Hybrid Model
A schedule will be created to provide both virtual and in-person instructional and therapeutic services at the home and at the Meyer Center.
- Traditional Model
Face to face therapy and instruction at the Meyer Center.While our goal for the coming year is to provide as much face-to-face instruction as possible, doing so is complicated by the fact that cases of COVID-19 continue to rise significantly in our community. In order to provide services, we must have healthy students, teachers, therapist and staff. Therefore, it is vital for families to keep in mind that there is a real possibility, that at any point throughout this school year, your child’s class or even the entire school will revert to full distance learning as needed.We are also conscious of the fact that many of our families and students have struggled over these past four months. The swift closing of South Carolina schools on March 16 left us all reeling. Summer therapies have worked well. Yet nothing can replace the routine of coming to school and working hard to achieve our goals.Whether your child is learning at home, or at school, teamwork will be required to successfully navigate the upcoming school year. As parents and guardians, you are an integral part of the team! We invite each of you to go on this journey with us and look forward to your feedback as we tweak our organizational practices to continuously improve how we can help your child succeed this school year. We thank you for your trust, partnership and friendship. We cannot do what we do without your support.
