







for parents impacted by coronavirus.

St. Mark Youth Enrichment
Learning today, leading tomorrow.
St. Mark Youth Enrichment provides healthy and enriching before and after school and summer programs.
For 30 years, we have created engaging environments for children in the Dubuque area.
Partnering with Audubon, Fulton, Lincoln and Marshall Elementary Schools,
as well as Dyersville, Farley, Peosta and Seton Catholic Elementary Schools

Recent Updates
- November 23, 2020
Dubuque County Family Resource Guide 2020-2021
Dubuque County Early Childhood (DCEC) publishes an annual Family Resource Guide with comprehensive listings of organizations and businesses that offer programs, resources, and products for area families. Click on the following link to download the current DCEC Resource Guide.
- November 23, 2020
St. Mark Program Update: Peosta/Seton Catholic
To our valued parents, partners, and staff,We have been closely and continuously monitoring the COVID-19 situation in our schools and communities we serve. At this time it is St. Mark Youth Enrichment’s goal to do our part in keeping our schools safe throughout the holidays, as safety is our top priority. To maintain safety for our families & staff alike we have decided to suspend in-person programming, with the intent to return in-person on January 11th. Student fees for program will be waived from Nov. 23rd until Jan. 11th, as the St. Mark leadership team foresaw this situation occurring and secured funding for tuition coverage. St. Mark Youth Enrichment will do what it can to support the effort in keeping schools open. We feel that transitioning to a virtual format is the best way to support these efforts. We aim to be as prepared as possible with the expected spike in COVID cases following the holidays. While we understand this may be inconvenient for families, we feel it is the best decision to make at this time for the long-term. Thank you to all of you who are doing your part to keep our community safe! Virtual sessions will occur starting the week of Nov. 30th. A schedule containing virtual session times/dates will be sent later this week. We will also work on adding any families to our Google Classroom platform who have not done so already. Beginning the week of Nov. 30th social-emotional learning bags will start to be delivered to schools weekly to be taken by students at the end of the school day. Learning bags will contain an SEL activity, supplemental materials for virtual sessions, and at times may include basic school supplies. For your reference, I’ve included the initial guidelines below that were shared with all of you previously. Thank you for your support, wishing you well. Initial Guidelines Shared: In an effort to keep everyone as informed as possible during this school year we are sharing the following information update related to St. Mark Youth Enrichment’s program operations impacted by COVID-19. As our understanding of the COVID-19 virus and best practices surrounding health and safety are constantly evolving, all guidance is subject to change. In alignment with our top priority of safety for our students and staff, St. Mark is implementing the guidelines below. It is our hope that sharing this with you now will help you to be as prepared as possible for any transitions from St. Mark’s in-person to our interactive virtual model (see description of model below, which will be fully functional by September 21, 2020). In-person programs will transition to our interactive virtual model IF any of the following conditions are met: ● If any program staff or student tests positive for COVID-19 at an individual site that site will transition to virtual for two weeks (14 calendar days) ● If 14-day average county positivity rate is >15% or is on a continual climb nearing 15% all sites will transition to virtual until it is deemed safe to transition to in-person programs ● If district partners request St. Mark NOT provide on-site programming, those specific sites will transition to virtual until it is deemed safe to transition to in-person programs ● If schools and/or districts transition to a virtual model, those specific sites will transition to virtual programs until it is deemed safe to transition to in-person programs ● If closure is dictated by state and/or local public health officials all sites will transition to virtual until it is deemed safe to transition to in-person programs Parents, partners, and staff will be notified via email any time a decision is made to transition to or from our interactive virtual model. Parents will also receive additional notification through Remind texts and Facebook notification. St. Mark students and staff who meet the CDC definition of being in “close contact” with a program individual who has tested positive for COVID-19 will be informed of this. Per CDC guidelines, these persons would be required to quarantine for 14 days. A “close contact” is defined by the CDC as proximity of 6 feet or less for 15 minutes or more. In an effort to reduce the risk of exposures, only program participants and staff will be allowed into the building/program areas. The interactive virtual model will ensure we continue to deliver quality, engaging programs that keep students connected to their peers and beloved site teams. As we experienced with the abrupt shut down in March, it is imperative that children stay connected and engaged for their social and emotional wellbeing. In order to ensure sustainability of our programs and employment of our site staff, tuition fees will continue to be billed monthly whether the program is offered in person or virtual for non-21st CCLC grant funded sites. St. Mark Interactive Virtual Model includes: ● Weekly supplies for at home activities (to connect with live engagement offered) ● Supplies conveniently offered for families to pick up at their convenience on a scheduled day of the week ● Recorded activities and interactive enrichment links that can be accessed at your convenience through Google Classrooms which is by invite only ● Daily live engagement with site “families” via Zoom and/or Google Classrooms (offered by familiar staff members) ● Social-emotional support, including materials/activities and St. Mark Buddies for students in need of additional support ● Homework help Remember to check our website for information on additional resources: Resources We are so grateful for your continued support and encouragement as we all walk alongside one another in cultivating the academic and social-emotional growth of all our amazing students. We are committed to being resilient and confident we will prevail over this crisis. And we will do it together with you! “You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end — which you can never afford to lose — with the discipline to confront the most brutal …READ MORE
BE A VIRTUAL GUEST READER
Do you have a story, talent, or activity to share? Send us a message to jaguilar@stmarkyouthenrichment.
Hi friends, it's Beth here from St Mark, and It's really eerie. It's really quiet. It makes me think of what, what could come in the summer, right?
We know that today our kids are being well taken care of. Taken care of by moms and dads who are working and being teachers. The school district and so many beautiful partners are feeding our kids beautifully. I've seen some of those meals (absolutely gorgeous) and we at St. Mark are really working hard to make sure that they're taken care of.
Here at St. Mark we are working on social-emotional packs to send out to our families and give them the opportunity to work on some of those things that are really the big questions for kids. You know, they have big feelings and this is nerve-wracking for them. They don't know. They've lost their school families. They've lost their best friends.
And some of them don't have the technology to be able to FaceTime their best friend, to shoot hoops with their best friend. And when we get to see them—when they come back to us, we're going to have to do a lot of work. And we're going to have to do some retraining. We're going to have to do some re-socialization. We’re going to need to be there to work through big questions like, “how do you be a good friend today, and how do you take care of yourself and work through your emotions?”
There's also going to be a huge educational lag. We know that. We know that kids were already struggling with summer slack. Let’s think about these kids. There's a potential that from March until August—no school. And here at St. Mark with our summer program, we're going to be able to tackle some of those issues and get kids as ready as we can for that first day of school and giving them opportunities.
I know that you as a member of this St. Mark family have been such beautiful supporters of us, and these kids need to know that that's going to continue.
We're going to have such a big need in the coming days. With the uncertainty of what could happen today or tomorrow, there are going to be more families than we thought who will need summer scholarships this year. We were planning for 100, and we know that this number will be drastically higher. Parents have been laid off, hours drastically cut. They need to know they’ll be taken care of.
Our staff is preparing to work with kids in trauma, because we know that this isolation is traumatic for kids. We're hoping that you support us and trust us to take care of these amazing, amazing youngsters and give them the opportunity to be in this safe space. They need your help to do that more than ever. You are their community. You’re their safety. You're their safe spot.
Our donors who have really been there for us are you. People like you have been making this happen for 30 years. And we want to make sure that we get the chance to take care of these kids this summer. Know very well that we are being beautiful stewards of your donations—taking care of our kids. We are prepared as an administrative team to come in and take care of these kids if and when we go back to school as well as taking care of them during the summer as much as we can.
This is, this is what we gear up for. This is what's in our hearts. I know that you are behind us in this, and I just need you to know that we're going to need you, they’re going to need you.
I know it's so much to ask right now, but please support these kids by clicking below or giving me a call at 563-590-2806 today and giving your best gift.
https://stmarkyouthenrichment.org/give-now/
Please help us be prepared for what’s to come and to be here this summer, to take care of these kids and prepare them for the first day of school. Have a beautiful day.
With love and big air hugs,
Beth
P.S. If you or someone you care for is struggling right now or just needs someone to talk to, please don't hesitate to reach out for support, friendship, or a listening ear. We're all apart together. You can reach me at 563-590-2806 or bmcgorry@stmarkyouthenrichment.
The mission of St. Mark Youth Enrichment is to provide innovative programs and services that cultivate the educational and social-emotional growth of youth and families.
Our vision is to enrich the life of every child.