LREI@home

April 6, 2020

Dear LREI Community,

I hope that this email finds you and your family healthy and comfortable. Thank you to all who have been in touch with questions or concerns, or simply to check in. Thank you as well to those who joined our community conversation on Thursday.  If you missed this “gathering” you can find a recording here. It was such a pleasure to see so many familiar faces, especially those of the children who joined us for a few minutes.

A few thoughts from me and then a message from the school’s psychologists.

• Earlier this afternoon Gov. Cuomo extended NY PAUSE until April 29, this includes extending school closures until at least the 29th. Accordingly, LREI will be operating as LREI@home until at least April 29.

• A number of you have asked questions regarding security on Zoom, one of the platforms we are using for LREI@home. Zoom has made a number of recent security upgrades and we have changed some of the ways we are configuring our Zoom meetings/meeting rooms. We will share a full rundown of these security fixes tomorrow.

• I will be available for drop-in conversations with families on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings from 8:45a.m.-9:15a.m. You can find a link to my Zoom meeting room and a password at this link.  If you have concerns at other times, feel free to email or call, as always.

• I am asking LREI’s employees to take a break from email, if at all possible, after business hours, over the weekends, and on days when school is not in session. If you email your child’s teacher, a member of the business office, etc. after business hours or on a day off from school you may not hear back until the next school day. If the matter is an urgent one, please email me and I will respond to your issue or will make contact with the person who can.

• Finally, I am so grateful for the many artists who have made content available online. In trying times, literature, music, the fine and performing arts, etc. are places of both comfort and beauty, of expression and discourse. You can find a number of artistic and cultural resources (and many other opportunities) at LREI.org and clicking on LREI@home or by following this link. You might enjoy these offerings from the NY Philharmonic, this challenge from the Getty Museum, new monologues written and performed in 24 hours, or listening to one of  the many books available free from Audible and, of course, from NYC’s great public libraries (NY, Brooklyn, Queens).  Don’t forget to check out @lrei_charlton_library on Instagram for a link to a live Hamilton singalong on Friday.

Best,

—

From LREI’s psychologists:

Hello LREI families,

Welcome back! We are excited to be back from spring break and are so glad to reconnect with you and your children, even if it is virtually. We are thinking of you as you live through these unusual times. We want you to know we are here for support and any mental health resources you may need.

Greetings to our students and families.

Judy. LS psychologist.mov

Alexis MS and HS psychologist.MOV

We are excited to announce that we’ll be hosting parent forums for each division starting the week of April 13th. The meetings will be a place for you to share your experiences, ask questions, and just be with the parent community.  We will share dates and times for these gatherings as soon as possible.

If you would like to connect with us individually, we can be reached at:

• Alexis Kahan Benjoya (Middle School and High School): akahan@lrei.org
• Judy Lambek (Lower School): jlambek@lrei.org

Take care and be well,

Alexis and Judy

Telephone/Online Mental Health Resources, if needed:

(Contact us if you would like more information or resources)