Webb Schools Expand Campus Instruction

The Webb Schools welcomed 198 students to campus on April 19 for an expanded program of activities, athletics and online classes that runs weekdays through the end of the 2021-22 academic year.

“We are beyond excited to have our students back on campus as we close out 2020-21,” Head of Schools Taylor Stockdale said. “Webb is a community centered on our students – we have felt their absence from campus almost as much as they have.”

The program builds on Webb’s March 1 launch of small study groups, in which students returned two days a week for online classes and athletics following strict COVID-19 safety protocols.

In both programs, students attend online classes in separate areas but interact in small cohorts when not in class. The first program created cohorts of up to 16 students. The new program allows larger cohorts based on student grade levels to take part in co-curricular activities and to gather in campus facilities, such as the newly remodeled and expanded Hooper Community Center.

CIF athletic competitions also will continue.

In addition, the campus will host a junior-senior prom on May 8, a virtual event for seniors and alumni on May 19, an annual celebration of arts and music on May 22 and end-of-year celebrations – including in-person commencement ceremonies – in June.

Seniors also will be allowed to take up residence on campus in early June to culminate their high school experience – a replacement for annual senior trips.

“We are grateful for the ability to allow our Class of 2021 to celebrate the completion of their high school journeys safely and in person,” Associate Head of Schools Theresa Smith said.

Campus facilities have been configured to optimize student safety. Students, staff and faculty will follow COVID-19 safety protocols. As of April 19, 90 percent of the faculty and staff had been vaccinated.

Webb typically enrolls 410 students from more than a dozen U.S. states and a handful of nations across the globe. Before the pandemic, about 65 percent of students were boarders, living in on-campus dormitories. 

State and county public health concerns, and guidance from Webb’s Medical Advisory Board, determined that full-scale boarding should not resume until the 2021-22 academic year.

Students who are unable to participate in the campus-based program will continue in Webb’s fully online academic program. Full-scale boarding is expected to resume with Webb’s Junior Scholars Summer Program, held in July.