It is with a heavy heart to inform you that the Peru trip for the 2020-2021 school year has been officially canceled for Fall Break and for the possibility of Spring Break as well. We had initially thought that postponing the trip to Spring of 2021 may help allow things to calm down and make the experience safer for everyone involved, but it has become clear that even an extension to Spring Break will not be enough. The Peruvian government is dealing with the Covid-19 Pandemic differently than the United States, and they do not have plans to open up non-essential sectors of their country until October at the earliest. Even if things were to open back up they will continue to screen people upon entry and quarantine anyone showing symptoms for 14 days at a minimum. Even if we were able to enter the country, and a vaccine had been created, and all the students were inoculated there is still the concern of the community we would be staying with. They are quite isolated and have not had any cases of Covid in the region as of yet. It would be wildly irresponsible for us to possibly bring Covid to portions of the country that have not had to deal with those issues yet.
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I know that the kids will be disappointed as the anticipation and excitement around the trip has been larger than any year previously. To the students that will be Seniors next year I am so incredibly sorry and wish I had something more for them than an apology. To the students that will be Juniors and Sophomores next year I can promise you that we will do everything in our power to bring these opportunities back to them in the future when we can promise their safety as well as the safety of the communities we engage within. The most important thing to the other teachers and myself is that we ensure everyone’s safety above all else.
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Sincerely,
Mr. Kesle Risner
